Chapter 14 The Insignificant Chocolate Ball
The Insignificant Chocolate Ball
Tyler tried to hold back a smile when he saw Matthew roll his eyes on the other side of the boardroom table. Victor was trying to explain to them why the construction of the building in Fremont was still delayed and Matthew hated excuses as much as Tyler hated unnecessary arguments.
“Victor,” Matthew said irritably, “per the contract, this building was supposed to have been completed three weeks ago and now not only are you telling us that you’ve halted construction at seventy percent, but you also want a higher fee as compensation for overruns.”
Tyler sat back silently and watched as the two men argued over what exactly was the cause of the delays.
“Mister Delaney,” Victor countered, “you know for a fact that we received the building permits late.”
“By four days. That doesn’t explain why your team is six to eight weeks behind schedule.”
They continued going back and forth. Matthew always had the stamina to debate with these money-hungry constructors.
Delays were a given with every new building.
It was the nature of the business, especially in Seattle when rain was a constant problem.
But all of these things had been factored into the budget and Victor was grasping at straws to prove why his overruns were justified.
“It’s not economically viable for me to complete this project,” Victor said firmly.
“You aren’t the only one making losses,” Matthew bit out. “Every day that building remains incomplete is a day we aren’t earning rentals.”
Tyler waited, listening to both sides of the story and right before Matthew lost his temper, he stepped in.
This argument was becoming tedious and he needed to put an end to it.
“Victor, I accept there were some delays from our side, but the rest of it is menial excuses. It is because of improper planning and inefficiencies from your team that we find ourselves in this position. And if you think you can strong-arm us into throwing more money at this project, think again.” Tyler spotted Margo walking down the corridor and decided to wrap this up quickly.
“So this is what I propose. We will pay five percent of your overruns to cover any losses that may have been caused by us and nothing more.”
“But, Mister Evans—”
“Nothing more, Victor. I think that’s fair. Get your men to finish this up or we will be taking legal action.” He stood up. “Now if you will excuse me, I have some important matters to attend to.”
He left the boardroom and walked back to his office. Jordan would be coming in any second now and as much as he didn’t want to acknowledge it, he was excited to see her. In fact, after that very aggravating meeting with Victor, she was the only person he wanted to see.
The week after the funeral was rough for her and she’d taken the whole week off.
Knowing that her roommate wasn’t around, he’d gone by a few times to check on her.
She hadn’t been in the mood to talk, so instead he’d sat there and watched a mindless Soap Opera which she seemed to be addicted to in a very unhealthy way.
Our love, Our lives it was called and it was probably the stupidest thing to ever hit TV.
The dialogue was cheesy, there was no real plot and the fact that Abby didn’t know who the real father of her baby was…
well, that was just blatantly irresponsible.
Jordan thought it was Eric, but he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that it was Lorenzo.
She’d returned to work last week and this constant debate about Abby’s baby-daddy had continued.
It was stupid and pointless, but it got a smile out of her so he entertained the conversation every time.
She was doing much better. Her spirits seemed to be lifting a little more every day.
She wasn’t depressed all the time. She was laughing a bit more and he was pretty sure his weekly date with Margo’s pastry tray would have her giggling the way it always did.
He heard a knock on his door and she stepped in.
She looked beautiful today. Long-sleeved navy-blue shirt buttoned to the collar, nothing special about that.
Gray knee-length skirt ending just below her knee, nothing different about that either.
Dark hair neatly pinned into a bun; that was the same too.
On the surface, she looked the same every day, but he was beginning to see her in layers.
Different emotions, different moods, different layers.
The more time he spent with her, the more layers he saw.
The more layers he saw, the more beautiful she became.
“It’s the end of August,” she announced, “so today’s the last day.”
“Hi.” A wide grin was on his face before he realized it was there. “Where’s Margo?”
“I decided to choose for you today.” She walked to his desk and placed a small white, cardboard box in front of him.
He groaned. “It’s the chocolate ball, isn’t it?”
She half-sat on the edge of his desk beside him. “It’s my last chance to get you to try it.”
“I don’t really like chocolate, Jordan.”
