Page 56 of Say You Remember Me
“I’m here with my mom’s company.” Drake gave a casual shrug. “Trying to pick up a few nuggets to help us level up.”
“Nice,” Ian said.
“Yeah, just trying to be half as successful as you.” Drake smirked, and I got the feeling that there had always been some healthy competition between the two. “But all that aside, I’ve got to say that I’m really looking forward to your keynote tomorrow.” Drake’s expression turned into admiration. “I still remember how you wowed everyone in Professor Calhoon’s class with your presentations. You were the king of persuasive pitches back then.”
“Glad you’re looking forward to it.” Ian laughed. “I’m hoping it’ll be decent.”
“I have no doubt it’ll be awesome,” Drake said, clapping him on the shoulder. Then looking at me, Drake added, “I always tell everyone that Ian has the Midas touch because every idea he’s had seems to be golden. But I’m sure that since you seem to be close, you already know that.”
I was just trying to come up with a response when I caught sight of a familiar woman with polished blonde waves approaching us from the corner of my eye.
Margot.
Okay. Looks like it is really showtime now.
“Well, isn’t this a blast from the past?” Drake said good-naturedly when Margot stepped into the space between himself and me. “All of us here at the same event—it’s like a mini-college reunion.”
“Yes—” Margot’s gaze flicked from Ian to me, her eyes sharpening when she seemed to catch a glimpse of the ring on my left hand. “But with one big addition—Ian’s beautiful fiancée.”
The comment landed like a spark. “Wait—” Drake’s eyes widened, darting to Ian and me. “You two are engaged?” He looked genuinely surprised. “Congratulations! That’s… Wow, that’s amazing.”
Ian pulled me in closer, his warmth grounding me as he spoke with practiced ease. “Thanks, it’s still pretty recent. We’re still getting used to the idea ourselves.”
“That’s fantastic. It’s about time you finally settled down. I remember back when…” Drake trailed off, a flash of embarrassment crossing his face as his gaze instantly darted between Ian and Margot, as though he’d been about to mention something about their own previous engagement.
“I figured I’d take a note from you, Drake, and try settling down a bit.” Ian gave my waist a little squeeze, his voice smooth and warm as he took control of the conversation. “My dad used to tell me that marrying my mom was the best thing he ever did for his career—said it helped him focus and kept him from always chasing the next fling. Until this past year, I thought he was just saying that to keep me from using his jet so much, but it turns out…finding the right woman actually does a lot for a guy.”
“It’s true.” Drake grinned, nodding in agreement. “Marrying Cassia has been a game-changer for me. Nothing like finding the right person to keep you grounded.”
“So, how did you two meet, anyway?” Margo asked, an almost challenging look in her eyes. “I mean, we usually findthese things out on social media since Ian’s always had such an exciting following. But he’s been surprisingly quiet about this.”
She was asking me? Instead of Ian?
Ugh.
But since Ian and I had known this question would come at some point tonight, I reminded myself of the story we’d practiced earlier that morning. “It’s nothing too exciting, I’m afraid.”
“Oh?” Margot asked, arching an eyebrow.
“Yes, so basically, I applied for a job at his company several months ago and when I was leaving my interview, I ended up in the elevator with the most charming man I’d ever met.”
“Me, of course.” Ian winked playfully, playing along with the story.
“Of course,” I said, chuckling lightly like I was remembering how enchanted I’d been that first time I’d supposedly seen him. “Anyway, the elevator was apparently having issues that day and we ended up getting stuck between floors for a while. Ian, being the gentleman that he is, noticed that I was on the verge of a panic attack since I’m quite claustrophobic. And to keep me from getting too anxious, he struck up a conversation to distract me from what was going on.”
“He’s a proper knight in shining armor, yes,” Margot said, an almost impatient tone in her voice. “And I assume he swept you off your feet immediately and then gave you the job you’d interviewed for earlier that day.”
“Actually no,” I said.
“No?” Margot’s eyebrows knitted together, clearly taken aback.
I nodded, giving her a polite smile. “I mean, I was pretty enamored with him from the start, but the job I originally interviewed for was in a completely different department. And, unfortunately, I didn’t get it.”
Margot’s mouth opened, then snapped shut as she processed this. “But I thought you—” She stopped herself abruptly, her gaze flickering between me and Ian with renewed suspicion.
And it made me wonder if she’d done some digging in the past twenty-four hours, and perhaps discovered we actually did work together, leaving her confused by my story.
Which, of course, was why Ian and I had crafted this carefully laid-out backstory. If anyone did want to dig into my employment with Hastings Industries, they’d find out I’d indeed originally interviewed back in March but didn’t get hired until a few weeks ago.
