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Sitting around and fidgeting wasn’t his style, so he headed for Pendulum next. It was the first nightclub he’d owned, and its success had made all the other clubs possible. It was Pendulum that had allowed Colin to move out of his father’s house, where the decor had gotten more hideous with each new wife he married, and get CS Productions off the ground.
Twenty-five minutes later, Colin pulled into his parking space at the club and walked inside. He sighed with relief when Pendulum—his place of solace—welcomed him home.
“Hey, Tucker. How’s it going?” he greeted his manager, walking farther into the club.
“Everything’s going smoothly, As for me, I would like a month paid vacation,” Tucker replied, following Colin into his office.
“You and me both.”
“What brings you in? I wasn’t expecting you until Saturday.”
“I needed to relax,” Colin said with a rueful smile, delivering the truth like a joke.
For a brief second, Tucker frowned, as if he wanted to say something. Colin’s longtime employee and friend knew something was up, but he chuckled instead, giving Colin the space he needed. “Well, you go ahead and do that while I run your nightclub.”
Once Colin was alone, he logged on to his computer to get some work done. The distraction would do him some good. When the lights clicked off in his office, he waved his arms to alert the sensors. He was so focused on the clubs’ marketing plans that he must have been sitting like a boulder for the last twenty minutes. When the lights came back on, he rolled his shoulders and returned his attention to the screen.
After his office plunged into darkness for the fifth time, Colin stood up and gave in to the urge to pace. It was late afternoon. Maybe she didn’t plan to call him today. But he’d been so certain she was close to a decision last night.
“Damn it,” he muttered, frustrated with himself and the whole situation.
Colin continued to disappoint his grandmother by refusing to work for Hansol Corporation, but his love and loyalty lay with his family. They already knew that, but he wanted to do what was right. To protect them and redress the wrong done to them. And, of course, the partnership opportunity would be a giant leap forward for CS Productions. That had to be why he felt so impatient to hear from Jihae Park. His impatience had nothing to do with his desire to hear her voice again. None whatsoever.
His cell phone rang as soon as he finished his thought, and he picked it up on the first ring, barely registering the caller ID. “This is Colin.”
“Mr. Song, this is Jihae Park.” She sounded slightly winded and his gut tightened with worry. Was she okay? Was she nervous about telling him bad news? But that didn’t make sense. Why would she call him to deliver bad news? That was what emails were for. He took a deep breath through his nose and waited. “Rotelle Entertainment has decided to offer a partnership to CS Productions for Best Placed Bets.”
“That’s amazing news. CS Productions accepts the offer. We’re thrilled to work with Rotelle Entertainment.” His heart was beating hard enough to bruise his ribs, and he couldn’t stop the smile that spread across his face. “With the partnership sealed, we can lock in Charity Banning as the screenwriter. We’re going to make one hell of a film.”
“We certainly are,” she said. Her voice held a hint of a smile. “I’ll have my assistant email over the contract once we’re off the phone. Let’s make it official.”
“Thank you, Jihae,” Colin said in an unintentionally low voice. “Would it be all right to call you by your first name now that we’re partners?”
“I believe that’s perfectly appropriate, Colin.”
He didn’t know where his blood was rushing to—south or north—but he was light-headed with pleasure at hearing her say his name. He’d pierced one layer of her armor, and was one step closer to her.
Four
Jihae had followed her gut instinct and partnered with CS Productions. Colin had sounded so relieved and happy to hear the news that she wasn’t able to hold back her smile. And calling Colin by his first name had felt as intimate as a lover’s touch.
“Bloody hell,” she muttered as she pushed away from the desk.
Jihae had endlessly second-guessed her instinct to agree to the partnership, questioning the consequences of such a decision. A partnership with CS Productions was exactly what Rotelle Entertainment needed, so it was a smart business decision. But their “business meeting” the night before had confirmed that their attraction to each other wasn’t a fluke. It flared to life whenever they were close, and was almost tangible in its intensity. To make matters worse, it wasn’t one-sided, which would’ve made it far easier for her to quell. Knowing he felt the same pull as she did made her helplessly drawn to him.
Helpless. She didn’t like the sound of that. Losing control was an unknown to her and she had no interest in going down that road. Considering the potential of the partnership, she’d decided to ignore whatever chemical reaction was brewing in her body to work together with CS Productions. But her phone call with Colin had set her heart racing, and her confidence in her self-control turned a bit wobbly.
Regardless, the decision was made and there was no going back. She ended any chance of exploring their attraction for the privilege of producing Best Placed Bets. It was the best decision for Rotelle Entertainment, so it was the right decision for her.
“June,” she said into her phone. “When you send over the partnership agreement, could you also schedule for the CS Productions team to meet with our team? They’re going to be working closely together. Let’s get them introduced sooner rather than later.”
“Sure thing. Will you be attending the meeting?”
“No, I don’t think I will, and neither should Colin. The two teams should get a chance to know each other in a comfortable environment without their bosses breathing down their necks. It’s meant to be a casual meeting where they discuss their visions for the movie, and get excited about producing it.”
“Should I make it a lunch meeting? I’ll book one of our conference rooms, and have it catered.”
“That’s a great idea. Thanks, June.”
