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Because the one thing Christian did hold dear was MMT. The tech company that Jai and he’d built through high school and college. That had become the backbone of Mikkelsen Technologies in the last decade.
“While I agree with you that Ms. Chatsworth can do a lot better,” Priya said, grinning, “it’s possible she saw something worth loving even in you, Christian. Greater miracles have been known to happen.”
“Now you’re just kicking me when I’m down,” he said, mock hurt in his voice. But the warmth in his blue eyes made her feel as if she’d won a prize. “The thing is I’ve got to beat the old man at his own game. And you’re the only one who can save me, Pree.”
This time, Priya didn’t have to fake her disbelief. “Save you, Christian? I’m far too much of a realist for that.”
“So you do agree that I need saving?”
There was something in his question that felt off to Priya. That held a depth, a hunger she didn’t want to delve into.
She could feel his gaze sweeping over her face, as if he was waiting to see if she’d take the bait.
Ducking her gaze, she made a show of tidying her desk, searching for something to bring their conversation back to neutral ground. “If you want the truth, you’ve been a bit out of control recently. I can’t blame Ben for trying to bring some—” she cleared her throat when he raised that devilish brow “—balance back into your life.” And because she should have said it long before now, she added, “I don’t know what I’d have done without your support over the past year, Christian.”
“You’d have survived.”
“You have more faith in me than I do,” she added. On an impulse, she took his hand. His fingers had a deliciously abrasive texture, thanks to how incessantly he played with pieces of wood and his chisel. Sensation coiled deep in her belly, a cavern yawning wide open for more. She let go immediately. “I’m sorry for not being a better friend to you. For not realizing sooner that you lost Jai, too.”
He pushed a hand through his hair, not meeting her eyes.
She cleared her throat, wondering if she’d made him uncomfortable. No, grief wasn’t something Christian shoved away. Then why? “You look a wreck, Christian. Ben has a good reason to worry about you.”
“I’m not one of his precious horses for him to corral and be quietly led back into my stall.”
“And if Jai were here to say you’re spiraling out of control, Christian?”
He pressed the heels of his palms to his eyes and let out a breath. “I’m not interested in settling down, Pree. Not for anyone. Damn it, I’m only twenty-four years old.” Those penetrating eyes pinned her. “But I wasn’t joking when I suggested we get married. It solves more than one problem.”
As if the very universe was helping him support his case, her cell phone chirped. Priya looked at the screen to find Mama’s anxious face peering up at her. Priya slammed it facedown. It continued to chirp, the sound progressively getting on her nerves, until she thought she might scream.
It finally stopped. They both stared at the company phone on the desk. Right on cue, it started ringing.
Priya pushed her fingers through her hair, swallowing a growl of frustration.
“Don’t tell me you aren’t a little bit flattered to realize you’re the first woman I’ve ever proposed to,” Christian teased, putting himself between her desk and her.
And his distraction worked.
Her hand on her heart, Priya fluttered her lashes. And threw in a mock gasp for effect. “Oh, my! How cynical of me to not realize what an honor this is. The first woman that the unconquerable Christian Mikkelsen proposed marriage to. Maybe I’ll get a sash which says that and wear it every day.”
“It would certainly be an improvement,” he said, his gaze doing a quick sweep of her beige pantsuit.
She craned her head toward him and lowered her voice into a theatrical whisper. “Your proposal needs a little work, Christian. Keep trying and the twentieth woman might just accept.”
He pushed off from his position, making her solid wood desk shake.
The framed picture of Jai she had on a tiny wooden shelf shifted and fell forward. Priya reached for it and her fingers clashed with Christian’s. The frame balanced there, in both their palms. Her heart ached, but she was used to that hole. What Priya wasn’t expecting was how the glide of Christian’s fingers on her wrist sent a spark of sensation down her spine.
She pulled away, her skin jumping at the contact. Her heart began thudding urgently. He’d straightened up but he was still there, close enough to touch. The scent of him filled her nostrils and the warmth of his body beckoned. Her skin tingled with an awareness that Priya couldn’t ignore. She swallowed, wondering if she was slowly losing her mind.
“I’m serious, Priya.”
His matter-of-fact tone sent relief crashing through her. Thank God he hadn’t noticed her ridiculous reaction to him. Thank God that he was just as unaware of her as he’d always been. For years, she’d been his best friend’s shy, geeky girlfriend and then fiancée.
This attraction was unwelcome. He was her fiancé’s best friend—granted, the fiancé who’d been dead now for close to a year. When Jai had been alive, she’d always got the feeling that Christian thought of her as an annoying sister or cousin he had to put up with, for his best friend’s sake.
But now Christian was her...friend.
