“Let’s not make promises until we’ve run the numbers,” I mutter.
“Right!” Iris says quickly. “Sorry. We’ll look into it, but I’m sure we can blow you away.”
Her choice of words makes me freeze.Blow you away.
My throat dries as the memory hits; Iris on her knees in that restroom, the heat of her mouth, the feel of her silky hair in my fist…
Christ.
Her gaze snaps to mine, eyes widening as she realizes what she’s said, and color floods her face.
“Everything okay, Iris?” David asks, watching her curiously.
“She’s fine,” I cut in before she can answer, my voice rougher than it should be. “We’ll be in touch.” I steer Iris to the door. She goes rigid under my hand, walking stiffly down the stairs and out onto the snowy street.
“You don’t need to speak for me,” she mutters, pulling her coat tighter around her.
I ignore her as I bring up the Uber app to order a ride. We need to get back to the office so I can draw up some preliminary plans for this studio project and see if I can perform the miracles Iris has promised. Usually I’d have my Mercedes, but it’s at the shop today, getting detailed.
“Hello?” she says, waving a hand in my face, and I grind my teeth as I slide my phone away.
“You shouldn’t have said that,” I say in a low voice.
“Said what?” she asks, with a look of such innocence that I curl my fists at my side. She might get away with this shit with John, but it won’t work on me.
“You shouldn’t have made promises to the client we might not be able to deliver.”
“But wecandeliver them,” she says, suddenly fierce. “Didn’t you see the potential in there?”
“No.”
She snorts. “Then that’s your problem. You need to think outside the box, come up with unique solutions. Did you ever consider a Murphy bed? What about a loft? The spaces are narrow, sure, but if the ceilings are high enough, we could—”
“It’s not your job to figure that out,” I remind her. “And it’s definitely not your job to make the client believe we can bend the laws of physics.”
“Excuse me?” Her brows rise. “I was trying tofixeverything after he overheard you say his project wasn’t worth your time.”
Our ride sidles up to the curb, and I yank the door open for Iris, waiting for her to enter. Instead, she juts out her chin, walking around the car to get in the other side. I lift my gaze skyward in exasperation.
“Let me remind you I wouldn’t evenbein this situation if it weren’t for you,” I say, sliding onto the back seat and closing the door behind me.
“Jesus.” She shakes her head. “How many times do I have to apologize? I madeonetiny mistake…”
“One?” I splutter in disbelief.
She huffs. “You’re impossible.”
“No, I’m trying to do my damn job, and you keep getting in the way.”
Her jaw hardens, and she leans in closer. Close enough for me to see the way her blue eyes have a hint of turquoise in them. Her orange blossom scent washes over me, and despite that performance back there, she smells so fucking edible that my pants tighten, and all I can think about is dragging my lips over her neck, pulling her on top of me in the back of this car to do what we never got to do at Marco’s. Iris might be a brat, but my dick doesn’t care.
So, I say the only thing I can think of to give me the upper hand.
“I could fire you, Iris.”
Panic flashes in her eyes, but it doesn’t give me the sense of satisfaction it should. She quickly schools her expression.
“But you wouldn’t, would you?” she says, a little too smug for my liking. “Because then you’d have to tell my father why. You’d have to tell him what you did.”
