Secret Designs(14)

So, now, where should they go from here? This was supposed to be just another one-night stand—one they really shouldn't have had. But for the life of him, he didn't think he was ready to stop having her yet.

"I really need to get ready," Ari said, kissing him on the lips before bolting out of bed.

His eyebrows furrowed as he watched her run for the bathroom. That kiss was such an intimate gesture. It made him kind of nervous, but he had to admit, he liked it.

He discarded the condom in the waste basket near her bedside table and lay back in bed.

If he continued a casual relationship with Ari, would they be able to keep their friendship when they were done? Would she be different from the others? It was a big risk.

But if they stopped sleeping together and made this their last time...

He shook his head, not willing to accept they just had sex for the very last time. He was far from having enough of her.

He rubbed his face with his hand. The two of them would have to talk and get to some sort of agreement.





*******



"Hey, sleepy head."

Dylan woke up with a start. He hadn't even realised he had dozed off.

"I have to go. You can sleep some more, if you want. You can let yourself out when you're ready," Ari said, bending over him.

He smiled, comfortable in her bed. "Okay, thanks."

Ari straightened, frowning slightly. "Don't you have to go to work at all today?"

"I can start whenever I want," he answered, knowing he'd be working well into the night.

"Really? Lucky you."

They stared at each other for a long second—he feeling content and she looking perplexed.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"Um, I guess I'll see you around," she answered. "Maybe we'll bump into each other at Kane and Jazzie's again."

He sat up swiftly. "Ari...maybe we should talk about...this."

"If you're worried about me, please don't be. I understand perfectly well this was just another one-night stand," she said with what looked like a forced smile.

He gazed at her, momentarily lost for words. For some reason, he felt a pinching in his chest.

"Well, I do have to go, Dylan. See you later." She turned to head off.

"Ari," he called to her as she reached the door. "What do you think of a few more one-night stands?"

She twisted to face him, her expression one of surprise. "A few more? How many more?"

He cocked his head to the side at the tone of her voice. She sounded...hopeful. "Two? Five? Ten?" he replied with a shrug.

"How can you call ten nights of sex a one-night stand?"

"What would you call them then?"

"I think friends with benefits would be a more accurate term for what you have in mind."

He grinned. "So can we be friends with benefits then?"

"What if we start feeling funny about it?"

"Then we'll stop sleeping together," he assured her. "And we'll just be plain friends."





CHAPTER SIX





Ari slinked into the large, modern office she shared with another designer, grateful yet puzzled that the room was empty.

She settled into her chair and turned to power on her computer when she noticed the post-it-note stuck on her keyboard.

Meeting with Penny in Boardroom 2. Join us when you get here.

Her heart started pounding. The warm, fuzzy feeling that enveloped her on the way to work had totally evaporated. Of all the days for an unscheduled meeting to be called, why did it have to be the day she couldn't get to work on time?

She checked her watch as she hurried to the other end of the floor. Late by fifteen minutes. Damn it!

Her cheeks were pink and her hands were cold when she pushed the heavy door of Boardroom 2 open. Penny Radcliffe, their CEO, was talking but stopped when she noticed her entrance.

"I'm so sorry I'm late," was all she could mumble.

"Take a seat, Ari. Glad you could make it," Penny said.

Ari smiled at her CEO, hoping she wasn't being sarcastic with her remark. But all the big boss had was a rather anxious smile on her face. Now that made her real nervous.

She strode to the lone empty chair, surprised that the whole design team was there, including their admin assistant. None of them was smiling. Not one. In fact, they all looked like stunned mullets. Oh no.

Penny cleared her throat. "Ari, I was just updating everyone on something that occurred last week," she said in a quiet voice. "Eros was sold to CB International, based in California. CB's long-term plan is to only have the finance and customer service divisions here in Australia. In the short-term, they will keep the current marketing team intact, though it will be absorbed by their head office eventually. Unfortunately, this design team is the first to be affected. I'm sad to say that you are all only here for another two weeks. That time is to be used preparing the design department for a smooth handover to CB."