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“Professor,” he says with that sexy grin on his lips, “makes me feel… old. Call me Cyrus, or Mr. Gates if you have to.”
“Oh, okay, sorry… Mr. Gates.” I smile nervously.
“What can I do for you, Miss James?” He seems half-annoyed as he pulls back the sleeve of his coat to check the time on his watch. It’s only now I’m realizing how imposing his figure is. Fitting that a man this powerful also looks like he could rip off his suit and be a Marvel superhero at any second. His shoulders are broad, his chest thick and pronounced, even beneath a suit and winter coat.
“I—uh, I wanted to apologize actually, for earlier.” He crooks an eyebrow at me, as if he doesn’t understand what I’m talking about. “I could have been more respectful. I didn’t mean to be argumentative or come across as holier than thou when you called on me in class. I guess what I’m saying is, I’m sorry for not thinking critically and getting defensive instead when you challenged me.”
“I didn’t perceive any disrespect, Miss James. Have a good afternoon.” He turns back toward his car.
“You don’t remember me, do you?”
Shit. I hadn’t planned on reminding him about our little interaction, but once again, before I can think, the words come out of my mouth.
His shoulders square and he turns back to look at me, his eyes studying me momentarily.
“The Waterhouse. I was the woman at the bar… reading the book. The one who said you weren’t a very nice man.” I pause, waiting for a reaction, but he continues to stare at me which makes me even more nervous. “I guess I should apologize for those comments as well, huh?” I smile, hoping he laughs it off.
Recognition smooths his previously perplexed face and a grin tugs at the corner of his mouth. “That’s right… the woman at the bar.” The way he says it has my stomach doing a little flip. His eyes change, growing darker as he runs them down, then slowly back up my body. He drags his hand slowly over his jaw like he’s contemplating what to say next. Then he takes a step closer to me.
“Don’t ever apologize for being honest, Miss James, and don’t”—he narrows his gaze and it makes my stomach clench—“ever compromise your beliefs because you think you overstepped a boundary or owe someone an apology for them.” He steps back and turns to walk back toward his car but stops after taking just two steps.
“One more thing, Miss James.” He only half turns back to face me. “As a young, beautiful woman, never be afraid to stand up to a man like me no matter how unprofessional or disrespectful it might be perceived because this world is full of wolves that will fuck you over and toss you aside and they’ll be praised for it. That’s the one lesson you need to learn from this class this semester. I might not be one of the nice guys, but I won’t lie to you.”
I watch as he slides into his sleek black sports car without another word and drives away. His advice hanging heavy in the air, I try to understand, but the only word he said that seems to echo in my ears is beautiful.
Chapter 3
Cyrus
I drill my fingertips on my desk, the image of Presley in her oversized hoodie in class today, her hair piled high on her head as a few loose tendrils clung to her neck.
The last two weeks have been harder than I expected… Fuck it, they’ve been excruciating. Seeing her tapping away on her tablet, her glasses making her already large doe eyes seem even bigger as I try to stay focused on the lecture I’m giving, is driving me mad. When she apologized to me the other day, I wanted to bend her over the hood of my car and spank her bare ass pink. Teach her a lesson about apologizing for being bold and standing up for herself. Also teach her a lesson about talking back to me.
“Cyrus. Cyrus, are you even listening to me?”
“Hmm?” I lift my chin from where it’s resting on my other hand and look up at an annoyed Nelson and my lawyer Terry sitting beside him.
“I said, Are you li?—”
“I heard you,” I cut him off. “I’m listening.”
He lets out an exasperated sigh. “As I was saying, we have a meeting with Meridian in less than two weeks. They want to discuss moving forward with the contract and what that would look like.”
“What that would look like?” That phrase catches my attention.
“Yes,” Terry responds, leaning forward in his chair a little.
“Meaning what, Terry? What exactly does that mean? If I’m buying a company for billions of dollars, what the fuck do they have to say about how things look moving forward? I guess I missed that part of business school where a company gets to pocket billions, then still tell me what the fuck I get to do with my company.”
I reach up to loosen my tie. I’ve been a lot quicker to snap lately and it’s starting to piss me off. It’s this deal, the fact I have them not only breathing down my neck but watching over my shoulder like I’m a damn teenager again, waiting for me to fuck up so they can pull it and walk away. Maybe I should be the one to walk. I don’t need the money and I don’t need the added stress.
Ah, who the fuck am I kidding? I know it’s not just that… Hell, it’s not even the biggest part of it. It’s her… Presley. Every time my brain isn’t focused on work and half the time it’s supposed to be focused on something else, it’s focused on her. On her thin neck, the way her delicate fingers wrap around the base of it when she’s thinking. The tip of her pink tongue that darts out and drags slowly across her plump bottom lip as she types.
“Meaning that Meridian wants to keep their current board of directors in place once the acquisition goes through. They want to keep the integrity of the family-friendly empire they’ve built intact, even after Gates Enterprises takes over.”
“Meaning they’re scared I’m going to what? Turn it into a den of iniquity?” I chuckle at their attempt to control me. “Terry, if they want to keep their board of directors, I don’t give a fuck. Despite what their CEO thinks, I have no interest in buying them just to ruin their reputation and run it into the ground. That’s not at all what this purchase is about. It’s about diversifying my assets, plain and simple, but they want to turn it into something it’s not.”
“Then it seems like the meeting won’t be an issue. They’re very impressed with your position at the University of Chicago and Lisa’s other efforts most likely won’t go unnoticed by them as well. I’ll be in touch with you next week.” Terry stands and extends his hand toward me.
