Page 23 of Baby for My Billionaire Rival

“We could probably make a good team if we weren’t both so stubborn.”

“I’m not stubborn,” Jake says.

I roll my eyes. “That’s exactly what a stubborn person would say.”

We look at each other. Silence. Then a joint chuckle. I feel like we’re flirting, but I can’t be sure. He’s a good, country boy. Probably nice to everyone. And that’s all I need from him, a willingness to be nice to me. Doesn’t need to be anything more than that.

“I gotta say,” Jake says, wiping off his mouth with a napkin. “You’re more game than I thought you’d be.”

“You didn’t think I’d be game?”

“Not when I saw those heels this morning, no.”

“The overalls?”

He tilts his head from side to side. “That gave me a little bit of hope. But no, I just didn’t expect you to be willing to eat a tomato fresh off the vine or get down on the ground with the goats or –”

“Jake, I think we both need to stop assuming the worst in each other. Otherwise, how are we going to be partners?”

His blue eyes flash in mine. “You’re right. That’s fair.”

“Good. I’m glad, now –” I’ve got to stop with all the sentimental talk or else my heart is going to start pounding for him. “Let’s get down to business.”

Chapter 8

Jake

Ipause as I emerge from the kitchen to watch Caroline leaned over, clicking through slides on the presentation. The blue light of the computer shines onto her bare face.

I never thought I’d see Caroline Gladstone in sweatpants. In fact, I didn’t even think she owned a pair. But, then again, there have been a lot of surprises over the past two and a half months. Namely, how well we’ve worked together on cultivating a business plan for our ready-to-eat meal kits we’ve developed in a joint effort from Simmons Sauces and Gladstone Manufacturing. It’s a microwavable meal for the modern worker, containing a Simmons Sauces-inspired entrée, fresh veggies, and cutlery from Gladstone Manufacturing.

It’s all hypothetical, of course. We’ve had to structure the business as if it doesn’t already exist, talk about the different vendors we would use to make them possible, research potential investment opportunities, and draft a five-year plan and a matching budget.

And we’ve done it all together.

Now, that’s not to say we haven’t butt heads from time to time. Caroline is right. We’re both stubborn.

But we’re also passionate. And you can’t discount that.

However, there has been an unwelcome side effect to spending all this time with Caroline.

It’s made me like her more. In fact, it’s made me want to be her friend.

More than that, even.

Caroline’s head suddenly snaps up, staring right at me. I freeze. Relief spreads across her face. “Is one of those glasses of wine for me?”

“Uh… yeah.” I snap out of my reverie and hand her the glass of wine. “Thanks again for hosting tonight,” I say, looking around her perfectly manicured apartment. I’m afraid I’ll spill something on the immaculately white couch. Although knowing Caroline, she’d probably just chuck the whole thing and get a new one.

“And thank you for bringing the wine,” she says, going back to the presentation. “You’re a lifesaver.”

I sit down on the couch next to her and watch the slides scroll by. I like being Caroline’s lifesaver a little too much. Sends up all those feelings of wanting to take care of someone and… feel for them. “How many times have you read through this, Gladstone?”

“It’s my patented method of quadruple checking…”

I touch the top of her laptop and start to shut it. “I think you’ve had enough.”

“No, no, no! Wait, I think I used the wrong spelling of –” She braces her hand against the screen.

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