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He clenched the steering wheel. “I think we should leave last night out of it.”
“Aren’t we wasting precious time right now, arguing?” she asked.
“I’m not arguing. I’m talking about you deflecting the conversation from being late.”
“I’m here now. Let’s get going. Or are you expecting me to apologize?” she asked, acting innocent.
“You? Apologize?” He snorted. And yet, he still didn’t back the cart up.
He wanted to get into last night. It had kept him awake. He scanned her face, looking for a hint of the fatigue he felt. There was something around her eyes, but he couldn’t tell what it was. Bitterness? Melancholy?
“I’m glad you haven’t forgotten that about me.” She smiled. “What made me late, though, was reviewing your lawyer’s paperwork.” She pulled a thick envelope out of her bag. “I printed it out and read it carefully.”
He stared at the envelope, that strange, suffocating feeling surging. “And?”
“And…it’s very fair. Just like you said it would be.” She shrugged. “I signed two copies.”
She held the envelope out, and he stared at it. When she shook it at him, he actually startled. “Here you go, with your precious Meyer Communications undestroyed by me,” she taunted.
But not as harshly as he’d expected. “Meyer Global in a few months,” he replied, peeling his fingers off the steering wheel and accepting the envelope.
“Really?” she asked, her expression morphing into surprise. Happy surprise, actually.
“Yes.” He tucked the thick envelope into his coat pocket.
“Monty! That’s incredible,” she said, looking down at her bag. She zipped it closed and fussed with the straps. “It must feel good to achieve your goal.”
“It does,” he agreed. But the words tasted bitter.
“I bet your father won’t agree.” She gave him a quick, amused glance.
That made him laugh. “No, he won’t. I’m sure he’ll find some way to interfere. Or try to.”
“Maybe don’t tell him—”
“I don’t think I’ll tell him—”
They laughed as their statements collided.
He sat back in the seat with a sigh. “About last night…” he began, then struggled for what he wanted to say. It was close to an apology, but he wasn’t sure for what. For letting himself feel things for her he never had? That felt like emotional suicide.
She nodded. “I know. It was…something. But let’s focus on the plan for today,” she suggested, sounding a little frantic. “We’ll find Lucas, and then I can get back on track with Cavendish. I owe that to my sorority sisters—a viable company to work for.” She finished with a laugh, but looked straight ahead at the brick wall.
“Right,” he agreed, turning the key to the on position. “I’m flying to Beijing next week to complete Meyer’s global launch.” He backed the cart into the main tunnel, pointing it toward Topkapi.
“Your global strategy,” she mused, shaking her head. “Good for you, Monty—sorry, Montgomery.”
He glanced at her, but her eyes were focused on his hands on the steering wheel.
“Stop it,” he said, and her gaze bounced up, startled. “You can call me Monty any time.”
She took a deep breath, squaring her shoulders. She gave a curt nod and faced straight ahead.
And so, Montgomery drove them off, the lights on the walls pulsing to life as the cart tripped the sensors. He still wanted to say something about last night, despite her deflection. Something about it felt unfinished. Instead, he let the silence grow between them until it hummed as loudly as the whisper of rubber tires in the concrete tunnel.
It’s better this way, he thought. Move on, do the job they had to do, and let any personal entanglements wither and die. If there were regrets about things left unsaid, he’d have a long flight to Beijing next week to drink them away.
CHAPTER14
