5
“Jaeson,” I said, taken aback. “Wow. I mean… I don’t know. That’s a big question.”
“Not precisely the answer I was looking for,” he said, looking at me with a little worry in his face.
“It’s not you,” I said. “This is just unexpected. The ball was only announced today.”
“You know me,” Jaeson said, putting his hand on my cheek. “I know what I want and I go for it. And you’re just the girl for me.”
The words threatened to melt my composure. If I hadn’t been so worried about people gossiping about me, I might have gone for it. But today had been so draining already, so full of stress, I felt like I needed an entire day’s worth of massages.
I pulled his hand down from my face. “Why are you asking me?”
There were a dozen girls or more at this school who would have loved to go to a ball with Jaeson, the confident, handsome, heir to his CEO father’s billion-dollar empire.
“Because,” Jaeson began, holding onto my hand. “You’re the only one I want to go with. Does it have to be any more complex than that?”
“Of course not,” I said, feeling warm. This man, so self-assured, a man who knew exactly where all of my buttons were, this man was telling me that I was the only person he wanted to be seen with at a big fancy gala event. It hit me right in my heart. He wanted me. Just me.
“Come with me,” he said, nodding towards the door. “I want to show you something. We can talk a little more privately there.”
“What do you want to show me?” I asked, thinking of my earlier rendezvous with Riot in the music room. How many abandoned, romantic buildings could there be on campus?
“It’s not so much of a something as it is a somewhere,” he said. “It’s off campus. Do you have any more classes today?”
“I’m free,” I said. “Where are we going?”
“Just follow me,” he said.
“Yes, sir,” I said playfully, allowing myself to indulge a bit since no one was here to see us.
He took me to his car, a shiny, bright red thing with that new car smell. He drove us to a fairly unassuming business park, but when I walked into the building, I was thrown for a loop. The interior design was all sleek, cutting-edge modern flavor. Every angle was perfection, crisp and precise, and that included the front desk employees, one male and one female, both looking like they could have walked out of a fitness magazine spread. The sheer amount of glass and polish was astounding.
“Wow,” I said, standing in the hall of his building once we got past the front desk and exited our elevator on the top floor, nearly bumping into a crowd of employees on our way. Everyone seemed to move swiftly and purposefully.
“Is that your office?” I asked, pointing at the door down the very center of the hallway.
“My office is there at the south end, opposite us,” he said. “Most of these smaller offices are senior vice presidents and their administrative assistants. That is, whenever they happen to be in town. This isn’t the main company headquarters.”
He walked me to the office at the center of the opposing end of the hallway, pushing it open and gestured me inside. I followed his unspoken instruction, slipping in and examining the place.
Whereas the first-floor reception area was predominantly white or light-toned with subtle hints of blue, Jaeson’s office served as a counterpoint with black leather furniture and dark wood for his desk. Though it was all dark colored, it looked plush and rich.
“Do you mind if I sit?” I asked politely.
“Not at all, please,” he responded, motioning to a large, comfortable couch on the side wall.
We walked over to the couch, and he let me take a seat first.
“How about a drink?” he offered.
I wondered if he was stalling.
“Maybe a glass of water.” I examined him closely. “You didn’t bring me here just to show me what your office looked like, right?”
“I want to give you an idea of who I am, what I do, what I’m about.” He opened a wet bar installed into the wall next to the couch, handing me a bottle of water and pouring himself some amber liquid from a crystal decanter. “This is what my life is like when school isn’t in session. I attend VIP College every semester, then I work here, attending meetings and doing paperwork, developing strategies and managing staff.”
“That sounds…” I paused to think of the right word.
