Chapter 27
FAITH
We were close to his place when he said, “I spoke with Amy this morning, and I’ve instructed her to start the process of suing Cassie Thomas. I can’t trust our inhouse lawyers with this. If I manage to keep my position, I’ll be restructuring some of our processes.”
Amy hadn’t said anything, but I guessed if they only chatted this morning, she hadn’t had time, plus lawyer/client privilege.
“Amy’s the best. If anyone can put together an airtight case, it’s her, and she’ll dig up all the dirt on this woman.
” Amy was the best up-and-coming trial attorney at her firm.
I sat up straighter. “She’s not serving her with papers or anything yet, is she? ”
Curtis smiled. “Don’t panic. No one will find out what we’re doing until we’ve got all our ducks in a row.”
“Quack.” I couldn’t help it. Let’s hope we didn’t see any cows because, well… saying mooooo wasn’t very attractive.
He chuckled and side-eyed me. “You didn’t.”
“I did. And I’m not even sorry about it.
” Hopefully I hadn’t just signed the death certificate of our sexual relationship.
Since we were just having a fling, I figured I could be my authentic self.
I hadn’t pulled out an animal noise with Mark until four months into the relationship, and even then, I wasn’t totally comfortable being me.
Curtis might as well know who he was hanging out with from the beginning.
If he didn’t like it, well, best to know now.
Maybe that was what I’d been doing wrong in the past, always being a subtler version of myself until I got to know a man.
Scared that I’d be too much. Well, no more.
What I’d been doing hadn’t worked for me, so it was time to change the script.
“You’re unlike anyone I’ve ever met, and that’s a good thing.”
My stomach warmed at his compliment. I didn’t often accept compliments at face value—I just figured the person was doing their best to be nice—but he had no reason to lie to me, and I didn’t want to ruin the happy moment by second-guessing things. “Thanks. You are too.”
“So, today we’ll be brainstorming the commercial.
When we’ve done that, I’d like you to write the script, and I’ll get some images together to present to Marvin so he can get a good idea of the concept.
” Ooh, exciting. I loved collaborating and script writing.
“Over the weekend, I want us to write all the ad copy for social media. And next week, I’ll source the images, and then you can create the graphics.
Once that’s done, we’ll structure the ad spend, timing, channels etcetera.
We want to include ads on street furniture, train, bus, etcetera with this one.
” Wow, he was organized. Hot and organized.
How was this man single? “I also have ideas on specific in-store advertising. I have to speak to her, but I think I can get a collab with Brittany Watkins.”
“Wow! She’s so big right now. I love the Stirring Things Up With Brittany show. They do the best healthy desserts I’ve ever tasted. And their five-ingredient dinners make life easier.”
“She’s got the main demographics we’re after—women twenty-five to sixty.” Before I knew it, we were pulling into the driveway to his parking. “What’s your favorite dessert of hers?”
“Hmm, let me see…. I basically love any dessert, but if I had to pick one, it would have to be the sugar-reduced salted-caramel chocolate mousse. It’s sweet enough without being sickly.
I love the salty kick, and it’s so smooth; it just glides down the throat.
” I put a hand on my heating cheek. “Oh God, not what I meant.”
Curtis laughed as he drove in and parked. “You always have such a way with words.”
I pretended my face wasn’t beet red. “That’s why you’re paying me the big bucks.” I waggled my brows.
One hand on his door handle, he turned his head, fixing me with a piercing stare. “You’re worth every penny and then some.”
My stomach did a double-back somersault with a two-and-a-half pike. If you could get gold medals for attraction, I just won one. Rather than say something dumb, I smiled and put my hand on my door handle.
He raised one brow. “Oh, no you don’t. Wait.
” His voice pitched lower on the last word, and I froze.
I raised my eyebrows, and he shook his head.
“Wait.” He got out, came around to my side, and opened my door.
This was ridiculous, but I liked it. No one had ever gone out of their way to treat me as if I was special…
well, no man. Besides, I always saw myself as an independent woman, but if it made him happy, who was I to argue?
