Page 17 of The Innovator

I tried to break out of the loop, but failed. I tried to ignore Natalie, but my feet followed her as she turned down a hallway and into a kitchenette.

She whirled around, glaring at me. “Don’t you have work to do? You came here for an update, and I gave it to you. Why are you still here?”

I didn’t know why I wanted to taunt her. I was no gentleman when it came to certain things, and Natalie Chapelle lured my inner troublemaker.

That wild dream of her still gripped me. It had been a long time since a woman affected me, but I wasn’t sure if her influence was beneficial to my sanity. She was the perfect distraction, and life was too short to ignore beauty like this.

She lifted an elegant eyebrow when I leaned against the wall of the kitchenette, watching her grab a reusable water bottle from the cabinet and filling it with water.

“Is there something you still need help with? The exit isthatway.” She pointed to the other end of the hallway.

How long could I goad her before she snapped?

“I know where the exit is, just as I’m aware how much you don’t want to work on this project.” I tucked my hands in my pockets and studied her.

Average height, an alluring face with flawless skin, eyes that looked like gems, sensual lips that made me yearn to taste them, a perfect chest that promised softness to my eager hands, and long legs I wanted to run my fingers down.

She gulped her water and closed the lid. “Do people usually line up to work with an egotistical man? Last I checked, it’s safer to stay away from men like that.”

I pushed myself away from the wall and stepped closer, inhaling her floral scent. It pulled at me as though it gripped the lapels of my suit, showing me who was truly in control.

It wasn’t me, but I didn’t want anyone to know.

“You’re afraid of me?” I asked, loving the defiance on her face.

Lifting her chin, she said, “I’m not afraid of you.” She looked into my eyes.

A strange sensation swirled in my stomach. Something new, sharp, and exciting like an invisible compass had drawn an unexpected blueprint within me. At the moment, I wasn’t the architect. Natalie Chapelle had drafted something inside me, and I was afraid of what it could be.

“It looks like you’re afraid of me.” Conviction showed in her smirk.

No woman had ever claimed I feared her. “That’s a bold statement with no proof.”

“Maybe you’re scared I’d prove you wrong. Maybe you’re not used to ‘capable’ women who could succeed. Are you the kind of man who tears people down to make yourself look better?”

The biting words stabbed me unexpectedly. She thought I was disparaging her? I never cared what people thought of me. Their misconception was their prerogative, just as my opinion mattered to me.

So why the hell did her statement cut me? More importantly, why did I care?

Natalie didn’t show fear or defeat as she glared at me. The energy pumping off of her was of someone who was used to the competitive arena where she had to prove her worth to survive.

Who are you, Natalie?What kind of world did you dwell in before working here? Did someone chase you into Providence?

I’d encountered two versions of her—the simple woman defending her integrity and the dolled-up and sophisticated woman who spurred my desire from a single look at the Krazee Tavern.

Which one is the real Natalie?What was she hiding?

Why should I care? I had things I didn’t want the world to know. Everyone had secrets, but I was becoming more intrigued by this woman who thought I feared her.

A smirk grew on my lips as I gripped her chin. “No fear here, buttercup. The only fear I see is the one lurking inside you, telling you that I make you uncomfortable.”

She gripped my wrist, held it, and laughed. “You’re an overconfident man, Grayson. Your charms may work on other women, but don’t waste your time on me. We’re more like enemies than friends.”

In a quick move, I shifted my hand so that I was the one holding her wrist. “Since when did we become enemies?”

“Since you called me ‘incapable.’”

“I never said that.”

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