Page 81 of When Hate and Love Collide

“I can’t tell you.” His smirk was devilishly boyish, and this time … this time, that smirk gave me butterflies. “It’s a surprise.”

My voice was raspy when I said, “I hate surprises.”

And that smirk only grew. “You’ll love this one.”

“Austin …”

He placed more broccoli on my plate. “Eat up. You burned a lot of calories today.”

I sighed, chomping on the broccoli stem.

After dinner, I helped him clean up and tried to ignore the way his front brushed my backside when I was washing the dishes and he was reaching over me to put the cups away.

I was going absolutely insane, and as hard as I tried, I couldn’t control my body’s reaction to him.

His praises and gratitude had been more frequent recently, and so were his touches. Ever since his splint had come off, he’d touch me. Whether it was brushing my hair from my face, reaching for my wrist to pull me where he wanted to go and towards what he wanted to show me, or gliding his hand against my waist just because.

And every single touch made my heart beat a little faster.

So, when he held me in a hug before I left and I rested against him a little longer than expected, I knew I was in trouble.

Because I craved it—his touch … his closeness.

And I didn’t know what to do about it.

CHAPTER28

SYDNEY

A few days later,I was watching my sister pace a hole in our agency floor, back and forth in front of her desk.

Serena huffed. “I don’t know what I’m going to do about this Callaway-Tyler Tequila business.”

I sat up straighter. “What do you mean? Are they backing out?”

I felt a stab of panic but tried to stay calm. Austin wouldn’t go back on his word, and if he did, he was a freaking dead man.

Serena chewed anxiously on her thumbnail. “No. We have the contract and the hefty advance already, butbig shot A-listerLogan thinks we’re not experienced enough. He’s bringing in another PR firm to handle the worldwide advertising.”

I blinked. “Worldwide?” I swallowed.

“Yes, it looks like they are going to go international right off the bat.” She ruffled her reddish-brown hair and adjusted her suit jacket, looking like she was bracing for a fight. “And it’s not like we’re not capable. Yes, this would be the most lucrative client we have ever had on the books, but I have contacts. Kayla in New York works for Arthur Emerson Inc. We can collaborate. Iknowher,” she huffed again. “Why is he bringing in this firm I know nothing about? Does that mean they’ll lead this launch? Well, you know how I feel about that.” She crossed her arms over her chest, her cheeks reddening from anger.

“What’s the firm called?”

“Mahoney Enterprises.” She chewed that thumbnail again.

My mouth slipped agape, but I shut it before Serena noticed. Mahoney was the top agency in the business. And she didn’t want to team up with them? Why?

“Are they getting half of our commission?” I asked.

“Nope.” Then, she paused mid-step. “They have their own contract. But I bet you they’re getting more. And I don’t know how that’s fair.”

I bit my tongue. They should be getting more, as they had more capabilities, but I wasn’t about to tell her that.

“If we are both awarded this deal, then we should be getting paid the same amount.”

I didn’t say a word. This could be good for our company. Good exposure, working with a larger firm—a worldwide firm at that. But you couldn’t argue with Serena when she was on a rampage.

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