Still, it is just dinner. Right? What harm could there possibly be in eating food with this guy in a restaurant full of other people?
“Don’t overthink it,” Jackson says. “Just say yes.”
So I hear myself say that one little word.
I say yes.
Even though I know I’ll live to regret it.
Jackson
I knew she’d say yes. I get people to say yes to deals worth millions everyday, so I had no doubt little Miss Emily Brown would say yes to dinner with me.
Still, it gives me a thrill deep inside knowing I’ll have her for the evening. She’s unlike any woman I’ve ever known—and that’s a problem. She may have said yes to dinner, but Emily has proven that she’s not the kind of person who will just cave in to pressure so easily.
She presents a unique challenge. And I do enjoy a challenge.
As I get in the car and turn the ignition, preparing to go and pick Emily Brown up for our impromptu date, I find myself wondering just what makes her so different from me.
Maybe that’s what attracts me to her, but it’s also why I can’t even bother thinking about her as anything more than a tonight-only thing. I can’t get more involved than this. Not since everything I learned with the phone call from my father’s lawyers.
Ironically, Emily is the exact opposite of what I need right now.
I’ll have this one amazing night, one night to get her out of my system because she is not a distraction that I can afford to keep around. Dinner will simply be the scratch to the itch I’ve had for her since she first walked—no, barged through my office doors.
Once I’ve had my time with her, I’ll no doubt be ready and willing to move onto the next thing. I’ve got more than enough options and she’s not my type, in any case…
But right now I do need a short distraction from the family bullshit.
Other than the short time I spent with Emily this morning, every moment has been spent ruminating on the bombshell of a phone call I received just before she arrived.
The call that told me I would no longer simply be inheriting the company that I’ve been groomed to run since before I can even remember. The call that told me I would once again need to prove myself to dear old Dad, even though he’s no longer alive and with us.
No, no, no, Jackson—think again. You must fight, fight, fight. The provision in his will was apparently quite clear on that score.
My brothers and I will compete for the right to lead our company into the future. And the competition takes the form of such a ridiculous requirement…just thinking about it makes my blood boil.
That is my cross to bear, but now, for one night only, I will enjoy the company of a gorgeous smart-ass woman who makes me forget, ever so briefly, that everything I’ve worked for might be falling apart.
Once Emily stormed out of the office (and watching her go…damn, what a sight), I had Sandra pull up her information in order to better understand what I was dealing with.
I know that she’s a grad student working part-time for the Children’s Education Fund. An intelligent do-gooder. Makes me roll my eyes. Just from this one afternoon I can tell she’s a woman who goes after what she wants, and she’d no doubt be great in a real business, but she’s stuck on some charity bullshit.
Well, real business—it’s not for everyone.
Not for the faint of heart, that’s for sure.
I drive to Emily’s neighborhood, just ten minutes from the office and a little on the outskirts of the city. Lots of Boston College and Boston University students live out here in Allston—we have several interns who ride the T in from this area.
I drive down Greylock Road, stopping in front of a blue house. Before I can get out to go to the front door like a proper gentleman, I see her silhouette walking down the driveway from the back of the house.
I’m at a temporary loss for breath. The tight dress she’s wearing skims down her figure like dripping gold—an improvement over the morning’s bargain basement suit but honestly, this woman could make sweats look sexy.
I’m out of the car quickly, headed over to her side so I can open the door for her. The closer I get to her, the faster my heart beats.
“Good evening, Emily,” I say, using one hand to button my suit jacket.
“Hello,” she says, her eyes focused on the car. I lean in to greet her with a kiss on the cheek—a habit—and it seems to startle her. She smiles, though, showing dimples in her cheeks.
“You ready?” I ask.
“This is your car?” she responds, still eyeing it.
“Yes,” I say. “I’m driving it, aren’t I?”
She shakes her head. “Yeah, it’s just...nothing. Let’s go.”