He unlocks and opens the door, and we both exit. I bite my lip in regret as we head to the dining room to rejoin my parents.
Where does this leave us?
I don’t know what the future holds because my love life is nonexistent and uncertain. However, I think my rabbit-self and the fox he is need to figure out what lies ahead for us in the forest.
8
Jamison
Dinner was delicious, but the dessert that was El’s lips was the most decadent of flavors I’ve ever tasted. It’s not enough, though…I want more!
I want everything. From her.
She’s not ready for me, though. Patience isn’t a strong suit of mine because I can be a bastard when I want something. She’s worth waiting for, and I know this, but I can’t help my craving for her.
Getting to know her will prove to be the biggest challenge of my life; I’ve already surmised this last night when I was going through the contract revisions. But my hunger for her is growing stronger each day, and I need to remind myself to take my time. It is something I will have to do more frequently so as not to scare her off. She’s skittish like a damn rabbit or something.
When I arrive home from her parents’ house, I decide to do a final once-over of the contract. At this point, I’m as prepared as I can be. Hopefully I can impress her in the morning.
I sag in my chair and think about El’s scent. The taste of her lips was intoxicating. My God, I need to know her.
“Good night El…I’ll see you in the morning,” I whisper aloud.
Jamison
“Good morning,” Elodie says as she practically floats through the door and sits opposite from me on the other side of my desk.
“Mornin’, how’d you sleep last night?” I ask her, genuinely curious.
She looks perplexed, like I have two heads, and licks her pretty pink lips. “Umm, that seems inappropriate to ask me how I slept last night. May I remind you we’re at work?”
“Well, considering you had a panic attack last night, and I had my tongue down your throat, I was worried about you!”
Her eyes flash with annoyance at the mention of last night. My intention isn’t to piss her off. She has a way of hitting a nerve, and I can’t help sometimes but strike back, even when I tell myself I won’t do that.
I try again, but softer this time, “Look, El, I’m sorry. I wasn’t trying to bring up last night to start your morning off poorly. I really was worried. You seemed so fragile and rattled at dinner, and I know that’s not like you. But just because a person is vulnerable sometimes, it doesn’t mean they’re any less strong. I know you’re tough as nails. You’re fierce, beautiful, confident, and the most brilliant woman I’ve ever met.”
Her mouth drops open in shock. She stammers, “Th-th-thank you.”
She clears her throat and shuffles the stack of papers she’s holding, and I know she’s trying to get us back on track and geared toward work. It’s a closed subject for now, but it’s definitely not over. She’s going to be hearing more compliments from me more often, and she better get used to it.
“You ready for the meeting?” She pushes the glasses back on her face in a manner that I fucking love so much.
“Yes, ready as we’ll ever be.”
“Okay, then let’s do this!”
Elodie
Driving onto the military base gives me the sense that I have arrived in life. This. This is exactly where I want to be with my career and what I’ve worked so hard for.
When we reach the building, which houses the base commander’s office, we’re led to a conference room that exceeds my expectations—expectations loosely based on every military movie I’ve ever seen. We’re meeting with some military personnel as well as their civilian counterparts. The main point of contact we’ve been corresponding with is a top civilian engineer in the weapons division. He is a sharp, methodical man by the name of George Levitt. James and I have done extensive homework on him and know how to keep this client happy and dazzle him.
James and I take a seat next to each other at the massive table surrounded by leather chairs. As inconspicuously as I can, I breathe in deeply through my nose and cross my legs under the table. I reach into my shoulder bag that houses my precious planner and put it on the surface so I’m prepared with my notes just in case I have to step in for James. I still don’t trust him fully, no matter how confident he appears to be.
“Ready for me to start?” Jamison whispers so close to my face that his breath tickles the shell of my ear.
Shivering, I decide it’s best just to nod—I can’t let on how he’s affecting me and starting to weasel his way into my thoughts. I need my game face on and can’t let him rattle me, even if he is sexy in his three-piece suit. Truthfully, our verbal sparring thrills me and drives me to push on. But something is different about him lately, and it scares me.
After licking my lips, I stare directly at my clients and wait for James to begin the presentation. A part of me still wishes it were me taking the lead, and then another part of me, the part who seems to be in charge these days, is anxious to hear his smooth voice and see him in action.
Admittedly, I space out for a good fifteen minutes while he highlights the finer points of the contract, answers in-depth questions, and passes out a detailed report for the project. Hypnotized by James’s voice, it seems I have fallen under the same spell every woman who encounters him falls victim to. No wonder why Rebecca is like a bitch in heat around him.
Before I realize it, more time has passed, and everyone is standing and shaking hands. I move my head back and forth to clear my foggy brain.
“Miss Alcott, your father sure has the best in the business on his team.”
I shake Mr. Levitt’s hand and reply with a bright, carefully controlled smile, “Why, thank you, sir. My father only recruits and retains the best.”
I mull over my own words. Have I been ridiculous all along, and James really is the best?
Jamison catches my eye in my peripheral vision; even he is stunned by my words. Ignoring James as best as I can, I continue to make small talk with Mr. Levitt for a few minutes longer.
Ignore—as if you could ignore him now, my subconscious reminds me.
Jamison
I’m riding high. The high isn’t because I just nailed the biggest presentation of my life and answered every fucking question expertly and perfectly. It’s because of El. Her words touched me in a way only a woman could.
My grin hasn’t left my face the entire car ride back to the office. She hasn’t said a word. For fear that she might take back everything she said, I haven’t spoken yet either. The hot and cold that we’ve been operating under lately should come to an end.
Her beauty is overwhelming. She’s so practiced and controlled, but I can see she’s warring with herself. I’m not a bastard by any stretch to take advantage, yet I feel I have to capitalize on this moment. It’s now or never!
“Have dinner with me?” It’s more of a question; however, I also want the command to be definitive.