Interesting.
I couldn’t tell whether quoting her favorite movie had been the right thing to do. My intention was to makehersmile, not Luke. As usual, it looked like I had botched another attempt at frivolity.
“Okay there, Leyla?” Luke asked, still grinning. I wasn’t sure what was happening, but when she blushed and then glared at him, I got the impression my words had affected her even though it seemed she’d forgotten her confession about loving that movie.
I may have watched it once or twice. Or a dozen. It was research.
“I need some coffee,” she said, jumping up from her seat like it was on fire and leaving the room, her sweet perfume floating around me like smoke tendrils as she passed me.
I closed my eyes, the same citrusy fragrance bringing back memories of our time together. I may have visited the perfume counter at the mall to find the one she wore. Again, just more research. Not a big deal.
“Okay there, Niko?” Luke asked, chuckling behind his coffee cup.
My eyes snapped open, ignoring his pointed stare and smirk, and I tried to focus on the laptop in front of me.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Leyla
It wasthe end of Niko’s first week at Earth Organix, and I was still coming out of my skin whenever he was around. The man had quotedThe Princess Brideto me, of all things.
How dare he?
Luke pretended to fan himself every time he passed me the rest of the week. I couldn’t help what that quote did to me, though coming from Niko lessened its impact.
Oh, who was I kidding? That raspy voice with his ridiculously addictive accent almost made me faint.
As you wish.
I avoided him unless it was absolutely necessary, but it was hard when I was needed in so many team meetings, and he was the new R&D department head.
He had won over the entire department in that short time, and they were talking about nothing else all week. How brilliant he was, how grateful they were to have him. They probably thought he could solve world hunger if given the chance.
Traitors.
I couldn’t figure out what their admiration was about, since the man had very little personality. He was buttoned up, literally, and not what anyone would call friendly. Back then, after getting to know Niko, I was pleased to find out he was not rude, but just shy. Adorably so.
No, Leyla. Don’t get sucked in again. That was all an act. You know what he did. Stay strong.
I sighed when my mind drifted back to what he’d worn today. Just like in college, the man dressed as if he were going to a fancy event and not the lab. And today? Today, he’d worn a three-piece suit. Three!
The pinstriped suit made him look like a mafia boss. I leaned my chin in my hand as I sighed again.
Must stop thinking about this man in romantic book settings! Do. Not. Do. It.
When Luke was CEO, he did the same, but when I took over, I implemented a less formal dress code. Everyone was required to wear office-appropriate clothing, but a full suit was just not necessary. Especially when it provoked the kind of attention he was getting from the single (and maybenotso single) women in the office.
Especially when he looked likethatin a three-piece suit. It was truly unfair. I mean, did his thick, wavy hair get thicker? Did his beard have to be that perfect thickness? Or did his soulful dark eyes get soulfuler?
I know that’s not a word, but it fits.
Anyway, shouldn’t your enemies show up nine years later with yellow buck teeth and a receding hairline like the mean but popular guy in all the romcoms? So very, very unfair.
A memory slipped through my addled mind: us in the library and me stupidly asking him why he dressed up for class. I’d told him his clothes suited him. It was a huge disappointment to find out it was still true. I moaned and hung my head.
My phone rang, and just seeing Sofia’s name was enough to cool my bad mood. I answered it, got up to close my office door, and gave Jaz a thumbs-up when her head bobbed up to see if I needed anything.
Sofia and Vicky had become the sisters I never had, and I loved them both dearly. They were both from Italy, but God led them to San Diego, where they both found true love with the Austin brothers, Luke and Miles.
