Page 22 of It Starts With A No

“Then I’ll slowly enjoy the rest of the turkey in front of you, while refusing to let you take another bite.” She flicked her brows up and smirked again.

He laughed and nodded. “You don’t disappoint.”

She arched a brow, and he shook his head.

“I’ll be civil,” he said.

Her head bobbed up and down. “Grandma Moretti says food always makes people nicer.”

“Maybe you should start cooking for the boys’ club.”

“And how much rat poison do you suggest I put in there?”

“Enough to make them sick for a few days, but not kill them.”

“And how much is that?”

“No idea. But I could probably set up some experiment and find out.”

She chuckled, but her smile faded as she dropped her gaze.

“What?”

A corner of her lips hooked back into a ghost of a smile, and his brows twitched at the sudden change in her mood.

“Eat.” She pointed at the food. “I’ll get you a glass of water.”

Seth wasn’t interested in the food anymore, though. He did, however, cut another slice of turkey and put it on her plate. He was cutting it up into smaller pieces when she returned.

Clary put the glass of water in front of him and stared at the food.

“You’re not on a diet, are you?”

“No. I’m the kind who exercises so I can eat whatever I want.” She sat and licked her lips. “What do you need the loan for? You’re already a billionaire.” She paused, then quickly added, “You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.”

“I want to buy out the robotics arm of Movement.” Seth hadn’t told anyone else about this, so he wasn’t sure why he gave that information up so quickly.

Maybe there was something in the food.

“Why?”

“The robotics arm of Movement isn’t bringing in as much money as the pharmaceutical side, and the board has been talking about diverting all resources to the most profitable part of the business.”

“So why do you want to save it?”

“You have a lot of questions.”

She shrugged. “I’m curious.”

“Oliver, my youngest brother, is running some very important research.” It wasn’t a project that would benefit mankind, but it might give Oliver some normalcy in his life. “I can’t let the robotics arm be sold.”

Her gaze roamed across his face. “You’re a good brother.”

He blinked.

No one had ever said that to him before, and often, he felt like the complete opposite of that. “I’m just doing what I’m supposed to.”

“How many of you are there?”