Page 38 of The Fix Up

“I’m passionate about some things,” Ben said. “The things that matter. The things that give me a good reason to perfect my technique.”

“Right. Um, when did you want to meet? I have an opening next Monday around three.”

“Yeah, see, that’s the problem. They moved up the timeline.”

“How soon?”

“The presentation is Friday.”

“Wow. Okay—um, how much public speaking have you done?”

“Do you want to count the acceptance speech I gave when I won the national chess tournament at age eight?”

“Sure.”

“Then once.”

“Oh.” She was quiet a moment, and Ben wondered if she was consulting her schedule or pondering the magnitude of his geekery. Maybe both.

She cleared her throat. “Okay, if I reschedule my four o’clock and skip out on tonight’s team dinner?—”

“I don’t want you to miss a team dinner on account of me.”

“No, it’s fine. Miriam—that’s my business partner—she and I take turns running them each month. This one is hers anyway.”

“Okay then. Do you want to come to my place?”

“No!” She couldn’t have sounded more alarmed if he’d asked her to go nude skydiving as an exercise in assertiveness. She must have recognized it, too, because she softened her voice. “I mean—I think it would be more professional if we meet at one of our offices.”

“You’ve seen mine. How about you show me yours?”

“Um—”

“Office, Holly. Show me your office.”

“Of course,” she said, sounding flustered. “I knew what you meant.”

Okay, so he was teasing her on purpose now. Dammit, it felt good. Testing the waters, owning the moment, being assertive—weren’t those all things a good CEO did naturally? It might not feel natural to him yet in the boardroom, but when it came to flirting with Holly, he was starting to get the hang of it.

He heard a tapping sound, and pictured her drumming a pen on her desk in a nervous rhythm. “Let’s do my place,” she said. “The office will be deserted after four thirty, since we’re bussing the whole staff out to a big resort for the dinner. Might be the first time in history no one at First Impressions is working late.”

“Except for you.”

“Except for me.”

“Well, Holly, I’m glad to be your exception. See you this evening.”

Ben hung up, wishing like hell he could be her exception in every way possible.

* * *

Holly spentthe last two hours of her workday fluctuating between two extremes. On one hand, she felt panicky about nailing this job with Ben and paying off the bank. She was used to handling pressure in her career, but unaccustomed to having a ticking clock dangling over her head, a perpetual reminder of what she stood to lose if she didn’t succeed in her rebranding efforts with Ben.

On the other hand, she couldn’t stop thinking about Ben. Not just about what his business could mean for the financial future of her company, but about his hands and lips and a lot of other body parts she couldn’t stop picturing in her mind.

So when he walked through the door at four thirty-five wearing one of his new shirts and a well-cut pair of trousers, it was annoying to find herself staring slack-jawed at the man whose thumb prints were still on her thighs.

She closed her mouth and took a step forward, extending her hand. “Ben—so good to see you again. Welcome to First Impressions Public Relations and Branding.”

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