Beautiful, sharp-tongued Em.
Em who left without a trace.
"Nothing happened," I reply. “We came. We saw. We met over brunch and bad coffee. End of story."
Margaret crosses her legs, and I keep going.
"The reception starts in four hours," I say, changing the subject with all the subtlety of a battering ram. "Have the new hires been briefed?"
Margaret sighs. "Carmen's handling it. Everyone's been given their talking points, dress code guidelines, and explicit instructions not to get drunk and hit on board members."
She pulls out her tablet, scrolling through the evening's schedule. "The caterers arrive atfive, press at six, general reception at seven. You're giving opening remarks at seven-thirty."
"Guest list?"
"Board members, investors, key clients, and select staff. Plus the five new strategic hires we're announcing tonight."
Five new hires.
Including, apparently, our newest hire to the Strategy and Development team.
Emma Something-or-Other.
"Sir?" Margaret eyes me. "Are you sure you're alright?"
"I'm fine." I stand, buttoning my suit jacket. "I need to review the product demo one more time before tonight."
"The product demo is perfect. You've reviewed it six times."
"Seven times is better.
By six forty-five, the reception is in full swing, and I'm going through the motions.
Handshake. Sip bubbly. Comment about market conditions.
Another handshake.
Joke about the Yankees.
Dodge a question about my personal life with a redirect to Titan's quarterly performance.
And dammit, I’m usually good at this.
Fifteen years of building a company from the ground up means I can work a room in my sleep.
But tonight, I'm distracted.
Logan notices first. Sandy-blond hair tousled and smirking, he appears at my elbow with two glasses of champagne, pressing one into my hand.
"You're doing the thing," he saysquietly.
"What thing?"
"The thing where you smile and nod but you're actually planning your escape route." He takes a sip of his champagne. "What's wrong? Please don't tell me you're worried about the demo. The demo is flawless."
"The demo is fine."
"Then what—" He stops, green eyes narrowing. "Oh my God. You're still thinking about Miami girl, aren't you?"
