“Alli, seriously. There is absolutely nothing between Blake and me.”
“Bullshit.”
“I’m serious. I can’t screw up this deal. I told him last night that I wasn’t interested. End of story.”
“Blake doesn’t strike me as the type who hears the word ‘no’ frequently. Also, you didn’t tell me he was drop-dead gorgeous.”
“Gorgeous or not, I’m here to work.”
“Erica, are you really mad at me about this?” She pouted her bottom lip a little.
Here came the guilt. “It’ll be fine. Just get some sleep. I’d be great if you could do a little networking today since we’re flying out tomorrow.” I couldn’t let her off the hook completely.
I wanted to be angry with Alli, but in truth, I was mostly worried for her. I’d given her the opportunity to let her guard down around Heath, who was likely a master womanizer.
I escaped to the bathroom where I silently fumed under the steady pressure of the shower. Determined to put the situation out of my mind, I focused instead on possible questions for the panel.
When I returned, Alli was fast asleep under the duvet. I dressed in our pre-approved outfit, a stylish black patterned blouse and bright white blazer with dark straight jeans. I slipped into the black pumps Alli had left at the foot of the bed and grabbed my bag. Time to work. Without any back up, again, I thought. I might as well get used to this.
* * *
You’re not supposed to be here.
Sometimes I really hated the little voice in my head. As I read the name cards set out for the panelists, my anxiety shot into overdrive. I would be shoulder-to-shoulder with a star-studded cast of tech CEOs, veritable celebrities in the technology world. My anxiety shifted into overdrive and nausea threatened.
Reeling, I dropped into my seat and surveyed the room, which was already filling with hundreds of eager conference attendees.
My mind raced as I fumbled for my notes, wishing I could be anywhere else. Just as full panic was setting in, Blake took a seat next to me, looking delicious in a gray V-neck shirt and jeans.
“What are you doing here?” I sounded more exasperated than I meant to.
“Good morning to you too.”
He gave me a smile, and my body relaxed a little, maybe from the sheer relief of seeing a familiar face in this crowd. Plus his mouth on me last night was not nearly a distant memory yet.
Everything about this trip so far had been unexpected—running into Blake last night and Alli’s understandable but problematic fascination with his brother. Now here I was with Blake again, sitting in the presence of geeky greatness.
After letting my wheels turn a bit he finally responded. “I’m moderating the panel.”
My mouth opened, but the questions of how and why stuck in my throat. There was only one logical reason why.
“You did this.”
“Did what?”
I glared, wishing I could level him with my stare.
“You had me invited here, to speak on this panel.”
“I don’t think I can take all the credit. You’re a significant competitor in the social space. That’s what you told us at the meeting, right?” He leaned back into his seat the same way he had at the pitch, eyeing me cautiously.
“Yes, that is what I said.” I swallowed hard, incensed that Blake would toy with me this way.
“Well, then, you shouldn’t be worried about sitting up here with the big boys. You’ll do fine.” He turned to his smart phone.
I had caught Blake’s eye, and now he had drawn me into this game of professional cat and mouse. How long could this go on? Until I slept with him? Until my company suffered inexplicable damage? In the meantime, how the hell was I going to get through this panel where I was completely out of my league?
The room was filled and the other panelists sat down around us. I squeezed my eyes shut, rubbing my temples to stave off the tension headache coming on.
“You don’t like being challenged?”
I opened my eyes to find him staring at me, his beautiful green eyes appraising me cautiously. He was pushing me and something snapped.
“I like being challenged, Blake. I don’t like being sabotaged.” I strained to keep our conversation audible only to us. Maybe in his mind, Blake was challenging me, but it didn’t feel like that on my end. I had plenty of self-doubt, but when someone obviously underestimated me, the gloves came off. I had worked tirelessly, given him no reason to doubt me or my abilities.
“Trust me. If I wanted to humiliate you, you wouldn’t be here.”
“You have real fucking nerve.” My voice echoed through the room. The emcee had turned the microphone system on, and all eyes were on me. Shit. I sat all the way back in my seat, wishing I could disappear into the floor. Apparently I didn’t need Blake to humiliate me. I could do that fine on my own.