Chapter2
1447 Words
Damien
It was a wrap the second he saw that buttoned-up outfit.
Jessa Lowe was the quintessential working-class damsel in distress. And Damien meant that in the nicest way possible.
There was a unique blend of vulnerability and resilience in that jittery demeanor of hers. It was as if she was both nervous and pissed off, yet struggling to hide either.
A fascinating mix of contrasts, her fiery red hair cascaded in loose waves, a stark difference from the no-nonsense, professional demeanor she was trying to feign. Those emerald-green eyes held a hint of mischief, and her freckles added to her an endearing quality.
He glanced at her from his end of the conference table. His tone dripped with amusement.
“Do you mean that?” Damien kept his voice low and sultry. “You’re willing to do anything?”
“Within reason, sure.”
Her glasses were more duct tape than frames, her work desk was an organized chaos. Damien knew that because he’d stopped by her corner office before coming to the meeting.
He liked getting a layout of what a person was like before going into business with them. What better way was there to do that besides observing where they often worked?
It had been empty but Damien learnt a thing or two about her. He just didn’t factor in getting caught by the COO lady halfway. He’d been stuck in a tedious conversation afterward.
“I’m sure you’re a busy man,” Jessa was saying to him now. “Surely you have better things to do than stare at me.”
Despite knowing she just wanted to get this meeting over with, he told her, "Who can blame me? I can't help but enjoy our little detours. It's like a scenic route to our final destination.
“I’d like to discuss the reason for your reluctance to warm up to me first.”
"I'm not reluctant, Mr. White. I'm focused on saving my company. We still need to discuss the merger terms."
Her lips were still doing that nibbling thing. The way she skipped right past the fact that the said merger was only going to happen when hell turned cold made him chuckle again.
“Something funny?”
“Yes. You.”
She had a slender, delicate frame. Jessa’s fair skin had a slight, almost ethereal translucence, which made her appear fragile, almost otherworldly. Dressed in muted colors, her hair framed her face like a soft halo. Damien could not look away.
Jessamine Lowe was everything the blogs described, however few of those articles seemed to be about her. She was lowkey, that much Damien could tell.
In the present, Jessa’s jaw was halfway on the floor in shock. The sight was so amusing, that Damien almost broke character.
Come on, it was a struggle keeping a straight face when she resembled a flustered pufferfish caught in a tangle of headphone wires.
~~~
Damien
“Is there a reason you already hate me? Forgive me if I’m wrong, but don’t you need my help here?”
“That is correct.”
There it was again: that librarian diction, as though she just fell out of a Bridgerton movie sequel. Was she really going to act as if she did not snap at him only a couple of minutes ago?
“I don’t hate you,” she quickly added. A blush crept up in her cheeks when she said it. “I mean—yes—no.” She sighed. “Yes, I need your help. But I do not hate you.”
“Really?”
Her teeth bit into her lower lip again. Damien knew she did that whenever she got flustered.
Deciding to cut her some slack, he looked away. “What do you think?” he asked the other woman in the room. “Anna, was it?”
Damien had never seen somebody turn red in the face so fast. She looked from him to her boss, then back to his face.
"You remembered," she muttered, tucking a strand of hair behind one ear. "Yes, my name's Anna. anna Bailey"
"Don’t you agree with me? Your boss does not like me very much."
At first, she just stared. Two seconds later, Jessa snapped her fingers in her face till she jumped.
"I—” She looked ready to air out whatever was in her mind before stopping herself short. “Of course not, sir. Who wouldn’t like you?”
“Your boss doesn’t,” he answered flatly, looking straight into Anna’s eyes. She melted again.
He stood up and went over to their end of the room. “I consider myself a good judge of character, Anna.”
It was a large room. Clean, pristine, and well-furnished.
His polished, black leather shoes tapped against the pristine, polished floor with purpose.
The muted light fixtures overhead cast a warm, golden glow on the conference table, illuminating the organized clutter of documents and folders. Damien waltzed past the row of chairs by Anna’s right, heading straight for Jessa who was by her side.
However, he made sure to drag the movement out, his slowness no doubt grating on Jessa’s nerves. “The first look your boss gave me this morning was one of derision. Why don’t we start with that?”
Jessa snorted, before rushing to cover it up with a cough. “I wasn’t laughing.”
Once again Anna blurred into the background. “I was speaking with your COO and you were glaring from across the room, for Christ’s sake. At that time, we had not even met yet.”
She winced. “Glare is a strong word.”
“It’s the right word though. Why were you glaring?”
“I was not”
Jessa's mouth pursed in a thin line, her fingers tapping nervously on the stack of folders in front of her. The seemingly composed demeanor was unraveling bit by bit, and Damien found it utterly entertaining.
“Don’t do that, sweetheart. We both know you were glaring.”
He was three feet from her seat now. Looking down at the side of her face, Damien noticed the tiny glint in her eyes. He was getting under her skin and boy, did he love it.
Jessa shot him a look that could melt steel.“We can also agree that that is not the reason for this meeting. So why don’t we get back to it?”
“I disagree. I think this is right on track.”
“How do you figure that?”
He kept that direct eye contact as he moved even nearer to her. “There’s something that I don’t quite understand here. I’m trying to get to the bottom of it. That’s all.”
“See? That’s exactly what I—”
“Nope. It’s important, alright. I can’t focus on what you’re saying if I’m confused, Miss Lowe.”
“Fine.”
“Tell me: why are you so hellbent on coming together with the company of someone you dislike so much?”
Her mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water.
“I told you. I don’t dislike you, Mr. White.”
He was very near now. The proximity fueled his desire to tease her more. From this angle, he couldn't help but notice the subtle, unconscious shivers that betrayed her reaction to him.
Jessa's breaths had become shallower, her chest rising and falling in a rhythm that mirrored the erratic fluttering of her gaze. He saw her green eyes dilate.
“Your face is saying one thing, but those beautiful lips are saying something completely different. That’s the problem.”
“So what do you say?” she asked ignoring his remark. “You won’t regret taking Lowe Inc. on.”
Her mouth, slightly parted, had taken on a more inviting curve. Her body, which had initially stiffened in response to his presence, began to relax, albeit subtly, as if her defenses were slowly melting away.
And then there was the way she kept shifting her weight, gently moving closer and then farther, as if caught in the magnetic pull of a certain chemistry. Her fingers occasionally brushed against her thigh or smoothed the fabric of her skirt.
Almost as soon as he came close, Damien retracted his body from her side. In one smooth motion, he stood upright, then made to leave.
“It’s not you, sweetheart. But it’s going to take more than a gorgeous face to make me merge with a dying company.”
Damien strode out of the room before either of them could say anything else. “The answer’s no.”
- Writer
