The What If Guy - Lauren Blakely Page 0,42
beat between my legs.
Must. Be. Professional.
He gestures to the couch, and I sit. He takes a seat at the other end and slides into business mode. “Tell me more about this partnership with Joy Delivered and what you envision.”
I startle, a touch surprised by the direction he’s taking this meeting. “Oh. I thought you’d just want me to debrief you on the pitch, and hand it over.”
He shakes his head. “I debriefed myself and read the emails you sent. I want to know how you see it. What you think can come from the pair-up.” He leans back against the cushions, waiting for me to share my opinion.
This is a surprise, but a welcome one. When Hadley was here, she handled the higher-level partnerships, and she didn’t ask for my input. Input I was dying to give.
I square my shoulders and dive into all the reasons why I think a deal with Joy Delivered is a good idea.
He tosses questions at me, and we brainstorm the best terms for each party. Finally, he nods thoughtfully and raises a finger. “Idea, Bryn. Why don’t you come with me? I’m hoping to set the meeting up for the week after next. We can both go see Casey and all put our heads together.”
I try to rein in a massive grin, but inside I’m squealing with happiness. “I’m out of town, meeting with some content partners early that week, but I’d love to after Wednesday.”
“Great. I’ll set it up.” He lowers his voice and glances around furtively, like he has a secret. “Thanks for the tips earlier today. Check this out.”
He grabs his phone, shows me the link for the cat photo contest, and then tells me he entered it. He crosses his fingers. “Amelia will lose her mind if Queen LT wins. I know it’s a long shot, but I figured I’d try.”
I rub my palms together, delighted. “Look at you! You’ve gone from not knowing this was a thing to participating in the thing. I’m impressed.”
He shrugs, as if it’s all in a day’s work. “Like I said, I can be trained.”
“I’ll be rooting for your pretty pet. By the way, did I hear Amelia is keen on hula hooping?”
“Evidently, it’s her new passion. They did it in PE today. She loved it and wants to get one. My sister runs a fitness center, so I figured I’d see if she wants to go hula-hoop shopping with us tonight.”
“How fun. My friend Amy teaches a hula-hooping class at a local gym.”
“A class?” He blinks. “A hula-hooping class?”
“I’m blowing your mind today, it seems. From cat photo contests to hula-hooping classes. Yes, both are things. And hula class is a blast. Amy is an editor at Bailey & Brooks,” I say, naming the publishing house. “I work with her on some content partnerships with her romance novels, and I go to her class twice a week. It’s great exercise.”
“And it’s great for . . .” His eyes take a stroll up and down my body.
His shameless gaze heats me up. Makes my skin tingle and my chest whoosh.
His eyes glimmer as he stares, like he’s imagining new ways to touch me from head to toe.
Then he shakes his head, as if he realized what he was doing.
He drags a hand over his hair, swallowing. “Sorry.”
“For what?” I ask, even though I know the answer. But I also liked his hungry eyes eating me up.
“For looking at you like that.”
“I didn’t mind,” I say in a whisper.
“Yeah?” His voice is rough, husky.
“I liked it,” I murmur.
“I like looking at you. And you look stunning today. Very professional and ridiculously sexy.”
My eyes drift down to his arms. “Same to you. Also, nice arm candy.”
His head dips, and he smiles. “Thanks. I read your piece. ‘Mr. Smolder.’ That’s how you saw me?”
“It was call you that or the Man I Want to Put Me on My Knees.”
His nostrils flare. His eyes darken, and my body aches. “You’d look so damn good on your knees, Bryn.”
Pleasure bursts across my skin, but before we burn the office down, I stand, run a hand along my skirt, and point my thumb at the door. “On that note, I should go.”
And quickly, before I do something I regret.
My team claps when I enter the conference room five minutes later.
I stop in my tracks. “I accept your adulation, but . . . why?”
Matthew’s grin is supersize as he swivels his laptop around. I peer closer at the screen. Looks like