Room One Hundred & Twenty-One: Kiss of Fire

Chapter 15

15

SELENA

I t’s Friday and Ms. Abernathy chooses today of all days to call out sick. I didn’t think the woman knew what a sick day was, but clearly I’m mistaken. She hasn’t missed a day of work in years, aside from the rare vacations she takes. So I know if she’s not here, then she must be really ill. I make a mental note to check on her at lunch before spending the entire morning scurrying around the office and getting ready for today’s presentation.

At first, Stan simply had me book a meeting for himself and my bosses. But then he called yesterday afternoon and notified us that he was also bringing in the executives from Aspen Creative. I didn’t pay too much attention to the details except to note the annoyance on Ms. Abernathy’s face at the last-minute change. Now she’s not here, and I wish I had a better handle on what’s going on.

Stan and his guests will arrive in less than an hour. Panic starts to set in as I make a mental note of the tasks I still need to complete.

“Yes, two dozen assorted breakfast pastries by 9:45,” I verify to the woman on the phone, relieved that she can deliver this morning.

I’ve stopped by this cute bakery down the street on my way into work a few times. The place is small and hasn’t been open for more than a year. But when you walk inside and smell the sweet treats and fresh coffee, it fills your stomach with warmth and happiness. This is the first time I’ve placed a catering order with them, but if all goes well, it certainly won’t be my last.

After confirming my delivery, I hang up and get to work on the other items I need to check off my list. My only enemy today is time, so instead of wasting it, I pull my hair into a ponytail and get to work.

I rush to the copy room and gather the presentations that Ms. Abernathy printed and bound yesterday. After placing each one at a seat around the conference table, I set out pens, notepads, and other office supplies that might be needed for the meeting. As I’m arranging napkins and utensils for the food, my cell chimes with a text to notify me that our delivery from Chloe’s Bakery is waiting downstairs.

I’m headed toward the elevators when my footsteps falter as Chance swaggers into my line of sight. He’s dressed in a tailored blue Armani suit that fits his sculpted ass just right. And his dazzling smile makes my temperature rise at least another degree or two. But his brows pinch when his gaze settles over me.

“You okay?”

“I’m fine,” I reply, a little out of breath. “Just a woman on the move. The caterer is downstairs, and your guests should be here shortly. But I have almost everything ready to go.”

“Have you eaten?” he asks, cutting off my thoughts of work. He looks pointedly at me when I don’t answer. With so much happening this morning, I didn’t have time.

“I promise I will just as soon as your meeting gets started.”

His gaze narrows, but I ignore it and wait for the elevator. Chance follows me and steps inside when the doors open. I look at him curiously.

“I’ll help you bring the food up and then you’re going to eat.”

“But—”

“I don’t wanna hear it. I’m not telling you to have a steak dinner. Just grab one of the pastries before you do anything else.”

It’s useless to argue with him—with any of them for that matter—so I take the path of least resistance and agree. “Fine. I will.”

We make it to the lobby to find Chloe, the bakery owner, holding two large boxes of pastries with a wide smile. She’s a petite, older woman with long black hair and soft crinkles at the corners of her eyes.

“Hi, Chloe! It’s nice to see you again,” I greet her and take one of the boxes.

“Good morning, Selena! I hope everyone will enjoy these. And there’s fresh coffee too. My treat.” She starts to hand me the other box, but Chance steps forward and takes it instead, along with the travel cartons of coffee.

“Thank you for taking my order on such short notice.”

“No problem at all. Happy to have the business.”

Chance gives her a panty-melting smile. “Are you the one who makes the raspberry and cream cheese danishes?”

Chloe blushes at his attention and I can’t blame her. All women do. “Um… I think so?”

“You are,” I confirm with a laugh. “I brought him one last week and now he’s obsessed with them.”

“They’re amazing,” Chance praises. “I can’t wait to have another one.”

“Oh, you’re too kind. Thank you. I better let you two be on your way. Do you need some help carrying them up?”

“We’ve got it. Thanks again for bringing these by so fast. We’ll see you soon.”

We wave goodbye and return upstairs.

I’m arranging the baked goods on a platter in the kitchen when Chance places an apple fritter on a small plate and pushes it in my direction. “Eat.”

“I promise I will just as soon as I’m done.”

