“Because I had my bodyguards bar the door.”
He what?
Constantijin murmured, “Now, please. Taste it.”
I finally opened my mouth.
As he fed me the piece of salmon, which was delicious with its icy freshness, he said softly, “Next time, I’ll be feeding you my cock.”
Oh, oh, oh, why did this man always know exactly what to say to turn me on?
I took a mouthful of water after, trying to use the time to calm myself. “Constantijin,
don’t.
”
“Don’t what?” he asked with such wide-eyed innocence it tempted me to smile.
“I still have a presentation tomorrow so please…
no distractions
?”
Constantijin said immediately, “I’m sorry. That slipped my mind. Are you nervous about it?”
Relaxing a little, I admitted, “Yes, kind of.”
The rest of the meal – and the day – passed uneventfully, and tomorrow came even before I was prepared for it. Megan took us to yet
another
conference room, also larger than the one we went to before. More and more, I was beginning to realize that Kastein Inc. was all about presentation, considering the gazillion of conference rooms the company seemed to have.
This
conference room could comfortably seat forty, but only half of its seats were occupied. Constantijin sat at the very center, in front of his team of executives, looking gorgeous, sexy, and utterly out of my league. It made me feel like I had only dreamt about the times I spent with him.
The order of the presentation was the same. When it was my turn, I virtually used the same spiel, only this time, my presentation lasted a bit longer because of the video and additional data I had included. Constantijin never took his gaze off me, but I could also see in his face that he was listening intently – even proudly. That gave me such a huge dose of confidence I became even more enthusiastic with my presentation, cracking jokes, and getting my roomful of executives to interact.
Afterwards, Charli took over and led the round of applause our audience gave us.
Then --- and this was really a surprise --- Charli had us come back on stage. Before I knew it, we had an impromptu panel interview about our series recommendations.
"The characters are kind of young," a male executive said. "How do you propose to attract adults, parents, and so forth, to watch it?"
That was a tough one. In the corner of my eye, I saw a tiny smirk on Arian's face.
Grrr
. That witch! "Well, I could have the advertisement for the teaser start with a line like
'Remember how it felt when you first fell in love'
? Because no matter how old we get, we never forget our first love, first kiss, even our first heartbreak, no matter how much we try to forget it."
The crowd thankfully laughed at my quip.
I continued, "And that's what
Hana Kimi
is all about. Everybody likes to reminisce about those lovely firsts, and this series gives them that opportunity. Even better, it gives people with bad memories something better to replace them by."
The executive smiled. "Good point."
I wanted to look at Constantijin and see if he approved, too, but I dared not. Instead, I thanked the executive shyly and looked at Charli for confirmation. She gave me a thumbs-up sign.
Charli took over the stage again when the panel interview ended half an hour later. "Now, didn't I tell you I hired a great marketing team for us?" she boasted, and everyone laughingly agreed.
George and I happily hugged each other when Charli officially ended our presentation. Both of us looked for Arian to congratulate her, but we need not have bothered, not when she was already getting the best congratulatory message from none other than Constantijin himself.
Arian drew close to Constantijin as she spoke, her breasts heaving with every deep-throated laugh she released.
“Oh my God, the bitch,” George muttered.
I shook my head. "Not really. I mean, they're both single."
He looked at me like I was insane. "But you like him!"
I struggled with that. If George could so easily see through me, could others do so as well? Finally, I mumbled, “It’s just a dumb crush.”
Or at least I hoped so.
Tuesday to Thursday were peaceful and utterly boring, with Constantijin nowhere in sight. Through the office grapevine, I learned that he had to fly back to his home country for a get-together with his family.
On Friday, I took advantage of the no-office-attire rule to dress up in a black knee-length dress, made distinct by its high collar, bell-shaped sleeves, and scooped back. I felt like I had been neglecting myself lately – or at least ever since I saw Arian flirting with Constantijin and him not doing a thing to stop her.
Should he have stopped her? Did I have the right to care? I hated how I constantly thought about these questions and hated the fact even more that I
didn’t
know the answers to them.
Allan, a guy from Production, actually wolf-whistled when I walked past him. “Looking good, Yanna,” he said, leering.
I stuck out my tongue, wishing I hadn’t been reared in a conservative ladies’ academy so I could flash him the finger – especially when his exceptionally loud voice had everyone turning toward me.
Drake was there, too, and I slowed down when he turned to me with a smile. “You look beautiful, Yanna.” Again, his eyes made no secret of his admiration.
Again, it had me blushing. “Umm, thanks.”
“Hot date tonight?”
