Page 27 of If You Give a CEO a Chance

“Why?”

“I have my reasons.”

I fold my arms across my chest and square my shoulders. “I’m not agreeing to anything until you explain why I woke up thinking my room was being infiltrated by an army of spiders.”

He leans back into the sofa, lacing his hands behind his head. His nonchalance mocking the seriousness of my question.

“Spiders, huh?” he replies, a small grin playing at the corner of his mouth. “Sounds terrifying.”

“This isn’t funny,” I hiss, clenching my fists. “I nearly had a panic attack when I saw the swarm at my door. They looked way too real.”

“You’ve never been a fan of spiders,” he states.

I squint at him. “What?”

“We watchedArachnophobiatogether, remember?”

How could I forget? During our weekend holed up in his hotel room, we spent Saturday bingeing horror movies. When I refused to go in the bathroom alone because of a mirror that looked like the one fromThe Ring Two,he suggested switching to a horror-comedy.

“If I remember right, we had to switch movies because you panicked when a woman appeared in the mirror. You nearly cracked my ribs squeezing me so tight,” Harrison says.

“I was just trying to cop a feel,” I counter, refusing to admit how scared I was.

“And when she yanked that guy’s reflection into the glass? You nearly knocked over the popcorn scrambling into my lap.”

“My attempt at rounding third base,” I retort.

“We did more than just attempt.” Harrison smirks.

The weight of unspoken tension hangs in the air, thick and undeniable. It’s suffocating, wrapping around us like an invisible thread, pulling tighter with every shared moment.

On the surface, I’m keeping my cool, but inside, I’m reeling. He remembers more about that night than I expected. If it meant nothing to him like I assumed, why does he recall every little detail? Which makes me wonder what else he remembers about our weekend together.

I press my nails into my palms, grounding myself. It’s important to remember that Harrison isn’t my friend, and whatever past memories he has of us don’t hold any weight after what he did.

“I better go change and get breakfast started,” I say, shifting into work mode. “Consider this your fair warning that you might want to stay alert. I won’t forget waking up thinking I was being attacked by an army of spiders,” I warn, biting back a grin.

“Bring it on,” Harrison replies, his mouth twitching with amusement.

Without another word, I rush out of the living room. The night we watchedArachnophobia,flashes through my mind like a worn-out film.

We’re halfway through the movie, and already I’m regretting my decision to watch this one.

“Isn’t this supposed to be a comedy?” I whisper.

Harrison chuckles. “It’s a horror-comedy… don’t worry, there should be a funny part coming up soon.”

I give him a faint smile, appreciating his attempt to lighten the mood.

My focus shifts back to the screen when a giant spider scuttles across it, sending a chill down my spine. I clutch the blanket draped across my lap, trying to fight the panic rising in my chest.

I feel Harrison’s hand gently slide over mine, lacing our fingers together, rubbing his thumb lightly over my knuckles.

“We don’t have to finish the movie if you don’t want to,” he says, his voice low and steady.

“I don’t think I’m a fan of spiders,” I admit.

When I glance over at him, the tenderness in his eyes eases the tightness in my chest. We barely know each other yet he can read me better than Jeremy ever could.

---