Page 22 of The Charmer's Gambit
“That was fast.”
“Yeah, something tells me Will doesn’t know how to take things slow.”
She laughed. “Too true. All right, good luck. Let me know when you fall into bed with him.”
“That’s not . . .” My voice trailed off when I realized she’d hung up after that parting sentence. “Not fair, Sarah. Not fair at all.” I sent her a text with my heated rebuttal, then switched gears.Time to work.
8
Convoluted Conversations
Janine stood by the receptionist’s desk, just like earlier this week, waiting for me. I half expected to be escorted to the conference room, but instead, she led me to her boss’s office, where Jeff and Janet were waiting for me. They wore matching smiles, something I took as a good sign, and the redheaded assistant closed the door behind me.
“Well, I guess you know why we’ve asked you up here.” Janet’s knowing look left me a little unsettled, but I rolled with it.
“Will?” Because why else would I be here?
“Yes. He’s quite charming,” Janet said as she took over a plush chair. She gestured for me to take the other, so I set my portfolio on the table and joined her.
“I can’t believe you kept him from us all this time.” Jeff gave a little laugh with the words as he popped his hip against the mahogany desk behind him and folded his arms. “You know I need to say something about how the two of you met, though, right? Now, Will assured us it wasn’t Mershano Suites related, but it walks a very thin line, Rachel.”
I cleared my throat. “Yeah, I’m sorry. It, well, I can’t talk about it, but it wasn’t business related at all.” Not to mention the entire thing was null and void now anyway since they’d gone and fallen in love.
“I’m willing to overlook it because you brought us Will, but you do realize there are conflicts of interest here, right? With your history and relationship, I mean?”
“Um.” I bit my lip. Sarah’s being my best friend and dating Will’s cousin could be considered an issue, especially if their relationship went sour. “I’m not worried. My professionalism comes first and foremost.” Besides, no way would Evan let Sarah walk away from him now. I’d seen the way he looked at her. He was a man in love, and no way would he let her go without one hell of a fight.
“You’re absolutely sure?” Janet pressed. “Will’s already given his side, of course, but seemed confident that the circumstances wouldn’t impact the project.”
Of course he wouldn’t worry about it. He’d proclaimed Sarah and Evan soul mates from the very beginning. “I’m not concerned,” I said with finality. “It won’t be an issue.”
“Excellent.” Jeff popped up to shuffle some of the documents on his desk. “Did you want to review the agreement?”
“Uh . . .” Was he asking because Will requested me as the project lead? “Is there anything unique about it?”
He shook his silver head. “No, just what we’ve discussed.”
“Then I’m okay. I trust it’s all in order, but thank you.” Reading the financial figures they’d agreed to would be interesting, but I preferred not to know. Whatever agreement Will had come to with the firm was his business. I would just be here to support the project.
Jeff’s smile reached his ears. “Fantastic. Then I have nothing else right now. Will said he left you with materials to review this week, and we’ll start scheduling project calls next week.”
“You and I will meet once a day until you feel more comfortable with the assignment,” Janet added. “Will plans to conference in as well.”
Right. Because he already left Chicago.
He’d called last night to say, “I trust you, darlin’. Call me if you need me.” Other than an email this morning, I hadn’t heard another word from him. It left me wondering if he really did only want to work with me, but now wasn’t the time to consider that.
“Sounds great,” I said, forcing a smile. “I need to delegate a few of my assignments, and then I’ll be one hundred percent focused on this one.”
“I bet,” Janet said with a twinkle in her eyes.
Okay. “Well, thank you so much for trusting me with this opportunity. I promise not to let you down.” I sounded like a corporate robot, but their responding grins said it worked. We all shook hands, and I escorted myself back down to my office and poured a giant cup of coffee.
I’d just sat down when a knock sounded. My heart did a little flip-flop at the prospect of it being Will. He couldn’t be here to surprise me with a late lunch again, could he? It seemed like something he would do . . .
Except he’s in North Carolina.
A girl can dream.
