She took a deep breath and felt her nerves calm as she exhaled. “Sure,” she said, double-checking her robe before joining him by the fire and sitting in an adjacent chair. He glanced back at her, and she suddenly felt uncomfortably close to him, especially when wrapped in his robe. She sat up a little taller, taking her most professional stance.
But she’d never noticed the pure aqua color of his eyes. Like the ocean on a bright summer day, they were mesmerizing. She tried to look away, but her body refused to listen, staying locked in his gaze and drinking in the sight of him.
“I know you said you didn’t want to work with me on this next conference meeting, but I would appreciate if you’d reconsider. I’m…asking you to reconsider.” He looked back at her honestly, his eyes wide and face slack. Like he needed her. Like he couldn’t do it without her.
Here was Kayson Blake, asking her for something again. And all she had to do was say no.
Chapter 8
Kayson looked back at Elayna with as much sincerity as he could muster. He needed her to believe him and hoped beyond hope that she would say yes. There was something different in her eyes that encouraged him, and he waited through the silence, hoping desperately that she would change her mind.
But the last thing he wanted to be was desperate. He fought against the feeling even as it overwhelmed him. With Elayna at his side, he would be able to convince investors that he was something more. A leader, thinking innovatively and energized with modern, lucrative ideas.
She took a breath and crossed her legs before adjusting her robe again…his robe again. He had to push the idea from his mind, forcing himself to see her as a business associate and that was it. Never mind that she had the lips of a goddess and hair like silk. When he’d seen her shivering on his doorstep, he’d nearly wrapped her in his arms, but knowing full well how creepy that would be, he’d settled on just his coat.
The memory surfaced of his security feed, showing her in his elevator, and suddenly he didn’t want to push her into anything. He sat back into the couch cushions, gazing into the fire while feeling her eyes on him like hot coals, searing his skin.
“Maybe we could talk about the innovative ways we hope to use your lens?” He glanced back to see her looking determined. She hardly appeared ready to say yes to anything.
He turned back to the fire. “You see, I don’t just plan on gazing at the stars with this lens. I want it to be a leading technology in the industry.”
She straightened up. “I know. I can’t tell you how impressed I was with your proposal to fund those projects. It actually goes along perfectly with what I wanted.”
She peered back at him cautiously for a moment, as if reading something significant in his face. And the way she scooted forward in her seat, like she was sharing something personal, made his stomach sink.
“Have you ever felt like everyone is just putting in the bare effort it takes to get something back? And that’s their ultimate goal? Their only goal? People should want more than that. To do more with what they create…like what you’re doing.”
Elayna smiled back at him. Her cheeks glowed, and her deep brown eyes were like a snapshot of another country. She was the most eclectic mix of beauty he’d ever seen, and his thoughts became tangled and lost the longer he gazed at her.
“What I mean is, I want to do things that make a difference in the world. Now and in the future. Your programs, they’re incredible.”
Kayson forced himself to focus on her words, but that only led him to look at her lips while she spoke. He cleared his throat. His stomach was beginning to twist. He suddenly knew just enough about Elayna to feel like a complete heel. His idea of outfitting a fleet of superyachts with her technology was going to crush her.
But maybe he could avoid that. If he just started with the superyachts, then put 110% effort into these programs… It would be the icing on the cake, the easy stuff after settling a deal worth billions.
And he needed to settle the deal.
He took a breath, careful to keep a casualness to his posture even though his heart was beginning to pound. “I think we can do it. All of it.” He watched her eyes light up and wanted to punch himself.
But really, he wasn’t completely lying. After his deal was sold, he’d work on those projects. It would be easy; he could finish in a week. Maybe she’d never have to know about the yachts. He hoped beyond reason that she wouldn’t.
He smiled at her the way he learned to smile at all his clients. Confident, compassionate, and interested. It all showed through in a very purposeful way, and meanwhile, the pain in his stomach swelled. It especially hurt now that Elayna was more at ease than before, as if she considered him a friend, as if their acquaintance status had been elevated.
“If we could make this work, it would be incredible, Elayna.” He noticed the way her head turned at the sound of her name on his lips, and it suddenly felt like a much deeper lie. He swallowed the sour taste of dishonesty. “But what I really need is for you to be at the next conference meeting. I can’t do it without you. If you could just introduce the lens, go crazy describing its capabilities, then I’d handle the wrap-up and the rest of the negotiation.” His eyes settled on her again, and in her gaze, he felt his entire being calm. “Would you be willing to do that?”
She seemed balanced on the edge. Her eyes said yes, but her lips were downturned. Kayson kept himself steady through the silence, waiting for her answer. Visions of the investors’ faces after listening to Elayna, overcome with surprise and approval, appeared in his mind.
He stood suddenly, feeling too anxious to sit still with the torrent of emotions battling inside. His dogs trotted over to him, and he rubbed their heads like he always did, lifting their ears under his hand so that they flopped against him. It always made him chuckle, but now he was too tense.
He glanced over at Elayna, and she looked away from him. “Look, I don’t want to put you on the spot,” he said quietly, “and I’m sure you’d like to get home. Just think about it and let me know in the morning.”
He could see the relief visibly wash over her, although she kept her expression guarded. It showed in the slump of her delicate shoulders and the way she relaxed into the cushions around her. It made him feel like even more of a jerk than before. But he needed this deal if he wanted to continue leading the company, and if he didn’t continue with the company, he was no one.
They said goodbye with a handshake. A hug might have been appropriate, but definitely not with her wearing his robe.
He held the door open and watched her leave. A pale ghost in the black of night. She opened her car door and stood still, letting the wind brush her hair aside. Her neck looked smooth and graceful, and Kayson couldn’t help but notice the gentle lines of her shoulders wrapped in plush cotton.
She turned her head suddenly, sending her hair spiraling away from her face.
Kayson flinched, having become completely lost in admiring her. He saw her eyebrows lift with curiosity for a second, followed by her lips pursing together.
“I’ll do it,” she said. Her face remained studious and intense, and Kayson only nodded his head while his insides swirled with turmoil.
She stepped into her car and drove away with dog-smudged windows reflecting the moonlight.