The Billionaire Game 2(15)

“High-end is fine, but if you price yourself out of the market paying for expensive fabrics and décor and trims, nobody will be able to afford your product. You’ll go out of business, and then you’ll be helping no one.”

I bit my lip and stared out to sea, wondering what to do. The sun was dipping low in the sky, the lights of the city reflecting off the low clouds and turning everything a soft grey-blue except where the horizon painted the sky a soft pink. “Asher…I—I hear what you’re saying. I do. But it’s hard. When I think about how long I spent dreaming of—”

I cut myself off before tears could make me choke on the words. I don’t cry. Not in front of other people, and definitely not in front of hot guys.

“I’m not asking you to give up that dream,” Asher promised. “But there has to be a compromise.” He squeezed my hand. “Maybe you could produce a more accessible line that’s still beautiful, but more streamlined and made of less expensive materials,” he suggested. “And then supplement those with a few ultra-luxury limited collections every year for high-end clients. You’d get a steady income stream, and the kind of exposure you need to move up in the market. It’s the best of both worlds.”

“Best of Both Worlds? Wasn’t that the name of the SyFy Channel Original Movie last night?” But the snark was half-hearted; I could already feel myself getting ready to give in. After all, Asher had made billions when he was still in college, and what had I accomplished then? Not much more than a reputation for throwing back margaritas at the local bar. And what did I have now, years later? Barely my foot in the door.

“All right,” I said grudgingly. “I’m not going to admit that I was wrong, because I’m never wrong. But I guess I can admit that I’m still learning. The business side of this is new; I still need help.”

“I don’t know about ‘need.’ I think if you really had to, you could do this on your own. I just want to make it easier for you.”

Asher brought my hand to his lips and pressed them against it; I inhaled sharply at the sensations that flooded my body at his touch. He kept speaking, apparently unaware of the desire racing through me.

“I don’t mean to be tearing you down all the time. You’ve got a tremendous amount of willpower and can-do spirit, and your talent is amazing—I look at the work you do with just bits of cloth and thread, transforming them into art—and I’m in awe.” He looked deep into my eyes. “I’ve built business empires, Kate, but I’ve never made anything beautiful. You do that every day.”

There was a feeling uncomfortably like grateful tears gathering in the corners of my eyes. “I think you missed your calling as a door-to-door salesman,” I said, hoping he couldn’t hear how the suppressed tears were making my voice shake. “You could unload an entire factory’s worth of refrigerators to an Inuit tribe.”

Asher laughed, and leaned back in his chair, dropping my hand casually. I tried not to let on how much I wanted to take his back. “Yeah, but only good refrigerators. No business can succeed without a great product.”

He smiled at me, and I quickly looked away so he couldn’t see me blush, and thanked heaven were out in the middle of nowhere, where no one could witness me breaking my strict no-blushing rule.

I felt the deck below me cease its vibration as the yacht slowed to a stop. I quirked an eyebrow at Asher, who just looked back towards the main cabin.

Captain Ernetti rapidly emerged, stomping towards us as if the deck of the boat had caused him some sort of personal injury. He grumbled something in our general direction before wheeling away and trudging back to his post as if spending anytime outside on a lovely cool evening was the worst imaginable torture after being put on the rack.

“Care to translate?” I asked Asher.

Asher was already standing, and retrieving a cooler that had been carefully lashed in place. “The good captain was just letting us know that we’ve reached our destination, and we can have our picnic now.”

I hadn’t lowered my eyebrow since I first raised it, but at this news I hoisted it further. “Picnic? Didn’t we already eat?”

“That was just an appetizer. We’ve got a lot of skipped meals to make up for.” Asher popped the cooler lid. “Besides, we need to celebrate our new understanding.”

I teetered over to the cooler on my heels, proud that I didn’t slip, and peered over his shoulder at the contents. I whistled, impressed at their variety and luxury. “You were that confident I’d agree, huh?”