I quickly shook my head. “Oh, no. Just a night out with friends.” I tried to think of something else to say but the way Drake kept staring made me want to hide under a rock. “Umm, I have to go.”
Eyes twinkling as if he knew – and enjoyed seeing – how uneasy I felt, Drake stepped aside with a polite smile. “Have fun later.”
“Uhh, yes, thanks.” God, I was so socially awkward. I wish I could think of something wittier – nicer – to say to Drake.
Head down, still mulling over my social ineptitude, a pair of expensive handmade men’s shoes suddenly blocked my path. My heart galloped, my nerves prickling in awareness because I knew who it was even before I lifted my gaze and met Constantijin’s blazing golden eyes.
He was furious – and jealous.
My heart sang, but I quickly nipped that in the bud, telling myself it didn’t mean
anything.
“Good morning, sir.”
“Do you have a date tonight?”
This time, I totally lied. “Yes.”
Before he could answer, I walked past him, heart beating even faster. When I got to my office, George took one look at my outfit and grinned. "Va-va-voom, baby!"
Arian just stuck up her nose.
Yeah, well, what-e-ver.
I grinned back at George as I went to my cubicle. "Alyx and I have a bridal shower to attend tonight." Then I giggled. "Or bachelorette party rather. Since I have a feeling it's not going to be a wholesome affair."
"Ooooh. You'll have strippers?"
“Yeah, probably.”
Voice lowering, George whispered, “Won’t Mr. Kastein have something to say about that?”
I slowly shook my head. “It’s not his business.”
Lunch time, I actually managed to remember to leave at exactly noon. George and I walked inside the cafeteria arm in arm, which was a good thing since I almost lost my balance when I saw Constantijin with Arian – again. My chest squeezed painfully when she actually took the seat next to him.
WTF?
"Gold-digger," George muttered.
"No." I had to say it. Even if I believed the same. I just had to say no. I had never liked talking about other people behind their backs. "She's just - I guess - she just likes him a lot."
George rolled his eyes. "I hope he's not stupid enough to fall for her."
I shook my head. Even I didn’t think that. But still – what if he had sex with her? Would I be able to bear that?
An urge to cry hit me unexpectedly, and I had to look down, blinking rapidly to keep the tears from falling. It seemed so incredibly long ago since the last time I was in Constantijin’s arms. Did he not like me anymore? I had heard about men blowing hot and cold. I understood it in theory, but the reality was so much harder than I expected.
“I’ll bet you a hundred dollars he’s into you, though.”
I smiled humorlessly at George’s attempt to comfort me. “You’re on.”
George’s phone suddenly rang and he excused himself, leaving me all alone in my booth. I felt like a loser with a capital L and wondered if Arian and Constantijin were glancing my way. What if they were laughing at me?
The thought hurt, but I was the type to confront my fears head on so I forced myself to look up.
Constantijin was staring at me.
He shouldn’t have been – not with Arian talking so animatedly next to him – but he was, and I couldn’t understand the dark emotions in his eyes. His lips were compressed in a tight line, as if he was holding his anger in check. Was he actually mad
at me?
Arian abruptly stopped speaking as her eyes bore through mine. I forced myself to look away. I felt the burning sensation of being glared at from my right, where Arian and Constantijin were.
I gulped. Oh, man! Arian as a frenemy was bad enough, but as an all out enemy? That was going to be hell.
“Thank God you’re back,” I exclaimed when George returned to our table. I stood up and dragged him with me before he could take a seat. “We have to go, it’s an emergency.”
"But I didn't finish my lunch yet---" he protested.
“
Emergency
,” I gritted out.
With a sigh, he let me drag him out of the cafeteria. We passed by Arian’s table as we did, and she was all alone, Constantijin nowhere to be found.
She smiled. It was a scary sight, and I had to force myself
not
to run from it. “Hurry,” I hissed at George. Honestly, I felt like that black-haired ghost from
Ringu
was after me.
But just like that ghost, Arian was impossible to escape.
When we got to our office, Arian was at our heels. I jumped at the sound of the door slamming shut, feeling like I was suddenly trapped in a cage with a killer shark named Arian.
"Hi Yanna, George,” Arian cooed with another smile.
I smiled weakly. George didn’t. He was the blunt but polite type and had never bothered to pretend interest in befriending Arian.
"Could I talk to Arian privately?" she asked George sweetly.
George didn’t even hesitate. "No."
Arian was obviously taken back but she rebounded quickly with a sharp retort. "You're not her keeper, you know?"
"Actually, I consider myself that," George returned coolly.
I was looking at them back and forth. Was I about to have a bitch fight in my hands? Clearing my throat, I said, "Arian, really, there's no need for secrets. Whatever it is you want to say---"