Not the most important question—but it was the one he could voice.
She shook her head, more tendrils of hair falling loose.“Can we not do this right now?”She checked her phone again.“If I miss this train, I’ll miss the bus, and—”
She stopped abruptly.
Saif’s eyes narrowed.“Why the hell are you taking a train and a bus?You have a car, Jemma!”
Her shoulders stiffened.“There’s nothing wrong with public transportation, Saif.It’s perfectly respectable.And better for the environment.”
“That’s not an answer,” he replied, stepping closer.
Was he trying to intimidate her?
Absolutely.
Was he going to stop?
Not a chance.
She turned toward him, a smile suddenly lighting her face—and it hit him like a punch to the gut.That smile.Hersmile.Flashes of memory blurred together—Jemma laughing over her shoulder, Jemma teasing him in the kitchen, Jemma walking away in heels and nothing else after whispering what she wanted that night.
She had always been a happy woman.
“I really have to go,” she said brightly.“We’ll talk tomorrow.I should have a business plan ready by then, so… plenty to discuss.”
She was halfway down the hallway when he called out, “I’ll drive you home.”
That might’ve been a mistake.But he couldn’t help it—he needed answers.
She didn’t stop.Just waved.
“Oh hell no,” he muttered, storming after her.
He caught up at the front doors, placing a firm hand against the small of her back.“I said,” he ground out, “I’ll drive you home.”
She flinched at the tone, but kept moving.“But—”
“Save it.”
He steered her out the doors, nodding to the guard as they passed.The black SUV waited at the curb, door already open.Jemma’s heels clicked against the concrete—and then stopped.
She’d planted herself.
He was just about to throw her over his shoulder when she spun around, fire in her eyes.
“That’s enough!”she snapped, hoisting the tote bag up her shoulder.“You don’t get to shove me around, Saif!I’m not a doll you can order around.”
“Obviously,” he growled.“But you’re clearly in a hurry—and I want answers.So.Get.In.”
“No!”
He nearly laughed.Anyone else would’ve been fired already.But this was Jemma.Defiance looked good on her.
She took a breath, trying to pull herself back together, completely unaware that her hair was on the verge of collapse.The bun—or whatever it had started as—was barely hanging on.The strands had grown longer, glossier.Still wild.Still beautiful.
“Saif,” she said quietly, lashes lowering, “I have responsibilities in the evening now.”She met his eyes.“I used to have more freedom.But I don’t anymore.”
That blush.Damn it, that blush tightened every inch of his body.“Why not?”
