Eternally Seduced(75)

She didn't know what to make of that. "You make it sound like everyone's looking for me."

"They are."

She gaped at him. "B-but why?"

Bob looked pained. "What did you expect, H? That the boss wouldn't care when you left the place in tears?"

Saffi admitted in a small voice, "I didn't think he'd notice."

"He did."

She drew a shaky breath in. "Why didn't he come after me?"

Bob avoided her gaze. "The advertisers he's supposed to meet came right after Ms. Yanna so he had to take care of them first."

It was an alibi of course - a very lame one - and both of them knew it.  Staffan Aehrenthal was a law unto himself, and he definitely was the  type to have advertisers waiting if there was something else he  prioritized over meeting with them.

But he didn't, which was why Bob was here and Staffan wasn't.

She did her best to push the thought away and used Constantijin's words  as a source of comfort. This was Staffan pushing her away. It was  supposed to be a good thing.

"I understand." Saffi forced a smile, more for Bob's sake, who was  trapped between a rock and a hard place. And that would be what?  Staffan's inability to love and her very obvious infatuation?

Bob said awkwardly, "He's left explicit instructions that you join him  the moment anyone found you." He looked at her steadily. "Do you want  to? I won't force you to go if you don't feel like it."

Saffi squared her shoulders. "I'll go."

She thought about Constantijin's words again as she followed Bob out of  the bonsai garden. He wanted to push her away, and ironically Saffi knew  that his desire to do so also proved that he saw her more than just an  ordinary G. Perhaps  –  more than any other girl in his life, enough to  fall in love with her?         

     



 

Chains of doubt wrapped around her heart, tightening painfully. This  weekend was supposed to be fun. It was supposed to be her one last fling  before embracing fully whatever life and duty brought her. But it  hadn't become just a fun weekend. It had become a lot more than that.  Staffan was no longer just the gorgeous rockstar with the divine taste  in clothes that she had looked up to for so many years, the one whose  lyrics reached out to her and healed her all the times she felt alone  and misunderstood.

Now, Staffan was …

More.

