“Can I get you anything, Mr. Cohen?” Rita asked as I dropped Jace’s hand.
“No, thank you, Rita,” Jace said, “unless Kayden would like anything?”
I shook my head. Jace turned toward his office, looking over his shoulder to make sure I was following him. He smiled politely at his assistant. “Again, Rita, you can call me Jace.”
I followed him into his office, feeling a bit like a kid following a principal. Jace stepped in front of the door and waved me in, gesturing to the two large, white chairs in front of his desk.
“Sit,” he said with a subtle eyebrow raise as he shut the door behind us. There was just a hint of amusement on his face, and I wondered if he’d intentionally mimicked me from the night we met.
“Why are you acting like you don’t know me?” I asked, as he walked around his L-shaped desk to sit in the black leather chair across from me.
“I assumed you’d want me to, given your current situation,” he said, putting his elbows on the desk. He leaned forward and spoke in alow voice. “About twenty minutes ago I asked Rita for the name of the architect from Meacham Architecture and when she told me the person I’d be meeting with was named Kayden, I did a quick internet search to find out if it was you. I didn’t have much time to think about my approach beyondprotect his secret.”
I stared speechlessly at him again. This guy was going to think I didn’t know how to talk at this rate, but he kept catching me so off guard. First with his gorgeous, flirty smile that made me feel all sorts of things, and now with another piece of evidence that he was a genuinely kind person.The first thing he thought of when he saw that his meeting was with me was protecting me?I couldn’t even pretend I wasn’t touched by that. I pulled my bag over my head and set it at my feet.
“Thank you,” I said.
Jace’s smile grew significantly “You really wanted to know what I do for work, huh?”
I laughed and rubbed my jaw. “I mean, yes. But this is not how I imagined finding out. The only information I had about who I was meeting was the name J. Cohen and your title.”
“Really? Is that what they listed on the Request for Proposal too?”
“Yep,” I said, a perfect image of the RFP in my mind. It hadn’t included his full name anywhere on it.
“I’m sorry, that’s not very helpful,” he said.
“No shit,” I said, threading my fingers into my hair and pulling on the thick strands. I let go as I remembered I still had a meeting with the entire board after this and I didn’t need my hair sticking up at a dozen different angles.
“Kayden,” Jace said calmly, drawing my eyes to his.
Fuck, that piercing green is captivating.
“Can you tell me what you’re thinking about this coincidence, please? I’m honestly a little conflicted. I loved your portfolio and your proposal, and I’m willing to keep things entirely processional in this office if you want.” He gestured to the window and leaned forward. “But I can’t deny that out there, I’ve been hoping you’d call since you left my apartment.”
I fiddled with the strap of my bag. I’d been so prepared for this meeting, at least I thought I was. But this development was so unexpected that I felt like I’d already forgotten everything I’d done to prep. Combined with the stress of visiting my father, my hands were starting to shake.
I pulled my laptop out of my bag and looked up to see Jace’s eyes still boring a hole in me. “I have no idea what I’m thinking right now, Jace. I’m prepared for this meeting. I’m confident in my proposal. And I’m nervous as shit to share it with you.”
“Okay.” Jace nodded slowly. “Would you prefer if we just forget the other night all together and move forward professionally? Because I can do that if it’s what you want.”
“No!” I exclaimed, surprised at the force of my reaction. The corners of Jace’s lips twitched upward before he planted them firmly in place again. I swallowed uncomfortably. “Look, I don’t know what I want outside of this office yet, but I know I don’t want to lose the possibility, okay?”
“Okay,” Jace said, biting the inside of his cheek as he poorly suppressed another smile.
I took a deep breath. My pulse was starting to race. I was for sure on the verge of having a panic attack. My laptop sat closed in my lap as I stretched out my shaking fingers and curled them over the tops of my knees, as I took a long, deep breath, trying to stop what was alreadyhappening, but it was too late. A wave of nausea washed over me.Fuck me.I’d never had a panic attack at work before. In fact, despite how I seemed to behave around Jace, I had my anxiety, and the panic attacks associated with it, well under control ninety percent of the time.
“Are you okay?” Jace asked, pushing himself back from the desk.
I nodded. A haze settled over my vision and the room spun around me, a pricking sweat breaking out across my body. “Yes, I’m sorry. Just give me a minute.”
Jace stood up and moved swiftly around his desk before sitting next to me and moving his chair closer. He rubbed circles on the small of my back as he angled his body toward me, putting himself in my direct line of sight. “Hey, whatever it is you’re worried about, it’s going to be okay, I promise. Take a few breaths and focus on me, okay?”
I took a deep breath in through my nose and lifted my head, zeroing in on his eyes. They were so calming. It was like immediately finding the shore when you were drowning at sea. I gazed into his eyes and took a few more deep breaths.
“This looks like a panic attack. Do you have those sometimes?” Jace asked as his hand roamed over my entire back, gently calming the tingling under my skin.
I nodded and took another breath as I worked to focus on the here and now.I can smell his cologne. I can feel his fingers. I can see his empathetic eyes.
