Page 6 of Midnight & Memories

“Okay, great! I should start working on this now so I can brief you at dinner. I’ll show you out if there’s nothing more, Mr. Turner.” She said as she motioned towards the door. She needed him gone, so she had time to process his actions. It was the best thing to do with the situation.

“That would be lovely!” He said as he extended his hand to her. “I want to thank you for agreeing to work on this project with me. Nothing excites me more than to be working so closely with you on this.”

God! Did he really just say that? And did he mean it the way I think he did? Of course, he did! Right? He wouldn’t have put as much emphasis on the word closely if he didn’t.

His gaze pierced her to her core, and more heat rushed to her cheeks. She grasped his hand, and electric currents shot up her arm, down her back, and pooled in her neither region. She shifted from one foot to the other, and that slight friction had more liquid heat hitting her panties.

What to the fuck? If this is how it is after a handshake, my panties won’t stand a chance while kissing him.

She immediately shook her head, trying to release the beyond dirty thoughts from her mind.

Settle down, Poppy! You’re working with him now, and momma always told you never to shit where you eat!

Poppy led Ridge out of her boss’s office and walked toward the long hall that led to the elevators. Her office was the third door on the left in the corridor, and she ducked in it to plop the laptop on one chair near the door.

Ridge sped past her in the doorway and walked right in.

“So, this is your office? The view is delightful.” He said as he walked to the floor-length windows to take in the New York City skyline.

“Yeah. That view doesn’t get old. That’s for sure. So, I’ll walk you to the elevators. I have to head down to the first floor to grab a bite before diving into your project. Thank you for adding me to this project because I’m pretty excited about it, Mr. Turner. I have connections with some CEOs and even a few on Wallstreet that have box seating for concerts and ballgames. Have you heard of Ciro DeLuca? He works on Wallstreet, but he’s expanded his investment portfolio, and I’ve been working on some ad campaigns for him. I’m going to hit him up and some others I know today because often those seats go unused.” Poppy said as she motioned for Ridge to follow her.

“Please call me Ridge. I understand the formalities with your boss, Poppy, but I’d rather you call me by my first name when we are alone. And yes, I am familiar with the name Ciro DeLuca. Even though we travel in similar circles, I’ve never met him.”

“Okay, Ridge, it is, then.” She says with a smile.

They were now at the elevators, and Poppy pressed the down button. Within a brief minute, the elevator opened, and they both got into the empty cart. This was not a surprise to Poppy since Creative Collabs was on the top floor of the building. If you were an employee using those elevators, you needed a keycard to get up to the top floor. Why did she lead him to the private elevator, not the guest one? No one else would ride down with them since it was the private one, and it would take some time for them to descend to the first floor. Panic filled her belly as her mind raced for something—anything she could say to the man to fill the awkward moment.

“I must admit that I was quite shocked to see you in the office today.” Poppy said, breaking the silence the only way she knew how.

Ridge shrugged.

“I am full of surprises. Poppy,” He turned to meet her gaze. “I want you to know that I really enjoyed our conversation last night and this morning. My only regret was that it couldn’t go on longer. Also, I hope I wasn’t too forward about dinner tonight. I appreciate you wanting to take the time to get to know me first, but this is a business dinner.”

She gave him a slight smile and was grateful to meet his eyes for the first time this morning without sheer embarrassment. He wanted to keep things businesslike, which helped calm her nerves, and she took that as a small victory.

“Ridge, it’s fine! I’m more comfortable now. I’ve been talking to you for weeks, and yes, let’s keep this a business dinner.” Her gaze broke from his as she glanced at the numbers above the elevator door. They had only descended four floors.

He raised her chin with his thumb and index finger to meet her eyes. The touch sent her heart racing.

“I am glad to hear that because I’d really like to get to know you better, Poppy.”

Her breath hitched, and electrical currents radiated throughout her body as his gaze lowered to her lips.

“I’m sure we will become fast friends now that we are working together,” Poppy said with a nervous laugh. “And that will be nice because I haven’t met many people since I moved here.”

He cupped her cheek.

“Poppy, I’d very much like to kiss you. But I respect you as the beautiful and successful woman you are here at work. Unlike your boss, I appreciate your business savvy. Having said that, I would never cross the line at your place of work. Let’s get to know each other, and perhaps we can become more than friends one day soon?” He said with a smile as he brushed her cheek with his thumb. He backed away from her as the elevator dinged and opened to the first floor.

She had to adjust her gait because his last words left her weak in the knees and her heels seemed glued in place as she walked out of the elevator. The cheek he had touched still radiated heat even after his hand was long gone. No other man’s touch had branded her before. In fact, no other man’s touch was as exciting as this.

They were now in the lobby, and she found her feet wanting to follow him to wherever he was going next. She couldn’t, of course, because she had to get some work done if she planned to debrief him at dinner.

“I will see you at dinner, then?” He asked as he patted her on the shoulder. Heat coursed through once more and slid straight to her core. A pool of heat now soaked her panties. The next hour would be uncomfortable in them, but she didn’t seem to care.

“Yes, I will see you at dinner.”

God, I’m in trouble!

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