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“There's more.” I cut him off. “We'll connect this to making biofuels. From these enhanced plants, we can start making our own fuels.”
“That's going to cause an uproar in the market. It's a pretty bold move. I guarantee a lot of people will want in. And people, especially environmentalists, will regard the company more favorably. You know, saving the planet and all.”
“Yeah, exactly.” I smiled, satisfied.
“It hasn't been tested yet on a large scale, though, you know.”
“That's what makes it so enticing. Everyone wants to be part of the new movement. We’d be at the forefront. We’d be the first.”
“Yes,” Evan agreed. “That would definitely help to drag your ratings up a bit.”
“That's what I'm after. And if we could somehow partner with the federal government… well, that would only make it stronger,” I mused.
“It’s a great idea,” Evan agreed. “But it’s a long game thing. You need something splashy and you need it now. And it needs to be something with a humanitarian bent that will redeem you in the public eye. Kind of like saving kids from killer genetic mutations.”
I sighed. He wasn’t wrong. But I wanted to respect Amy’s timeline. She also wasn’t wrong. When the media got involved and a spotlight was put on a project like this, things could quickly go wrong.
“We have to at least get the project underway and start making progress before any announcements go out.”
“Explain the situation to her and she'll understand.”
“No,” I said sharply.
“Why do I get the feeling that you're scared of her?”
“Not scared.” I sighed. “Just trying to prevent a fight happening this time.”
“I still think you should let her know why you made this arrangement, why you got interested in her research. That way you can stop feeling like you got the short end of the deal and she won't feel lied to when she eventually finds out or when you make that announcement."
“No, I can't,” I said firmly again.
“Alright,” he said, and started scrolling on his phone.
“Let me ask you this, Daniel,” he suddenly said. “What happens if she leaves, and the agreement is null and void? Nothing prevents the company from continuing the research, using her progress, and giving her nothing. She’d be gone and will have no real authority.”
“I won't let that happen,” I promised. “I won't.”
Chapter 21
Amy
Whatthehelljusthappened? I stood there in the middle of the lab, stunned.
It seemed that maybe some things never changed, no matter how much time passed. I’d been willing to chock the recently bloomed attraction up to wild coincidence. But it turned out Daniel Reed was just my weakness. I had a crush on him in highschool and it was time to admit that I might still have a crush on him now.
Even though he didn’t necessarily deserve my feelings.
At first, he was like everyone else and seemed to never notice my presence. I'd pass him in the hallways and his eyes would go over me without registering. Then when his dark brooding eyes finally saw me, he became a classic jerk.
When he told me I didn’t belong, I was even more embarrassed because of the feelings I had for him. Yet, no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t resist that I had a strange sort of fascination with him.
Deep down, I knew it was because I thought there was more to him than the asshole at the party all those years ago. Hell, I even thought there was more to him than the asshole at the reunion. There was something that buzzed in the tension between him and Damien that told me Daniel’s life was maybe not as simple as I’d always assumed.
And there was no doubt that my body was very, very attracted to his body. God, I had melted into him so easily. At work, no less. That was not something that Amy Palmer did. At all. Ever. My face heated as I tried to refocus on the sea of numerical contents on my computer screen. But my body was still reeling from that kiss and my brain cells hadn’t fallen back into place just yet.
“Dr. Palmer, could you please share with me the reports Janice collated?” Auburn inquired, walking into my office. I had encouraged her and everyone to call me Amy, but it was still taking them some getting used to, apparently. They had all worked together at some point while I was the newbie among them.
“Yeah, sure. Just a minute.” I hastily clicked on my keyboard, searching for the file she requested.