“If you don’t do it now, I’m gonna feed it to you.” He nudges the pastry in my direction.

“Don’t threaten me with a good time,” I sass him, and he smacks my ass, catching me by surprise.

“Okay, have it your way. Don’t eat it now, and no orgasms when we get home.”

“Hey, that’s not fair,” I pout. “I’m doing all of this for you.”

“You can’t take care of others until you’ve taken care of yourself.”

I know he’s right so I concede with a loud huff. “Alright, you win. Gimme the damn fritter.” He lifts it off the plate and offers it to me. When my mouth closes around the first bite, I can’t help but moan. “Oh, my God, that’s so good.”

His eyes widen as he stares at me. “Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea.” He offers me another bite before adjusting his hard cock in his pants.

“You started it. Now finish it.” My smile is full of mischief as he feeds me the rest of the pastry while I make sinful noises.

“You’re an evil woman, Selena Walker.” He swipes a crumb from my lip with his thumb.

“Eh.” I shrug. “It’s why you love me.” I laugh at first, until I realize what I’ve said and worry starts to creep in. I didn’t mean to say that and I’m sure he thinks it’s too soon. If he does, he doesn’t say anything and I’m grateful for that fact.

“See? That didn’t take so long, now, did it?” Chance hands me a napkin and I wipe my mouth.

“Thank you for taking care of me.” I pull him in for a quick kiss. “I better finish up before Stan and friends arrive.” I grab the tray of goodies and take them to the conference room.

“This way, gentlemen.” Chance ushers the group of men into the conference room with his usual charming grin plastered on his face.

They look to be in their early thirties, which seems a bit young to me. Then again, my bosses are all in their early forties and have one of the largest marketing firms on the west coast. Age doesn’t determine success, and they’ve proven that with their years of hard work and dedication.

I quietly finish setting out the refreshments when Stan enters the room. I don’t have to turn around to know he’s here, because I can feel his creepy gaze roaming over my body. I glance over my shoulder and spot him at the front, dressed in a stylish black suit and burgundy tie. He looks in his element, poised and relaxed as he makes his way around the table with that stupid, smug smile of his.

He approaches Noah and Brody, holding out his hand to each of them for a formal greeting. “I’m so glad you could make time for us today.” There’s no mistaking the passive aggressive undertones of his comment.

“Don’t thank me. Thank Selena and Ms. Abernathy. They’re the ones who fit you into our tight schedules,” Noah replies dryly, and I see the faint tick in Stan’s jaw.

“Well, we certainly are appreciative,” he declares before turning his attention to me. “Be a dear and hold their calls for this meeting. Wouldn’t want any interruptions after managing to get on their busy schedules.”

Brody tenses and his hands ball into fists at his side. But Noah’s face remains passive when he says, “Actually, she’ll be sitting in on this one.”

“It’s a good learning experience for her,” Brody adds while shooting me a wink.

A sneer briefly crosses Stan’s face before disappearing, and he straightens his spine. He’s not nearly as tall as my guys are, but he’s trying to seem more impressive than he actually is. “The more the merrier.” He feigns approval. “She can watch greatness happen today when I make you three richer.” He laughs and it sounds anything but joyful.

“If I gain any more wealth, it’ll go to my head,” Noah deadpans. “Now, how ‘bout you tell us why we should acquire a firm that’s relatively new and seems to have nothing but problems?”

Ouch . So much for small talk.

The men from Aspen all freeze in their seats. And just like that, the meeting begins.

For the next hour, Stan goes into presenter mode, walking everyone through the documents laid out on the table. He thoroughly explains the goals he has in place to make this a successful and easy acquisition, but Noah seems unimpressed with his proposition. He’s already seen the numbers and he’s been digging into them ever since. One thing I admire about Noah is how he can be like a dog with a bone when something doesn’t set right with him. He always gets to the bottom of it, no matter what the outcome may be.

Noah turns to the team from Aspen, who have mainly been focused on digital media for the duration of their business. He stares at each of them, no doubt wondering why on earth Stan is proposing an acquisition for a company with lackluster profits and management issues. There has to be some angle we’re missing—though I have no idea what it is.

Stan finishes his presentation and looks at my three bosses. “So, what do you guys think?”

In typical Noah fashion, he’s about to say something that’ll piss Stan off. But Chance beats him to the punch. “As tempting as the offer is, my colleagues and I agree that Aspen Creative is not the right fit at this time.”