I got out. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” He slid his hand into mine, linking our fingers, the delicious warmth traveling up my arm and through my whole body. Even our fingers touching had me three heartbeats from pouncing. Maybe we’d both get lucky today.
“Is this okay?” he asked.
“More than okay.” I gave his hand a small squeeze, and he grinned. His dimples made him look like an excited kid who’d just been told they could get a puppy. And to think it was because of me.
When we got to his apartment, he took me through to the kitchen, which had an open-plan layout. Dark wood-look cabinets set off the large Carrera marble island and benchtops. It was all super sleek and elegant. In the middle of the six-seater, oval dining table was a sight to behold.
Curtis held his arm out as if presenting a new car on a gameshow. “Ta da!”
“Oh my word, you didn’t!”
He smiled proudly. “I did. It’s only fair since I said you’d work directly for me under the same conditions.”
I bit my lip as I perused the offerings. “Can I have one now?”
Footsteps sounded in the hallway outside.
Then a slim forty-something woman wearing a white shirt and black pants came in.
Her dark hair was pulled into a tight bun.
She must’ve been about five three, but her voice filled the space like a woman twice her size.
She gave a nod to Curtis. “Mr. Knight.” She looked at me. “Welcome! You must be Faith.”
“Hi.” I gave a small wave and smiled.
Curtis said, “Faith, this is Isabella, my house manager. You can thank her for the pastries.”
I hadn’t met her before, but he had mentioned someone came in four days a week to organize his chef, housekeeper, and book anything else that needed doing.
She also carried out tasks like taking things to the dry cleaner when his PA was too busy.
“Lovely to meet you, Isabella. And thank you so much. I can’t wait to eat some. ”
Her warm, genuine smile put me at ease. “You’re very welcome. If you need anything while you’re here, please let me know.” She looked at Curtis. “Arnold will be here soon. The lunch and dinner menus are in the folder. If you want any changes, just let him know when he arrives.”
“Thank you, Isabella. Faith and I will be working in my office most of the day, so if you need me, just buzz.”
“Yes, sir.” She went to a built-in coffee machine, like the ones you saw in Italian-style cafes. No drip filter here. “Would you like a coffee, Faith?”
“Yes, please.”
“Espresso, cappuccino, macchiato?”
Ooh, this was so exciting. Free special coffee and pastries.
This was almost like winning the lottery.
Maybe I was overreacting, but only a couple of months ago, I was worried about spending money on something as basic as food.
And honestly, that day at Café Nero, the hot chocolate and donut had been the only things stopping me from having a mental breakdown.
And maybe seeing Curtis for the first time, too, had soothed my feminine nerves just a tad.
“Cappuccino, please.”
“Take whatever pastries you want, and I’ll bring the coffees into your office.” She hadn’t asked Curtis what he wanted, but she probably already knew—double-shot latte with one sugar.
We worked until two, stopped for a delicious lunch of pumpkin soup followed by chicken Caesar salad.
Even though I’d been working hard, with all the extras, it was like being on vacation.
Not cooking was awesome. Poor Amy was going to have to fend for herself for the next week, although she wouldn’t mind.
She had her favorite takeouts and the money to buy them.
Hours later, we’d finished brainstorming, and I was putting the finishing touches on the script so Curtis could go over it before the end of the night.
His phone dinged with a message. He read it and looked at me.
“Dinner’s ready. You hungry?” My stomach grumbled. He chuckled. “That would be a yes.”
“Say the magic words, and she wakes up.” I smiled. “I’ve been so engrossed in the work.” I looked at my phone. “Oh gosh. It’s after seven already. When I’m in the groove, hours feel like minutes.”
He ran a hand through his thick hair and leaned back, arching his spine.
“I know the feeling. I need a stretch.” He stood.
“We’re really getting somewhere. We make a good team.
” I was surely reading too much into the fuzzy look he was giving me.
His eyes were probably tired after concentrating for so long.
“We do. I’ve really enjoyed today.” It had been hard to concentrate at first because the most gorgeous man in the universe was just across the table, but I soon managed to put it to the back of my mind. What we needed to do was too important to let my hormones distract me.
“Let’s eat.”
