Page 45 of Room One Hundred & Twenty-One: Kiss of Fire

“We’ve got it. Thanks again for bringing these by so fast. We’ll see you soon.”

We wave goodbye and return upstairs.

I’m arranging the baked goods on a platter in the kitchen when Chance places an apple fritter on a small plate and pushes it in my direction. “Eat.”

“I promise I will just as soon as I’m done.”

“If you don’t do it now, I’m gonna feed it to you.” He nudges the pastry in my direction.

“Don’t threaten me with a good time,” I sass him, and he smacks my ass, catching me by surprise.

“Okay, have it your way. Don’t eat it now, and no orgasms when we get home.”

“Hey, that’s not fair,” I pout. “I’m doing all of this for you.”

“You can’t take care of others until you’ve taken care of yourself.”

I know he’s right so I concede with a loud huff. “Alright, you win. Gimme the damn fritter.” He lifts it off the plate and offers it to me. When my mouth closes around the first bite, I can’t help but moan. “Oh, my God, that’s so good.”

His eyes widen as he stares at me. “Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea.” He offers me another bite before adjusting his hard cock in his pants.

“You started it. Now finish it.” My smile is full of mischief as he feeds me the rest of the pastry while I make sinful noises.

“You’re an evil woman, Selena Walker.” He swipes a crumb from my lip with his thumb.

“Eh.” I shrug. “It’s why you love me.” I laugh at first, until I realize what I’ve said and worry starts to creep in. I didn’t mean to say that and I’m sure he thinks it’s too soon. If he does, he doesn’t say anything and I’m grateful for that fact.

“See? That didn’t take so long, now, did it?” Chance hands me a napkin and I wipe my mouth.

“Thank you for taking care of me.” I pull him in for a quick kiss. “I better finish up before Stan and friends arrive.” I grab the tray of goodies and take them to the conference room.

“This way, gentlemen.”Chance ushers the group of men into the conference room with his usual charming grin plastered on his face.

They look to be in their early thirties, which seems a bit young to me. Then again, my bosses are all in their early forties and have one of the largest marketing firms on the west coast. Age doesn’t determine success, and they’ve proven that with their years of hard work and dedication.

I quietly finish setting out the refreshments when Stan enters the room. I don’t have to turn around to know he’s here, because I can feel his creepy gaze roaming over my body. I glance over my shoulder and spot him at the front, dressed in a stylish black suit and burgundy tie. He looks in his element, poised and relaxed as he makes his way around the table with that stupid, smug smile of his.

He approaches Noah and Brody, holding out his hand to each of them for a formal greeting. “I’m so glad you could make time for us today.” There’s no mistaking the passive aggressive undertones of his comment.

“Don’t thank me. Thank Selena and Ms. Abernathy. They’re the ones who fit you into our tight schedules,” Noah replies dryly, and I see the faint tick in Stan’s jaw.

“Well, we certainly are appreciative,” he declares before turning his attention to me. “Be a dear and hold their calls forthis meeting. Wouldn’t want any interruptions after managing to get on theirbusyschedules.”

Brody tenses and his hands ball into fists at his side. But Noah’s face remains passive when he says, “Actually, she’ll be sitting in on this one.”

“It’s a good learning experience for her,” Brody adds while shooting me a wink.

A sneer briefly crosses Stan’s face before disappearing, and he straightens his spine. He’s not nearly as tall as my guys are, but he’s trying to seem more impressive than he actually is. “The more the merrier.” He feigns approval. “She can watch greatness happen today when I make you three richer.” He laughs and it sounds anything but joyful.

“If I gain any more wealth, it’ll go to my head,” Noah deadpans. “Now, how ‘bout you tell us why we should acquire a firm that’s relatively new and seems to have nothing but problems?”

Ouch.So much for small talk.

The men from Aspen all freeze in their seats. And just like that, the meeting begins.

For the next hour, Stan goes into presenter mode, walking everyone through the documents laid out on the table. He thoroughly explains the goals he has in place to make this a successful and easy acquisition, but Noah seems unimpressed with his proposition. He’s already seen the numbers and he’s been digging into them ever since. One thing I admire about Noah is how he can be like a dog with a bone when something doesn’t set right with him. He always gets to the bottom of it, no matter what the outcome may be.

Noah turns to the team from Aspen, who have mainly been focused on digital media for the duration of their business. He stares at each of them, no doubt wondering why on earth Stan is proposing an acquisition for a company with lackluster profitsand management issues. There has to be some angle we’re missing—though I have no idea what it is.

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