Page 30 of Serving the CEO

I didn’t really care for the shiver it sent through me—or the sparks of heat it threw off. No matter how much his kiss had made my head spin, getting attracted to him wasnotin the plan.

“Why?” I pulled my hand back and, under the guise of being hungry, I picked up my fork and dug into my salad. “This is a business arrangement for fifteen months, not a lifetime commitment.”

He chuckled and the sound slid over my skin. “I thought you’d be more of a romantic. Believing in true love and all that.”

As I took a bite of the chicken Caesar salad, I considered how to answer him. “I do believe in love, and I like romance, but my feet are firmly planted on the ground.”

“Does that mean you don’t want to be swept off your feet?” Derrick sounded genuinely curious, which surprised me.

I answered him honestly, “It means it’ll take a lot more than empty flattery and impersonal gifts to do the sweeping.”

“Noted.” He stabbed a piece of chicken with his fork. “So what sort of gifts should I get you?”

I nearly dropped my utensils. “What?”

He raised his eyebrow. “I know there are some things about this arrangement that aren’t going to be like a real relationship, but I fully intend to treat you as I would any woman with whom I was involved. That means gifts.”

I shifted in my seat, unsure how I felt about this man buying me things. Bargaining for something in exchange for helping him with his ‘social experiment’ was business. We even had a contract drawn up. But it was supposed to essentially be a relationship.

“Let me make this easier,” Derrick said. “Are flowers allowed?”

I nodded. “I like daisies.”

“Chocolate?”

“Only dark. I don’t like milk or white.” He was right, this was easier.

“Lingerie?”

My eyes shot to his and found those dark green depths full of heat and humor, a heady combination.

“If you don’t mind buying me something you’ll never get to see me use, sure.” I pulled apart a piece of bread and popped a chunk into my mouth. “Need me to send you my measurements?”

“You could just model a few pieces for me,” he suggested with a smirk.

Before I could figure out how the hell to respond to that, our server returned to refill our drinks. By the time he left again, I’d decided that a change of subject was in order.

“Jami and I were reading the proposal from Bristol Hayden when you came to my office,” I said, hopeful flutters dancing in my chest as I thought about the book. “I only had a few minutes to look through it, but it’s got a lot of promise.”

“That’s good.” He checked his watch and reached for his coffee. “Are you free this weekend?”

Deflated when he didn’t engage further about Bristol, I asked, “When?”

“Saturday evening. There’s an event I’d like you to accompany me to. But if that doesn’t work, I’d still like to see you at some point.” He had a hot glint in his eye as he added, “That’s what dating is about, isn’t it? Spending time together?”

“I’ll check my schedule and get back to you.” The words came out of my mouth, but I barely registered them. Being seen in public wasn’t the same as going to an event together.

As we finished up our meal, the conversation stayed on work, but Derrick didn’t ask about Bristol’s book, which disappointed me enough that it was still at the forefront of my mind when we arrived back at our building.

You’re the one in charge of the imprint,I reminded myself as we rode the elevator up to my floor. The doors slid open, and I turned to smile at Derrick and thank him for lunch, but he placed a hand on the small of my back, sending a shiver up my spine.

“I’ll see you to your office.”

“Oh…okay.”

Feeling like everybody was watching us, I stayed quiet as we crossed the office area. Jami’s desk was empty, as were several others, but more than a few people subtly glanced our way, and I was acutely aware of their interest as I came to a stop at my door.

“Thanks for lunch,” I said, keeping a polite smile in place as I turned to face him.

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