She needed to take a chance on Staffan, needed to show him that things  between them could be way better than how things were between him and  Chloe. But first she needed a sign. If he showed that he cared for her,  even if it was just a little bit more than what he typically felt for  Gs, Saffi decided she would take it as a sign. If Staffan treated her  like she was different from the rest then she would fight for him.

~~~

Relief hit Staffan like a tidal wave when the door opened and Bob came  in, followed by a quiet-looking Saffi. There was no other or better  word, and it troubled him, making him clench his fists at his sides in  an effort to keep him from walking to her and taking Saffi to his arms.  He had to be strong about this. He was doing what was right for both of  them.

Staffan expected Saffi to sit at the back, with the rest of his  management team, while he continued the negotiations with Yanna and  Constantijin next to him while the advertising representatives sat  opposite him, one who was gay and the other a female shark. But what she  did instead was take a seat next to him, gracefully pulling the chair  back and sliding onto it like a princess. For some reason, it made  Staffan fucking proud of her, and it was all he could do not to take her  lips with a kiss. But he didn't. It would create a different impression  than what he had in mind for Saffi, an impression that she had already  challenged by sitting next to him.

The advertising representatives had stopped talking when Saffi  positioned herself next to him. Consternation flashed on their faces  when Staffan didn't make any explanation and instead curled a casually  possessive arm around her waist. Saffi knew it wasn't exactly a show of  support, but she'd take it.

"Garth Greene," the guy opposite them said immediately with an easy smile, offering his hand.

Saffi took it with a grateful smile. "I'm … H."

Staffan tried not to roll his eyes.

When Saffi glanced at the woman seated next to Garth, she got a  dismissive head-to-toe look. "Sadie," the other woman said reluctantly,  as if the seconds she spent talking to Saffi was a huge waste of her  time. She turned to Staffan immediately, and her face changed with it, a  flirtatious smile on her lips as she said, "If I may continue?"

Saffi blurted out, "Could you repeat what you've discussed so far?" The  way all eyes swung to her incredulously made Saffi want to shrink back,  but she didn't back down. To give herself a boost of confidence  –   however fake  – she popped another piece of gum into her mouth even though  she was already chewing on one.

Sadie gaped. "Excuse me?"

"I'm his number one fan," Saffi said lamely as she wrung her hands on  her lap until her knuckles went white. "I may have a lot to contribute  to this project."

"Oh, really?" Derision underlined Sadie's words. "I think you flatter  yourself by thinking in those terms." And the way she looked at Saffi  made no secret of what she believed Saffi was, especially as her gaze  lingered on the expansive amount of skin that her dress exposed.

Saffi did her best not to flush at the pointed barb, but she was even  more determined not to back down. Staffan was going to date another  woman. Worse, Staffan had a reputation of dating anyone he "hand  selected". Saffi had to have a say about it, selfish or not, right or  not.

As she opened her mouth to argue some more, she heard Staffan say, "Start again, Garth."

Sadie's indignant gasp pierced the silence that followed but other than  that no one else reacted. Even Sadie didn't say anything else after  that, her lips tightening as she nodded to her partner, clearly too  furious to speak.

Garth immediately stepped in, professional smile in place. In a voice  that didn't betray any of his thoughts or feelings, he concisely  explained what his company wanted from Staffan.

"After you make your choice, we'd like you to enjoy just a short break  –  maybe coffee or dessert  –  with all five of them."

Saffi swallowed back a protest. Staffan, surrounded with five supposedly  beautiful women and all of them happened to adore him? The thought of  it was enough for her stomach to heave in jealousy.

Staffan nodded, encouraging Garth to continue. Beside him, Saffi was now  seated very correctly, her tension palpable. If it was the other way  around, he knew he would not have been able to take it. In fact, the  mere prospect of Saffi being with another man was despicable, and  Staffan knew he'd kill any man who dared touch Saffi in any way.

But he had to do this. It was better for both of them this way.

"After the meet and greet, you will then walk the winner around the  venue, just give her a really simple tour to explain the  behind-the-scene process for concert productions."

Her back straightened, her mind tortured by images of something nasty happening behind the scenes.

Garth cleared his throat. "We would like a photo of you and the winner extremely close in this one."

Staffan started to speak, but Saffi was already shaking her head. "That's not good."

"And then perhaps backstage, literally behind the curtains, a kiss on the cheek---"

"But what if the winner gets carried away and rapes Staffan?" Saffi cried out, distress finally winning over common sense.

Staffan choked. Behind him, he heard Constantijin and Yanna not doing that good a job at smothering their laughter.

"I'll, err, make sure he won't be harmed," Garth said, visibly bemused  at the turn the conversation had taken. He glanced at Staffan almost  pleadingly. "Shall I continue?"

Staffan nodded.

Clearing his throat once more, Garth went on, "And after one of your  numbers, maybe another photo to show that the winner's caring for you  some way, like wiping the sweat off your face or giving you a bottle of  water to drink---"

Saffi didn't even hesitate. "Sorry, that's my job. I'm the official  water girl and, umm, sweat-wiper of Staffan Aehrenthal. It says so in my  resume." Behind her, Saffi could hear Constantijin and his lovely  girlfriend coughing again, which she supposed was their best attempt at  hiding their laughter.

Staffan's head lowered slightly. He couldn't help it. He needed to hide  the fact that his eyes were gleaming with laughter. Ah, Saffi. What am I  going to do with you? This was supposed to be a serious attempt to  introduce Saffi to the role he wanted her to play in his life, one that  was completely dictated by his terms. But somehow she had ended turning  it into a farce that literally tempted him to laugh out loud the whole  time.

Not looking at Saffi's way, Garth said quickly, as if simply wanting to  get his presentation over with, "And lastly, we'd like you to pick her  from the audience and dance with her---"