“You don’t really like anything, Tyler. You’ve spat out every one you’ve tried so far. You don’t like apricot, strawberry, caramel, you had a particularly nasty reaction to blueberry. I really don’t think chocolate is going to be that bad.”
“Alright.” He opened the box and took out one chocolate ball covered in coconut.
She leaned over and pulled out his handkerchief from the breast pocket of his suit jacket. “Okay, I’m ready. Are you ready?”
He felt the usual preemption of disgust tickling the back of his throat, but he took a deep breath and nodded.
He bit into it. The chocolate exterior crumbled, giving way to a crunchy, nutty biscuit beneath it.
He chewed and it was a burst of different flavors and textures.
His tongue tingled. The nuts balanced out the sweetness.
Some parts were hard while others melted in his mouth.
So many different things melded together to form this one extraordinary ball.
It was like Jordan. The perfect mix of everything.
“And?” she asked expectantly.
He grinned and continued chewing.
Her eyes grew wide, her smile stretching from ear to ear. “And?”
She was a sore winner and he wasn’t going to admit anything.
“You like it?” Her fists clenched with excitement.
“Oh, my God! You like it!” It was very dramatic, fist pumps and a small victory dance as she bounced around his office.
Probably the cutest thing he’d ever seen.
“Ladies and Gentlemen,” she announced to an imaginary crowd, “we have a winner! The chocolate ball – as recommended by Jordan Shepard – has won by a landslide.”
“There’s no need to be smug.”
“What? No need to be smug? I have single-handedly changed your life. I have just given you a reason to keep trying new things.” She returned to her spot and sat down on his desk again.
“I’m gonna ask you something and answer me honestly.
If you had to compare it to cream donuts, where would it stand? ”
“If I had to compare it to cream donuts…I would say…” He rolled his eyes, hating the fact that he had to reveal this to her. “It’s possibly my new favorite.”
“Hear that, folks? A new favorite!” She erupted with more silliness, hands waving in the air and cheeks flushed with excitement. “A new favorite! All thanks to the incredible advice given by Jordan Shepard. Jordan Shepard is amazing. Jordan Shepard is a revolutionary human being.”
He laughed and rolled his eyes again. He loved watching her when she was like this, but God was she cocky. So adorable yet so annoying.
“I want you to say it.” She raised her brows and stared at him with blue-gray eyes beaming with arrogance. “I want you to say…Jordan Shepard, I’m sorry I ever doubted you.”
He let out a small humph and stood up, using a less than humble tone to give her what she asked for. “Jordan Shepard…I’m sorry I ever doubted you.”
“Jordan Shepard, you are the greatest,” she prompted.
Always with these antics. “Jordan Shepard, you are the greatest…the greatest pain in the ass.”
She giggled but she still wasn’t giving up. “Jordan Shepard, thank you for helping me find my new favorite.”
“Jordan Shepard,” he whispered, “I found my new favorite.”
And then his head dropped, mouth crashing straight onto hers. She didn’t even see it coming. Neither did he. But she was too close and he couldn’t resist. Her lips parted beneath his and he heard her groan, the same throaty groan he heard every time his tongue entered her mouth.
It had been almost two months since he felt these lips on his and it was like finding a piece of himself he hadn’t known was missing.
He shifted, moving in front of her as he deepened the kiss.
His arm wrapped around her, pulling her up off the desk and she pressed her slender body against him in the most enticing way.
One hand moved lower, closing over the soft curve of her ass.
His other hand, however, felt sort of restrained.
He didn’t know what to do with it. Option one was weaving it into her hair, but she was so neat and…
inaccessible, the very opposite of imperfect Jordan.
Option two was sliding it up her skirt, but being at the office…
Oh, yeah. We’re at the office. He stepped back and took a deep, steadying breath. “Whoo…well…I’m sorry…about that.” It seemed like the right thing to say.
She smiled. “No, you’re not.”
He slowly shook his head, trying to hide a grin. “I’m not…I’m really not.”
Sighing playfully, she started backing away. “That’s eight for you, Mister Evans,” she said, walking out of his office.
He waited for her to close the door before he slumped down in his chair and threw his head back. New favorite indeed.