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“Iamcarrying the responsibility for this build. I’m telling you this is the best path to get it all done on the timeline you need for your precious fucking show!”
“Children, children.” Dom strolled in, hands tucked into his pockets. “What seems to be the trouble?”
“Just a hiccup, Dad. Right, Jake?”
“Like you said. You’re the one on the hook for overruns. If you say it’s just a little hole in the ground, who am I to argue?”
Jake raised his hands in surrender and backed out of the room, his mind rapidly juggling shooting schedules and personnel. He might as well quit trying to protect her. If she caused them a delay or took them over budget, he would be a hero at the network. A show that made money on production? Unheard of. But that’s just what they’d do if she had to pay back the hundred grand.
He strode into the production trailer, and sure enough there were the changes, printed and engineer approved, sitting on his keyboard.Damn her.True, he’d been gone for two days, but she could have reached him if she wanted to. No, this was a power grab. He could play that game too.
He dialed the number listed on the supply list.
“Hello? Yes, this is Jake Ryland. I’m the man in charge on the Valenti Vineyard show site. I need you to delay your delivery time by about an hour. Yes, sorry it’s last minute. Unavoidable… Yes, I understand that the concrete has been mixed and is en route. I’ll take responsibility if we exceed the window. Thank you.”
As he disconnected, the door behind him slammed open, bouncing off the wall behind it.
Frankie caught the recoil as she strode into his office, face red and fuming. "You want to argue with me? Fine. I can take it. But I will not tolerate you being disrespectful to my dad.”
She stood in the doorway, chest heaving and breathing fire. It was a good look on her. Why did he find her more attractive when she wanted to gouge his eyes out? She was fully alive in this moment, and he knew not one of her emotions was feigned. He'd been around enough actors to tell the difference between real emotions and ones worn like a mask. She was angry to her core.
“You thought that was disrespectful?”
“You walked away, dismissing him in the middle of the conversation.” She stepped farther into the room and shut the door behind her.
Jake stepped closer, careful to keep a safe distance, but needing to meet her challenge for challenge. “Did you really want me to lay out the details of your scheming in front of your father?”
“I didn’t do a damn thing wrong! I cleared all the changes with the engineers and architects. I kept my budget balanced. I updated the plans and sent you the details. And I kept my promise to you and to Sofia.” Ticking her points off on her fingers, she advanced on him until she was close enough to touch.
Her eyes glittered with angry tears, and he momentarily got lost in them, trying to figure her out. He hated tears. They’d been used as tools against him for too many years for him to take them at face value, but he would swear these were real.
“Why can’t you be more flexible?” She shoved at him, blinking back her tears and breaking the spell. He was impressed that she didn’t let them fall to manipulate him. She was clearly angling for a reaction though. Well, he’d give her one.
He moved in even closer, his height towering over her. When she retreated, he advanced until her back was against the door. Bracing his hands on either side of her head, he leaned in close enough to smell the peppermint gum on her breath. “You want to see how flexible I can be, Frankie?”
The frustration in her eyes flickered and, for a second, surprised curiosity took its place. It was the wariness that quickly replaced the surprise that had him stepping back from temptation. He liked her angry bravado, but he couldn’t enjoy her fear.
“I’m sorry. That was out of line.” He stepped back even farther, running his hands through his hair.
Frankie reached out a hand to his hip, and he froze. “Maybe,” she whispered.
“Excuse me?” He couldn’t have heard that right.
“You asked if I wanted to see how flexible you can be. My answer is maybe. I just got the strangest sense of déjà vu. You want to kiss me.” She said this with a certainty that she’d read him right. And she had.Shit.
“No. That’s crazy. We can’t.”
“Why not?” This time she was the one advancing, cutting off his retreat, her hand never leaving his waist.
“You’re Dom’s daughter. I respect him.”
“Good, then you won’t treat me like shit. Next?”
He took another step back until his thighs bumped against his desk. “We work together. I’m your boss.”
“You are not my boss. You run the show. I run the build. We are colleagues.”
“Maybe.” She glared as he grasped at straws. “You said maybe. Why maybe?”
