Page 40 of If Our Hearts Collide

Her soft sniffles gnaw at my heart. I want to pull her to me, cup her head against my chest, and?—

And what, fucker?

Go behind the backs of the two men who have given me my own brighter future?

Pretend this will work out with a happily ever after?

Nope. I don’t do the whole playing house thing. And I sure as fuck can’t be to Penny what she needs from a man.

I resist a growl over my impulsive thoughts. If I wasn’t so egotistical in my service to the Hoffmans, I would resign and ask for a different assignment. However, I don’t trust anyone to look out for Penny beside myself.

“Here, drink some coffee.” I take the box from her hands, passing her the coffee she ordered from Ground Floor. I watch her steadily, as I finish the rest of my beverage off.

“Stop staring at me.”

Am I staring? I barely glanced her way. “Why?”

“It makes me nervous.”

I stifle a laugh. “I just wish I knew what was going on inside your head.”

Her shoulders lift into a shrug, as she reaches over and hits a new number on the panel. “I want to negotiate the terms of our deal.”

My mouth opens and shuts as I am caught off guard—yet again. “Some things aren’t up for negotiation,” I say simply.

It’s the truth. I won’t budge on certain safety measures—no matter what she wants to bargain.

“Fine. But you’ll hear me out anyway.”

I watch as the car stops at the floor for Plus None, and Penny exits. I follow her with the box of pastries into the office space that is devoted to the subscription box service company designed to empower women. Claire and Angie built it from the ground up, and the success of their platform is getting national attention for the speed at which they’ve been able to execute their business model.

It will only be a matter of time before the women delve into the international market.

I toss my empty cup into a trash can, while Penny’s cup joins mine. “When would you like this meeting to occur?” I’m not used to taking a passenger seat to being in control, yet here I stand on the abyss of uncertainty, waiting for Penny to call all the shots.

She glances down at her nails, while biting at her bottom lip. “The sooner the better. I’ve got so many goals to accomplish, and the last thing I need is someone”—her eyes rake up and down my body—“standing in my way.”

My eyes narrow at her perusal. I’m also not used to the blatantness of her distrust. If she only realized how many times I have already looked out for her and had her best interests at heart.

She has no reason not to trust me, but yet I feel like I’ll have to put forth major effort to get her to relinquish some control.

“I’ll pick you up from this office in”—I glance at my watch—“two hours.”

“And?”

“And we’ll go somewhere private tonegotiatemy terms.”

“Ourterms,” she counters.

“Deal.”

“See, you can be reasonable after all,” Penny says in a teasing tone.

“How about you draw your conclusion after our discussion.”

“Fair enough.”

“See you soon, Princess Penelope.”

---