Page 20 of Our Radiant Embers

“Anyway,” I said sharply. “It’s not like our magic potential defines us.”

“But it does. There’s a reason you live in a manor and I don’t.” Liam shook his head, gaze sliding away. “Anyway, I’m fine with this. I usually meet clients at their homes, so it’s not an issue.” One corner of his mouth tugged into a sarcastic smirk. “I used to meet them in restaurants too. That’s until I realised it’s too public—apparently, some people consider it an invitation to sabotage our family.”

Please.

“Guinness signed with us instead of you. That’s business, Morgan.” I lifted a dismissive shoulder. “Just like the Kellys were about to sign with us, and you snatched them up instead.”

“Yes, well. Apparently, they fancied an option that wasn’t quite so…archaic.”

Deep fucking breath.

Any regret I might have felt about stealing Guinness away evaporated into thin air. Yes, it had been to get back at him after he’d snatched up the Kellys. I didn’t enjoy losing. Especially not to someone I’d just hooked up with, and when I’d only just taken over as the face of the family and was under quite some pressure to prove myself. Not that I ever wasn’t.

And yes, true, the Morgans needed the money more than we did—that Liam didn’t even have an office was sufficient proof of that. They could be rich if they sold their weapons. Not doing so was a blessing, but it didn’t mean I’d go easy on him.

“Lovely.” I let my mouth twitch into a thin smile. “Now, look. If we’re to meet here with some frequency, I’d rather not deal with your family wandering in at random. We’ll also need wall space to spread out the plans. I know you have limited experience with big-scale projects?—”

“Oh, stop rubbing it in,” he interrupted, sounding more tired than angry. In fact, he looked tired too, faint shadows under his eyes. Yeah, he’d be feeling the pressure even more than me.

“You need an office,” I said simply.

“I know this may seem hard to believe.” He exhaled in slow, measured increments. “But I don’t have a hundred thousand quid or whatever just sitting around.”

He still didn’t get it, did he?

I tilted my head and aimed for a patient, slightly condescending tone even though I knew it would raise his hackles. “Newsflash—you just won a huge government contract.”

Liam’s eyes pinched at the corners. “They haven’t approved our joint proposal yet.”

A joint proposal that would first need to be endorsed by our families, and I knew that mine would need some convincing. They’d come around, though. They wanted the Green Horizon Initiative more than they hated having to share it—at least I hoped so.

“Gale could do the initial, rough design for free,” I told Liam. It didn’t come without a self-serving edge—planning an office for Liam would give Gale something to focus on, a way to feel useful until the project entered its next phase. “It’ll give you a better idea of what it would take, also financially. We’ll make you an offer. Feel free to get others, but ours will be the best.”

Liam took a moment to respond. “Why do this?”

“Because we’ll be stuck together for months.” I let my gaze travel over the faded white of the kitchen cupboards and the colourful assembly of magnets on the fridge before I returned my attention to Liam. “Longer, possibly, if the three pilot areas kick off further developments. This is a scale far beyond anything you’ve touched before—hell, it’s bigger than anything even my family has handled. Do you get that?”

I expected protest. What I got instead was a glimmer of uncertainty, gone once Liam blinked and glanced away. “I’m learning, all right?” The words were low, edged with a trace of self-deprecation. “I honestly didn’t think we stood a chance.”

Ha.

“That makes two of us.”

For once, Liam didn’t take offence. “Yeah, well. Just don’t wait for me to back down now. That’s not me.”

I snorted. “Is this the part where I act shocked and dismayed?”

He huffed out an amused breath, and I realised that for once, we were smiling at each other without it being sarcastic. It was surreal.

“So,” I said quietly, “the office? I can drop by with Gale tomorrow, get you a rough estimate.” Liam and I would have more ground to cover with our proposal too, agree on how we were going to present it. Once my family signed off on the plan.

He weighed me for a beat, then dipped his head. “Thank you.”

I widened my eyes. “Excuse me—what was that?”

Ah, there it was—the irritation I’d come to expect, like a familiar blanket I could drape around my shoulders. “You heard me,” he said.

“Yes, but the words didn’t compute.”

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