Jackson couldn’t imagine anyone walking over Kayla Green, but he was under no illusions. She was going to need all her skills to win over Walter Montgomery O’Neil.
“We’ll see how she does.” He picked up his jacket. “I plan on getting through the ‘meeting’ and then buying her dinner in the restaurant as compensation. I figure after an hour with our family, she’s going to need a drink. Probably ten drinks.”
Tyler lifted his eyebrows. “But this isn’t a date, right?”
“It’s work.” Ignoring the look his brother gave him, Jackson scooped up his keys. “Buy some beer. That way there might be some in my fridge next time you open it.”
* * *
IT WAS JUST a meeting.
She’d been to hundreds of meetings, and this one wasn’t any different.
Energized after a hot shower, Kayla pulled another pencil skirt off a hanger and put it on the bed next to her black cashmere sweater. Smart and warm. Wearing it would show she could be practical when the need arose.
Grabbing her suitcase, she picked out her favorite pair of black heels. She’d walk over in her boots and then change into her shoes.
Wrapped in a towel, cheeks still pink from the heat of the hair dryer, Kayla mentally ran through the way she intended to play the meeting.
They’d be skeptical, so she’d show them what PR could do for them.
They’d assume she didn’t know anything about their business, so she’d prove to them she’d memorized all the statistics and facts. That she knew Snow Crystal.
Finally, she’d show them what she’d achieved for other clients.
She’d show Jackson O’Neil that she might be useless at walking on ice, but when it came to understanding marketing there would be no slips. Her traction would be perfect.
She wondered why he was so concerned about the meeting.
Apart from my brother, you’re the only person I have in my corner. It’s in my interests to keep you alive.
The irony didn’t escape her. She’d never met a man’s family before. Never got to that point in a relationship, and here she was about to meet Grandma.
Kayla straightened her hair until there was no sign of her encounter with the snow, livened up the severe black sweater with a silver scarf covered in tiny stars and added a pair of silver hoops to her ears before checking her reflection quickly in the camera on her phone.
Go, Kayla.
By the time Jackson rapped on the door, she was confident she was ready for anything they threw at her.
He parked outside the main house. Tiny lights hung along the eaves and were twisted into the trees.
It could have been worse, she thought. At least there were no grinning Santas or illuminated reindeer with flashing antlers.
Jackson unclipped his seat belt. “Nervous?”
Yes, she was nervous, but she had a feeling that had more to do with the man sitting next to her than the prospect of the meeting. All he’d done was drive, but there was a tight knot in her belly and all she could think about was sex. Her gaze slid to the sensual curve of his mouth and then away again.
What the hell was wrong with her? Stacy was right. She needed to get out more. “I’m excited. You have a business issue to solve and that’s what I do.” What she didn’t do was stare at her client
and wonder how it would feel to be kissed by him.
“I hope you still feel the same way by the end of the meeting.”
Anxious to get away from him, Kayla slid out of the car and stared at the path, weighing up her chances of making it to the door without falling over. “I might hold your arm this time.”
“Good to know you learn from your mistakes.” There was laughter in his voice and something else, something rougher and more dangerous that told her he was feeling exactly the way she was feeling.
Her gaze met the deep blue of his, and the sudden flash of chemistry punched the breath from her lungs.