She looked out the window to stare at him for a moment before she turned back to me. “Do you want to relocate him?”
Another engineer would have to step in, and we’d have to get them up to speed on what we were working on. It would be much easier to keep Pierre, but with this tense relationship, it would affect our work. “Not particularly.”
“Then let me talk to him.”
“Why? This isn’t your problem.”
“Sometimes, a woman’s touch is required. Let me have a one-on-one with him.”
I still didn’t need someone else to fight my battles.
She studied my unease. “Derek, we both know you aren’t the most diplomatic person. You say what you don’t mean sometimes, and when you do say what you mean, it can be harsh…and a little cruel. Let me handle it.”
I had faith she could do anything, so I gave a slight nod.
She smiled before she walked out.When we were in the Escalade, I asked her about it. “What happened?”
“Smoothed things over. I think he was just embarrassed by the whole thing.”
“He should be embarrassed.”
“And maybe a little jealous. You know, that you got me in the end.”
I rolled my eyes. “Like he had a chance.”
“Come on, don’t be mean.”
“Well, he didn’t,” I snapped. “Right?”
“No. But that’s because I already had my eye on someone else…” She looked out the window and sidestepped what she’d said.
She didn’t need to sidestep it because it was music to my ears. “You told my dad about my TED Talk?”
She stilled at the question, like she knew she was in deep water. After a few seconds of staring out the window, she turned back to me. “As a parent who wants to witness every single moment of their child’s life, I felt compelled to say something…especially after all the touching things you said about him. Thought he should know because I suspect you’ve never said that to his face.”
No, I hadn’t.
When she saw the affection in my gaze, she knew she wasn’t in trouble. “It meant the world to him…trust me on that.”
“It did.” And my happiness meant even more to him. “He wants the four of us to have dinner together on Saturday night.”
“He does?” Instead of seeming uncomfortable, like meeting my parents was too soon since we’d only been together for a couple weeks, she actually seemed excited, like dinner with my family was something to look forward to. “I’ll work something out with my mom, tell her I’m doing something for work.”
“We can do a different day if that’s easier.”
“No, I know your dad is busy during the week. If he’s anything like you, weekends are preferable.”
I had to tell her the truth about my mom, but I didn’t want to do it in the car with Ronnie just feet away. I kept it to myself.
She continued to stare at me. “Have you looked at the comments on your video?”
I gave her a blank stare.
“Well, there’s a lot of positivity on there.”
I never Googled myself. I never wondered what people had to say about me. If I could have it my way, I’d be a nobody.
“And the inbox is exploding.”
“With?”
“A lot of things—fan mail, students inquiring about internship opportunities, other interviews, stuff like that.”
I’d already done one and wasn’t eager to jump on the next.
“Have you ever considered writing an autobiography?”
I shook my head. “I don’t want to write a whole book about myself. That sounds terrible.”
She chuckled. “I disagree, but I get it.”
Having her at my side every day made me feel like I was with a best friend, that I could be myself with her all hours of the day, turn to her for her personal issues and professional ones as well. I was always committed to my job, but she made me love it even more…because she was a part of it. My hand reached for hers, and I held it on the center console, my thumb gliding over her delicate knuckles, the soft skin that I’d kissed. I stared at her palm in mine, small in comparison, her skin fair and beautiful. I lifted my gaze and looked at her again.
Visibly affected by my affection, her eyes were soft, soft like wilting rose petals in spring. Her fingers gently squeezed mine in return, like this touch was oxygen to her lungs, joy to her heart.It wasn’t that long ago that Fleur was right on my ass. Her hold was so deep in my flesh that her nails hit bone. Controlling and obsessed, she refused to let me go, using our physical compatibility to keep me anchored to her. The sex was good, explosive, and she liked to do things most women didn’t. That was the reason I’d stuck around as long as I did.
Maybe my memory was warped by the present, but I didn’t remember the past in the same way, no longer saw the addictive pull of that relationship. It was just a shitshow to me. Nothing compared to what I had with Emerson.