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I go back to explaining the details of the cease and desist letter that the legal department will be sending out tomorrow to a competitor for trademark infringement. Liam asks questions about my strategy and together, we come up with a game plan for moving forward on the matter.
It might be shocking to most people to know how much work we get done in this executive suite during the football season. Taking my work outside of the office every now and then is like hitting ‘refresh’ on my brain sometimes. Liam seems to operate the same way.
We finish up with the paperwork, then my boss turns his attention to his phone while I get up to grab a small plate of refreshments from the nearby buffet. I happen to find Sera roaming around, stacking her plate high with food. We strike up a conversation and she wanders back to my seat with me.
Liam snaps a quick glance at us when we sink into chairs beside him. “Did you girls get your invitation to the children’s charity gala?” he asks.
I ignore the uncomfortable tingle I immediately feel at the back of my neck.
“I’m not sure if Jace and I will be going.” Sera frowns, rubbing her baby bump. “I never know what time of day the nausea will hit me. So I try to just go with the flow and keep from making commitments too far in advance.” She sips from her water bottle.
“What about you?” Liam shoots my way.
I stick a cheesy appetizer into my mouth. “I’ll be skipping it this year,” I say from behind the napkin I press to my lips.
My boss glances me over with a lifted eyebrow. “What? Why?” he asks suspiciously. “You’re always first in line to go to that thing.”
I take a sip from my own water bottle, hoping to swallow down my nerves. “I have a lot on my plate. I’ve decided to focus my energy where it’s needed instead of spreading myself too thin.”
Liam laughs curtly. “That doesn’t even sound like you. You’re a workaholic, through and through.” His gaze rolls across his phone screen again. He squints at it. “Wait—your ex…” He scrolls back through the email. “Luke something or other. He’s your ex, right? I knew the name looked familiar.”
Dammit. Sometimes it’s so fucking annoying how perceptive my boss is. That’s one of the qualities that made him a billionaire in his early thirties.
“This Luke guy wouldn’t happen to be the reason you’re skipping out on the gala this year, would he?”
I could lie, but it’s no use. Liam has a very keen sense for knowing when someone’s bullshitting him.
“Something like that,” I admit through my teeth.
He exhales heavily. “Look, I hate to break it to you but I’m gonna need you at that event, Nadia.” I frown at him but before I can get a word out, he holds up a palm. “I’ll be in Europe until the day after the gala. I’ll need you there to represent the firm.”
“Can’t someone else go? What about one of the executives?” I protest, my frantic gaze sweeping around the VIP box for someone to throw under the bus. “What about Todd from Public Relations? Or Sam, the HR director? He and his wife make a huge donation every year? Or—”
“It’s gonna have to be you, Nadia.” His expression is apologetic but unyielding. His decision is made. “You have a great relationship with their board of directors. They’ll be expecting to see you.”
I’m skeptical. Oh, so skeptical. And the last thing I’d want to do is come across as unprofessional. I should be able to put my stupid feelings aside, go to this event and handle business. Right?
Sera shoots me a sympathetic glance but that’s about the extent of the help she can offer me. I’m in this sinking ship on my own.
A roar rings out throughout the arena. We look up just in time to see Maxwell and Harry doing their touchdown dance in the end zone right before the other Paragons players pile onto their backs. The home crowd is going wild.
Liam forgets all about me, breaking into erratic cheers along with the rest of the sky lounge. Meanwhile, I’m here, trying to keep my shit together and silently fighting the nerves going to war in my belly.
Fuck.
All too soon, Liam’s attention is back on me. He sighs. “Look, I get it. It could be awkward running into your ex. And the last thing I want is to be the bad guy, but I’m really counting on you, Nadia.”
I grind my teeth against the string of cusswords trying to make a prison break from my mouth.
“It won’t be that bad,” he insists.
“I can’t believe you actually managed to deliver that line with a straight face,” I mutter into my water bottle. Sera chuckles.
“Oh come on, Nadia,” he says like I’m being unreasonable.
Unfortunately, my boss knows more about my dating history than he probably should. The result of him and I developing an actual friendship over the years. I may have overshared a time or two during those laidback dinner parties Eliza throws from time to time. In any case, you’d think that Liam would be willing to cut me some slack here given that he knows the gory details of my story with Luke. But of course not.
He side-eyes the field, then his face lights up with an idea. “Why don’t you take one of the guys with you?”