That’s a nice way of letting them down easy.

“This was a waste of time,” Noah adds, unable to keep his thoughts to himself.

Brody disguises his laugh with a cough, and I pinch my lips together to keep from grinning.

Surprisingly, Stan appears shocked. “What do you mean?” He tilts his head as distress contorts his features.

“Unfortunately, we’ll not be moving forward with an acquisition. Good luck, gentlemen.” Noah rises from his chair and the others do the same.

Chance mutters to him quietly, as not to be overheard by their guests. “You’re a hard ass, you know that?”

“I could’ve been nicer, but it wouldn’t have changed the outcome.”

The Aspen group whispers to each other with confused expressions while Stan’s face turns red and he barely hangs on to his composure. “You’re making a mistake. This deal will be beneficial to everyone. And it’ll prove lucrative to Mosaic in the long run,” Stan argues, slamming his hand on the table in emphasis.

Annoyance creeps over Noah’s face, and he widens his stance with his muscular arms crossed over his broad chest. “You failed to show us how acquiring Aspen Creatives would give us some kind of competitive advantage, or access to new technology or different markets. Clearly the financial resources aren’t there, and we’d be investing additional funds to get their business up to par with Mosaic before we could even begin absorbing their company.”

I glance over at our guests, who stand with slumped shoulders and their hands in their pockets. I feel bad for them and wonder how Stan convinced them an acquisition was even a possibility. Did he really think he could pull one over on my guys? There has to be something in it for him. I’m just not sure what it is.

Brody nudges Noah with his elbow, and he returns the gesture with a scowl. Everything he said was true, but it’s obvious these guys thought they had a real chance for their business proposition.

“Good luck with your future endeavors. Selena will show you out.” Noah dismisses everyone, and Chance and Brody follow him to his office.

The Aspen team says their goodbyes and heads for the elevators. But Stan straggles behind to land me with a seething glare. He opens his mouth to say something, but Brody cuts him off. “If you want to keep us as your clients, I suggest you follow your friends out.”

With one last glower in my direction, Stan angrily stalks to the elevators, where the group is holding the doors open for him. As soon as they close, I exhale with relief.

“Well, that certainly was interesting.” My laugh is awkward as I process the events of the meeting. Brody places his warm palm at the small of my back and escorts me to the others.

“What do you think is his next move?” Chance asks, pulling at the knot in his tie.

“The man is unpredictable. And I don’t like how he looks at Selena.” Brody’s brow creases as he falls onto the couch.

“Maybe it’s time we find ourselves a new attorney,” Noah suggests, handing me a bottle of water that I try to decline. He forces it into my hand anyway and I roll my eyes. Even when they’re in the middle of business, they still remember to take care of me.

I finish cleaning up from this morning’s meeting and excuse myself to visit the restroom. But my path is blocked when a male figure steps out from the corner and grabs my upper arms. His grip is almost painful as he glares at me with cold blue eyes, and I freeze with fear.

“It seems those three can’t do anything without you these days,” Stan seethes while baring his teeth to me.

“I’m afraid I don’t know what you mean.” My pulse beats wildly, but I manage to keep my voice steady.

His mouth twitches and his nostrils flare. “I think you do. Seems your relationship is pretty personal to me. Is this something you offer to everyone you work for?”

I’d slap him for his insinuation if I could get my arms free.

“Don’t take it out on me because you failed to do your job,” I hiss, and he raises an eyebrow at me. “I don’t like you and I know you’re up to no good, even if I can’t prove it right now.”

I glance around, searching for help, but my men are nowhere to be found. They were deep in conversation when I left them and my guess is that they still are. Of course, it’d be my luck that I just had to use the restroom and it’s on the other side of the office suite.

Stan scowls at me while licking his thin, dry lips. He’s furious but there’s a hint of lust in his gaze as he looks down at my body. Disgust rolls through me and I’m desperate to get away. But he squeezes my arms, causing me to cry out in pain.

“Stupid girl. You cost me a lot of money today.”

“I didn’t cost you anything,” I spit back, preparing to scream for help.

Stan jerks me closer to him, and I can smell the alcohol on his hot, damp breath. “You’re gonna pay for this. I promise you that.” Then he releases me with a shove before darting down the stairwell.