I followed him and the delicious scent of expertly cooked food to the kitchen dining table, which was set for two. A tall, slim man, his short brown hair graying at the temples, stood next to the table. “Good evening, Mr. Knight.” Hmm, interesting accent. Curtis had a French chef. How… rich of him.
Curtis smiled. “Good evening, Arnold. This looks delicious.”
I inhaled through my nose again. “It smells amazing.” I smiled. “Hi, I’m Faith.”
“Lovely to meet you, Miss Faith. I hope you enjoy the dinner. It’s medium-rare filet minion with béarnaise sauce on the side, twice-roasted duck-fat potatoes, and asparagus with a Champagne citrus vinaigrette.”
I swallowed the saliva flooding my mouth and accidentally groaned aloud. Curtis gave me a look, one which I was interpreting as “you’re such a turn on” but was probably “have you got a stomachache?”
Curtis pulled a chair out and looked at me. “Let’s eat.”
“Yes, please.” I went to the chair opposite him, where the other place setting was, and sat.
Curtis’s brow furrowed, and Arnold’s lips twitched as he held in a smile. Curtis shook his head. “I was holding the chair out for you.”
I bit my lip and smiled. “Oops. Sorry. I’m not used to that. In my world, the only time someone pulls a chair out for you is if you’re in the middle of sitting and they take it away so you fall on your behind.”
Curtis sat. “Hmm, classy.”
“I know, but that kind of life gives you survival skills.”
What looked like respect shone from his eyes. “True. You looked like you knew what you were doing at the café the day we almost met.”
“When I’m wearing my Docs, I’m unstoppable.
” I chuckled. I also felt uncomfortable with praise because I wasn’t used to it, so best to cut that off before it began.
I did okay that day, and I knew it. I didn’t need anyone else to agree.
“You finished things off, though. Quite well, if I may say. My knight in shining armor.” I laughed at how corny I was, but I couldn’t resist.
He put his hand to his belly and inclined his head as if he was bowing. “At your service.”
Arnold placed our plates in front of us. I inhaled the fragrance of the expertly cooked steak. This was going to be so good. “Thank you, Arnold.”
“You’re welcome, Miss Faith.” He grabbed a crystal carafe of red wine from the island and presented it to Curtis. “The Chateau Lafite Rothschild, 1986. I took the liberty of decanting it earlier.”
Curtis gave a nod. “Perfect.” He looked at me. “Do you drink wine?”
“I’ve been known to partake. Thanks.”
Once the wine was poured, Arnold left us to enjoy the meal alone. There wasn’t a candle or anything on the table, but it was rather cozy and romantic. Curtis raised his glass. “To us—a great team I didn’t see coming.” He smiled softly, setting off gentle flutters in my belly.
I couldn’t help but return his smile. I lifted my glass and clinked it against his. “To us.” I took a sip of the wine. My eyes widened. “This is so smooth and goes down so easily. Delicious. That is the nicest wine I’ve ever had.”
He smirked. “It should be, at almost four thousand a bottle.”
I gasped and choked on my own spit, which made me cough until my eyes watered. “Excuse me?” How many glasses were in one bottle? Had I just drunk a day’s wages in one sip? That was insane.
He laughed. “What’s the point of having money if you don’t enjoy it? I give plenty of it away, so I don’t feel guilty when I enjoy it. Besides, it keeps people in jobs. I’m spreading it around.”
“Um, okay. It’s just… it’s nuts. One bottle for that much. You rich people are out of touch.” Was I being mean? Maybe, but it was true.
“Would it make a difference if I said it was a gift from a client who was particularly happy with the job we did? I was saving it for a special occasion.”
“Oh. Thank you for sharing it with me.” I wanted to argue that this wasn’t a special occasion, but I needed to shut my mouth.
He was doing something kind, and I was being ungrateful.
If his aim was to spoil the heck out of me, it was working.
“I’ll make sure I enjoy every sip.” My stomach grumbled, reminding me there was more to this meal than wine.
Curtis grinned. “You’d better start eating before the neighbors complain about all the weird rumbling noises.”
He didn’t need to ask twice.