An hour later, Ashley was taking an Uber to a trendy café in midtown, where she’d hastily arranged for Nico to meet Andrew, a scientist developing hearing aids that used AI to adapt to different environments. After that, she planned to take him to a nursing home that used the robotic toothbrush, before finishing at a lab uptown where they were working on improving a belt that monitored abnormal electrical activity in the brain to warn people with epilepsy and their carers about potential seizures.
After that…she’d probably come home and collapse in a heap of exhaustion.
Still, Ashley was determined to remain upbeat as she stepped out of the car and started walking smartly towards the café. She’d chosen a professional look for the day—tailored trousers in navy-blue and a pale-pink blouse with mother-of-pearl buttons. Her hair was back in a sensible ponytail, and the only jewellery she wore was a pair of pearl studs her mother had given her when she’d been twelve. This morning, Nico had set the tone with his cool, practical manner. Now she would too.
Even so, Ashley’s heart gave a little lurch at the sight of him standing in front of the café, wearing a dark-grey suit that clung to his broad shoulders and a crisp blue shirt and a darker blue tie, a pair of designer sunglasses perched on his nose and hiding his eyes. Next to the harried-looking businessmen and women hurrying by, he stood out like a beacon of authority, power and charisma. She saw several women sneak second glances at him, clearly affected by his magnetic appeal.
Well, she wouldn’t be.
‘Good morning,’ she said briskly, as if she hadn’t been in his bed just a few hours ago. ‘Andrew Browning, a research scientist who is working on hearing aids, will be meeting us here shortly.’ She glanced at her watch before giving Nico a perfunctory smile. ‘Shall we go inside? Or would you prefer a photograph out here?’ She saw he had engaged a photographer to document their co-working. It made sense, but it still annoyed her. This really was nothing more than a publicity exercise. Did Nico even care about the inventions that meant so much to her?
‘We can go inside,’ he replied shortly. ‘The photographer would like to get some more candid-looking shots, so the best thing is to pretend she’s not there.’
‘Of course.’ Easier said than done, when a woman dressed all in black was snapping away, but Ashley would do her best.
Nico held open the door for her, and as she went through she breathed in the scent of his aftershave and then wished she hadn’t, because it brought back too many fresh memories: the warmth of his skin; her lips on his throat; his hands…
Nope, she wasn’t going there. ‘What can I get you to drink?’ she asked.
‘One of my staff will buy the coffees,’ Nico replied in a tone that Ashley tried not to take exception to. Clearly, he was the host, not her. ‘What would you like?’
‘An Americano is fine.’ They went to an empty table by the window overlooking a bustling Rockefeller Center, every sense Ashley had thrumming with awareness. It was going to be much harder than she’d hoped to act normal today, she realised. To act as if she didn’t know every intimate detail, or almost, of Nico Galletti’s body. To forget that, for a little while, he’d been so tender with her, that she’d ached with emotion for him and, despite every intention otherwise, her heart had ached to get involved.
‘Ashley?’
Nico’s voice broke into her thoughts, sounding more concerned than impatient, and she realised she’d simply been staring into space.
‘Sorry, a little tired today,’ she murmured, and then blushed while Nico gave a small, knowing smile of acknowledgement.
‘As am I,’ he replied, a hint of laughter in his voice, and Ashley quickly looked away.
He wasn’t playing the part he was supposed to, she thought resentfully. She’d expected him to be as cold and distant as he had been this morning, but he seemed far too relaxed, the look in his eyes too knowing. Was he enjoying teasing her this way, knowing what he did of her inexperience? Was he playing with her just because he could? But, surely, he wasn’t that cruel?
‘What were you saying?’ she asked him, determined to remain practical and professional.
‘I was asking how you found these scientists and inventors,’ Nico remarked. He crossed one leg over the other, resting one long-fingered hand on his knee. ‘Did you search them out or did they come out of the woodwork?’
‘A bit of both, I suppose,’ Ashley admitted. ‘When we were first starting up, we offered grants to scientists to pursue the commercial development inventions that would help those who are differently applied. A lot of these devices were invented a long time ago, but they never had any practical market reach. At Infinite Innovations, we’re trying to take the abstract and turn it into reality. Take an invention that was too expensive or cumbersome and make it for the regular person. With that I mind, we invited scientists to make applications, and we chose the ones we thought had the most possibility.’
‘Grants?’ He arched one dark eyebrow. ‘That must have cost a lot of money.’
‘We had investors,’ Ashley replied. ‘We were pretty fortunate with an early injection of financial support. Ah, here’s Andrew.’ She smiled and waved at the young man who had dedicated his research to improving the lives of those with hearing difficulties. She realised she was looking forward to Nico meeting him.
‘Hi, Andrew,’ she said as the young man stood in front of them, smiling. ‘This is Nico Galletti, the CEO of Galletti Finance, that has acquired Infinite Innovations. He wants to meet all of our key inventors and investors.’ She signed the words as she spoke, noting Nico’s faint eyebrow lift, the only sign of surprise he showed that Andrew was deaf.
‘Nice to meet you,’ Andrew replied, shaking his hand. His voice was carefully clear, slow and deliberate, and he kept his gaze on Nico’s face as he spoke.
‘Andrew is partially deaf,’ Ashley explained, ‘Which has motivated and informed his research. He also reads lips, so don’t worry about needing to sign.’
‘But you sign,’ Nico replied after a moment, sliding her an inquisitive glance.
Ashley nodded. ‘I taught myself a few years ago. Made things easier all around.’ She turned back to her colleague, giving him a bright smile. ‘Now, Andrew, what would you like to drink?’
Ashley Woodward was surprising him at every turn. Nico sat back in his seat, sipping his coffee, as Ashley asked Andrew probing questions and the young scientist explained his worthy research, and how he was using AI to help hearing aids adapt to different environments, needs and hearing levels.
He’d first thought Ashley was shallow and grasping, and then, Nico acknowledged, he’d assumed she was broken by her experiences, weak in a way that had made him protective. Now he realised just how strong and truly amazing she was. She was intelligent, driven, resourceful and kind. He stayed silent as Ashely laughed with Andrew, giving him encouraging smiles, clearly as protective of him as she was proud.
This morning he’d made the decision to keep his distance. Now, just a few hours later, he realised he didn’t want to.
