Tempting my Billionaire

After The Visit

★Cassandra★

I woke up the next morning earlier than usual, though I had barely slept. My mind kept replaying the night before. Nathan had shown up at my office unannounced with pizza, like it was the most natural thing in the world. He had caught me off guard. Completely. Even now, as I leaned against the kitchen counter with a cup of coffee, I could still see him. How relaxed and self-assured he had appeared. As if he belonged in my space. The way he had sat at my desk, the way he had taken me by surprise. It was almost as if we were old friends instead of business partners working on a campaign that already had us both on edge. The worst part was that I had not hated it. I had laughed. I had actually laughed, which was something I did not do often in the office. I had let my guard slip, and that unsettled me more than I wanted to admit.

“f*****g Nathan Grant,” I muttered as I stirred my coffee absently. I stared out the large window that overlooked the beautiful view of the ocean. The morning sun painted everything in gold, and for a brief moment, I let myself enjoy the quiet. But it did not last. The first email arrived at six forty-five, followed by three more in the next ten minutes. I set my mug down and opened my laptop. I had started to rely on my work. It was a wonderful distraction. Especially when I felt so uncertain about things. It was easy to bury myself in work. Numbers, schedules, presentations: they made sense. People did not. Nathan Grant did not make any sense to me. And by eight-thirty, I was already at LuxeLine, and Pauline was waiting at my office door with a stack of folders.

“Good morning,” she said. “You are early,”

“I couldn’t sleep,” I admitted, as I took the folders. “Anything urgent?”

“Just the revised media plan from Grant & Co.,” she said. “Harper sent it late last night,” I wasn’t sure why, but I rolled my eyes. Nathan’s assistant was efficient to a fault.

“Thank you,” I said, as I set the folders down on my desk. Pauline hesitated.

“Is everything ok?” she asked. “You look…a bit…distracted,” I chuckled softly as I shook my head.

“I’m fine,” I said. It wasn’t a total lie. Pauline shot me a knowing look, but she didn’t say another word as she left my office. I sat down and opened the first folder. The numbers blurred slightly before they began to make sense. I focused on the work, determined to push everything else out of my mind. But last night with Nathan kept slipping through the cracks.

“Do you always show up uninvited with food?” I asked curiously, and Nathan smiled.

“Only when I am trying to make an impression,” he shot back.

“An impression?”

“Professionally, of course,” he said.

I remembered the way he looked at me then: steady, almost curious, as if he was trying to read something I wasn’t saying. I hated that he could make me think about something as simple as a look. By the time the morning briefing began, I had managed to pull myself together. The conference room was full, the energy high. My mother joined via video call from the boardroom next door, and Nathan arrived right on time. He looked completely unfazed.

“Morning,” he said with a polite nod as he took his seat across from me.

“Morning,” I replied as I matched his calm tone. If he was expecting me to mention last night, he was going to be disappointed. We dove straight into the campaign updates. I kept my focus on the presentation in front of me, on the data, on the metrics, anything but him. But every time he spoke, I noticed small things. The way he tapped his pen against his notebook when he was thinking. The way his sleeves were rolled up just enough to make him look too comfortable. The way his voice dropped slightly when he said my name. He was professional, controlled, but I could sense it, the same undercurrent that had been there last night. When the meeting ended, people began to pack up, and Nathan lingered. He waited until the others left before she finally spoke.

“Good meeting,” he said.

“Yes,” I agreed as I closed the folder. “Efficient,” he smiled faintly.

“You sound surprised,”

“No. I’m not surprised,” I said. “I am just relieved we are finally getting somewhere,” his eyes held mine for a moment.

“You have been thinking about it a lot,”

“About the project?” I asked as I frowned. I tried to keep my tone neutral, but the look on his face made me pause.

“About last night,” he said quietly. I froze.

“Excuse me?” I asked. He shrugged slightly.

“You looked like you wanted to say something when I left. I figured it might have been important,” I stared at him, and for a moment, I was too stunned to respond. But I shook my head and finished gathering my things. I knew what he was doing. He was trying to fish for information. I just wasn't sure why.

“No,” I said.

“Oh, that’s good,” he said. “Because I would hate to think I made you uncomfortable,” I paused as I glanced over at him. I would not let him get under my skin.

“You didn’t,”

“Very good then,” he said, and before I could think of anything more to say, he left. I stood there for a moment, and then I groaned as I stormed out. He was playing some sort of game with me, and I didn’t appreciate it. How had he known that I had been thinking about last night? Or had that been his plan all along? It frustrated me, and I silently promised myself that I wouldn’t let Nathan Grant occupy any more of my thoughts. He wasn’t worth it.

“Are you happy with the way things are moving forward?” Pauline asked as she followed me into the office.

“Sure,” I said as I sat down. I wanted to drown out everything else around me. I wanted to drown myself in work. “Pauline, bring me last spring’s catalog,” I asked her. She looked taken aback for a moment, but then she nodded. As soon as she left, I closed my eyes. Nathan had definitely grown up, but so had I. I was no longer the little girl he used to know. When I opened my eyes, I got straight back to work. Nathan who?

★★★