Total pages in book: 156
Estimated words: 158829 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 794(@200wpm)___ 635(@250wpm)___ 529(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 158829 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 794(@200wpm)___ 635(@250wpm)___ 529(@300wpm)
Right it is.
My courage dissipates by the second, walking through the blue-tinted doors that look like they belong in a fancy airport lounge. Inside, it’s all glamor, black and gold modern accents and a sparkling chandelier that must be the world’s most tedious job to polish.
I imagine people standing on ladders with toothbrushes just to get it done.
“Miss Renee?” A warm voice startles me.
I look up and see a guy in black-framed glasses. He’s wearing skinny jeans with a black shirt and a spotless white blazer.
He offers me his hand, and I shake it.
“I’m Keenan Dutton, Executive Assistant. I wasn’t sure if you’d know where to go, so I planned to meet you at the elevator, but I got held up in a meeting.” His smile feels disarming, at least.
“Umm—are you coming with me?” I clear my throat. “To talk to Mr. Winthrope, I mean?”
“I believe he wants to see you alone, but you shouldn’t worry. I promise you his legendary bark is worse than his bite—but I think you already know that since you’ve met.”
I almost fall over.
Oh God, oh God, this Keenan guy knows about Lanai?
Did Winthrope tell him we—
But before I finish that thought, Keenan starts moving, urging me on to Brock’s office. Once we reach the door, he opens it for me.
Why do I get the feeling I’m being thrown in a lion pit?
I’m barely one step inside when Keenan shuts the door behind me.
Here we go.
Of course, he’s the center of his entire world.
His desk is a focal point, huge and sprawling enough to rival the Resolute desk in the Oval Office.
There, the corporate god-king rises from his leather power chair, backlit by another dramatic view of a rain-spattered Seattle and the Puget Sound behind him.
Piercing blue eyes meet mine for a breathless second—before his eyes drift lower.
I. Am. Dead.
Is he staring at my lips?
I wonder if he’s back in that star-strung Hawaiian night with me, remembering how I tasted while Jupiter glowed overhead.
His gaze snakes down my body, stopping on my chest, my hips, my legs.
I suddenly feel as naked as I did the first night we met, when I had to face him in a t-shirt and panties.
My cheeks heat furiously, but it’s not all desire or nerves.
I’m pissed.
He said he had no desire to see me again.
He didn’t even tell me the truth about who he actually was.
So, why pretend this is any sort of happy reunion now?
Anger gives me the shot of courage I need to speak.
“Well, are you just going to stare or tell me why I’m here?”
“Three reasons, Miss Renee. First, I needed to see you up close with my own eyes to prove it was really you—preferably without you disappearing like a skittish fawn. Second, your talent is being wasted in an entry-level copywriting role. That changes now.”
“What?” I throw out. He’s just randomly changing my job without even asking me? “Okay, CEO or not, you can’t just reassign me on my second day here.”
He stiffens, leveling those soul-searing blue eyes on mine.
“Can’t I, Miss Renee?”
God.
I’m biting my lip so hard I taste something metallic.
I just can’t decide if I want to race over and slap him across the face or sink through the floor.
He laughs. “I’m the CEO and the buck stops here. If you’re questioning my decisions, you’re welcome to appeal to the shareholders directly—including my grandfather, still the majority shareholder.”
“Fine. You want to randomly pick me up and dump me somewhere else? That’s cool. I’m calling your grandpa.”
He snorts loudly. “You’re threatening to call my grandparents on me in the first sixty seconds we’ve been reunited?”
I cross my arms and nod.
He shakes his head. “I’ve never had a disgruntled employee threaten that before. Glad to see it wasn’t just the Lanai sunshine that makes you a wolverine. Here, I’ll sweeten the deal—”
“How? You haven’t even told me the terms yet...” I look at him incredulously.
“Simple. You help me with the organic reviewer slash influencer pool, including your honest assessment of what went wrong, and I’ll up your pay. How does three times your current salary sound? Effective immediately.”
Holy moolah.
The prick knows how to hit me where I live.
With that kind of salary, we’d have a new furnace, a cushion for Dad’s bills, and enough left over for takeout once in a while.
But that pesky little voice inside me tells him to go to hell just so he knows he can’t control my life. I’m not for sale for any amount.
...but we could really use that money.
And he isn’t asking for anything impossible. Yet.
I don’t think I can turn him down just for spite.
What’s the cost of a deal with the devil again?
“Should I take your silence as a 'yes?'” he demands.
“...I’ll think about it,” I whisper.
His eyebrows go up, and he scoffs. “What?”
“I’ll think about it.”