Page 86 of An Inconvenient Marriage
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Zach
Thiswasanimportantmeeting, and instead of concentrating on everything being said, all I could think of was Natalie.
And for the first time, it wasn’t just about how desperately I wanted to make her moan—even though that thought was always there. Her designs were stuck in my brain.
They were better than good. They were great, and with the right push, she could easily become a design sensation.Iwanted to be the one to give her that push. And the more I thought about it, the more a plan formed.
Eager to get to it, I sat up straighter. “I don’t pay any of you to bring me problems. Do your jobs and find me solutions. I want the Vegas casino ready before the end of our next financial year.”
Before any of the three stunned executives could say a word, I disconnected the meeting and immediately reached for my phone. As I knew she would, Sophie didn’t take long to answer.
“I can’t find anything other than the information you already have,” she said before I could even utter a word.
Right. I’d asked her to dig up more information on Natalie. With a sigh, I dragged a hand through my hair and leaned back in my seat. “That’s fine. I don’t need it. I want—”
“You don’t? Why?”
A sudden burst of irritation gnawed at my bones. “Exactly when did I start explaining myself to you?”
“Sorry, it’s just you were so desperate for the information and now you don’t want it.” Sophie took a deep breath, then added, “I’m confused, that’s all.”
“Keep focusing on the things I actually ask you to do, and you won’t be.” Grinding on my molars, I pulled my notepad closer. “Do you have a pen?”
When Sophie said she did, I rattled off the things on my list.
“This is top priority. I need it done before we come home.”
There was a tentative silence before she spoke again. “And you want all this set up atyourhouse?”
My irritation only grew. “Where else?”
“And the account shouldn’t be in your name?”
“Did I not speak clear enough?”
“I’m just making sure.”
I could hear her type away on her keyboard and I hoped it meant she was getting to work on my new project.
“You’re still flying back in two days, then?”
The thought of going back to the real world didn’t fill me with as much joy as I once thought it would. “I think we’ll stay a week longer.”
“A week?” The typing at the other end of the line stopped. “But you have meetings lined up and—”
“Move them. Cancel them. I don’t care.”
“Zach, this is not like you at all.” More silence, then she softly added, “Should I be worried?”
“Not unless it’s in your job description,” I bit out and then regretted it. For as long as Sophie had been with me, all I’d cared about was work. No meeting was ever too early or too late. Downtime wasn’t a word that fit into my schedule.
But that was before Natalie. Surely no one would blame me for wanting to take time off to find all the ways I could make her scream.
That was what I wanted to say, but thankfully not what came out of my mouth.
“I know this is sudden, but I doubt shifting things around will cause any problems. If it does, I’ll deal with it when I get back.”
