Page 35 of Vixen's Guide to Christmas
“You okay?" he asks, a cocky smirk on his handsome face. Wait. Why is he back to cocky Grayson? "Need some help there?"
Oh, this motherfucker did this on purpose…
I know this, yet I can’t stop staring and thinking what he couldactuallyhelp with. The towel falling would help me a lot. It means I wouldn’t have to dig into my memory to remember what his cock looked like. And a morning blow job helps everyone, really.
No! Stop that! Be-fucking-have!
Which is why the only word that comes out of my mouth is “Nope!” as I bend down, pick up my clothes, and sprint to the bathroom.
“You sure?”
“Yup!” I slam the door behind me. I can hear Grayson chuckling outside as I try to catch my breath.
Because everything's not okay. Everything fucking sucks.
11
grayson
Now that iswhat I call a productive morning.
I left the hotel room before Kat could come back out—I knew I had the upper hand after my not-so-accidental shower move—and headed down to the coffee shop at the hotel. I found the perfect booth, got a sandwich and the best Americano I’ve had in a while, and put together a presentation that’s going to wow Declan and Howard.
From the second I sat down, the ideas started pouring from me. Podcasts. YouTube channels. Travel channel shows. That’s what’s going to put the Timberline on the national map. Unfortunately, I know who I work for, and they’re going to want to make sure I include the tried-and-true methods.
Or as I call them, boring. Local media buys. Making the rounds with the local television and radio stations. That kind of approach. I hate having to keep going back to that, but when your boss tells you to include them, you do.
Hopefully, it doesn’t put me behind whatever ideas Kat’s coming up with.
No, I’m not going to worry about her. I can only control what I’m doing, and what I can do is give them the best options—or as I’m calling it, a little bit of everything—and head into the holidaywith a win. And if it’s a win that makes my family partially proud of me and beats Kat—wait, Katherine—than all the better.
With a huge feeling of confidence, I close my laptop, knowing that it’s time to get a move on for my meeting. It’s just before noon, and as long as the restaurant isn’t too busy, I’ll be able to grab a sandwich before heading back to the room to get ready.
“Sit wherever you'd like," one of the waitresses says. "It's open seating at lunch."
"Thank you.” I look around the restaurant, eyeing my choice of tables. I spy one along the window, giving me a fantastic view of the mountains, but then I realize who’s also grabbing a bite.
Kat. Who’s having lunch with Declan.
What. The. Fuck.
I glare at the two of them, who I don’t think have realized I’m here, as I pull out my chair and take a seat. Though, I should invite myself to sit with them. Declan had no problem doing it last night, might as well repay the favor.
I don’t. No, I opt to sit six tables away and just glare. Not something I should be doing to the man I need to like me and my presentation in an hour. Or something I should be doing to a woman who has said loud and clear that we don’t have a future together. Yet, I can’t seem to help it.
The feelings I have for Kat, Katherine, whatever the hell her name is, are conflicting as hell. Because how do I in one breath want to beat her professionally, but in the next, pull her into my arms and never let her go? I know she said that in professional settings she goes by Katherine, and part of me wishes that’s how we could be. That Katherine and Grayson could be rivals by day, but Kat and Grayson could be together by night.
It sounds like a storyline out of a fantasy book. Then again, that’s all Kat and I can ever be—a fantasy.
"What can I get for you?" the waitress who greeted me earlier asks.
“Club sandwich and an iced tea,” I grit out, my eyes still trained on the two of them.
Luckily, the waitress picks up that I'm not especially chatty and walks away. For real, though, what the hell are they talking about? Why is she laughing? He can’t be that funny. Did they move up their meeting? No, that wouldn’t make sense, as Howard’s nowhere to be seen. Are they friends? Did they have a relationship before this past weekend? No, I remember them saying that he knew Logan, but the two of them had never met.
I watch them closely, trying to get a read on their body language. Is he hitting on her? I mean, I get why if he is. She's a beautiful woman. I thought he was flirting last night—it’s why I’ve been acting the way I have—but looking at them now, I don’t get that vibe. Neither of them are leaning into each other. Sure, she’s laughing at something he said. He’s smiling as well as he cuts up a piece of his chicken. Nothing seems out of line.
Then again, if he is, it’s wildly inappropriate. She’s presenting to him later. He’s a decision-maker for this business. It’s an imbalance in the power dynamic, and it’s shitty if he’s trying to exploit her as a woman to use to his business advantage. I’ve seen men in my own company do this, and it’s fucking horse shit. If I knew that someone ever did that to my sister, I’d tear them limb from limb. Then again, my sister would stomp on their dicks, tie them up in lawsuits, and smile about it as she walked away in ridiculously high heels.
