Just To Be With You (The Sullivans #12)(15)

“This is my new offer.”

Flynn whistled low and long. “You got the board to agree to these terms?”

Ian nodded. He’d spent the entire weekend doing just that, as a matter of fact. “They’re as enthusiastic as I am about working with you and your company.”

Flynn looked down again at the enormous figures on the page, running one hand through his hair as if he couldn’t quite take it in. But even though nearly anyone else on the planet would have jumped at what Ian was offering, Flynn was not only one of the most independent-minded individuals Ian had ever met, but he’d also been jerked around by a couple of other investment firms the previous year. It had made him increasingly cautious about the idea of partnering with anyone.

Ian sat back in his chair to make sure Flynn knew the pressure was off, even though the full truth was that Ian would do pretty much anything to make sure this deal didn’t fall through. He knew it was crazy to feel this way after all these years of success and the huge sum of money in his bank account, but Ian had never been able to completely bury his fear over not having enough money during those years in college when his family had been in dire straits. An enormous deal like this one would go a long way to buffering that sense of security that he’d been chasing ever since.

Finally, Flynn said, “I like you, Ian. Your track record is great, and the numbers you’re talking now aren’t bad, either. But how do I know you’re not just in it now for the hard sell, and then when we do the deal, you’ll pass me off to someone lower down the chain?”

“I’m committed to you and your company, Flynn. And you’re right, I am a straight-up guy, so I’m going to give you my word that if you agree to partner with Sullivan Investments, I will personally continue to work with you.” It would be a hell of a lot of extra work on top of a schedule that was already packed, but Ian frankly relished the challenge and the opportunity to work with someone as innovative as Flynn Thomas.

The other man took his measure in silence. Ian didn’t have any problem with that. On the contrary, he appreciated working with someone who thought first and acted only after weighing all of the pros and cons of the situation.

“I’ll be out of town until next Tuesday,” Flynn said. “Let’s meet again then, at which point I’ll give you my final decision.”

“Sounds good.” Especially since between now and next Tuesday, Ian planned to find a good half-dozen more ways to sweeten the deal so that Flynn wouldn’t be able to say no. “If you’ve got a few more minutes, any chance you can take me through that new technology you mentioned yesterday?”

Flynn’s face lit at the chance to switch from business to technology, and though he had finally seemed to completely forget Tatiana’s presence as he pulled out his tablet and started talking Ian through his newest innovation, Ian hadn’t.

Not for one single second.

CHAPTER FIVE

“I thought I worked hard,” Tatiana said five hours later when they were in the back of his town car on the way to a lunch meeting, “but I’m starting to feel like being on a movie set is closer to hanging out at the spa compared to what you do every day.” She didn’t need to refer to the schedule Ian’s assistant had given her, because she’d memorized it. “I assumed all you did was play with money and keep your eye on changing market conditions, but so far today you’ve already had meetings about a major tech acquisition, expanding your office further into Asia, a huge fundraising event that you’ve been spearheading, and now we’re heading to lunch to discuss chemistry with a professor from the University of Washington.”

It was the first chance she’d had to talk privately with Ian since his first meeting of the day, and though she’d done nothing more than sit in on his meetings to take notes, she felt worn out simply from observing his pace, his intensity, his drive. Slipping off her heels for a few precious moments, she unbuttoned her blue blazer, loosened her hair from its twist, and slid her feet beneath her on the leather seat.

She felt good about how well she’d blended in this morning. Even Ian had seemed to forget all about her. Not that she had stopped reacting to him, however. All morning in his presence she’d felt overly warm, as though her body was constantly on alert for something.

No, not just something. For a look. For a touch. And, in her most hopeful moments, for a kiss. One stolen in a deserted hallway as he pressed her up against the wall, his muscles hard against hers, his lips hot as they devoured hers.

Heat swamped her again as she fumbled for the button that would lower the window. Finally, it let in the cool, damp air. She lifted her hair off her neck and let it blow over her.

“How,” she asked him as the heat of his gaze on her kept her warm despite the cold rushing through the window, “do you do it?”

“How do I do what, exactly?”

Tatiana wanted to know so many things about him that, honestly, even she wasn’t sure which question she was asking in that moment. She wanted to know how he made her feel so much, so quickly, and with so little effort. She wanted to know what had put the darkness into his eyes, and the hard edges around his mouth where smile lines should be. She wanted to know how he could sit at a dining table with a family who wanted nothing more than to love him, but still hold himself just far enough away from them so that they couldn’t get all the way past his walls.