Page 8 of The Demigod Complex
The second the words were out he grimaced, then schooled his features to neutral when she turned, as if to assess his seriousness. He raised a single eyebrow and said nothing. After a second she shook her head at him before returning to her work.
He blew out a silent breath.
The thing was, he wanted her to think well of him. That silly muttering made him want to beat his chest and do more good things, just to make her like him. Which was damn ridiculous. Olympus help him, something was going to have to give.
Hence the unaccustomed thoughts bombarding him about this weekend. He’d already planned to bring her. He hadn’t been joking when he’d asked for her help. Shewashis buffer at this thing. But then he’d seen that fucking resignation letter and was running out of time.
Now he had a few days to… What? Win her? Seduce her? No…find out if this thing was mutual or not. More importantly, why did she want to leave? Had she realized his changing feelings and this was her way of rejecting him? Leia gave every appearance of loving her work. Happy, satisfied, fulfilled employees were a source of pride for him as a successful businessman. Her plan to leave had triggered a response close to caveman level. He didn’t like it.
“Are you challenged?” he asked, his thoughts out of his mouth before he vetted the words first.
Those long, slim fingers paused in their nonstop motion, and she turned in her chair to frown questioningly at him. “Sorry?”
“At work. Are you feeling challenged?” What was wrong with him, blurting it out like that? Usually he was more…subtle.
She blinked at him owlishly, which made him want to shift in his seat like a naughty schoolboy. “Is this about my not wanting to come on the trip?”
“No. This is about your job satisfaction.”
Her expression didn’t change. If anything, she looked more confused. “Did you know satisfaction in one’s job is the number one contributor to personal happiness? They did a study.”
He ignored her factoid segue. “Are you?”
“Yes.” She drew out the word, obviously not knowing where he was going with the question.
“That doesn’t sound sure. Want to rephrase?”
She continued to stare at him with those cobalt blue eyes that seemed to see too much of his soul. “Is there something wrong you’re not telling me?”
He cocked his head. “Why?”
“Because you’ve never asked me a question like that.” She shrugged. “I know the business is doing great, but maybe there’s a problem with your family? Is Pollux okay?”
And there it was again. A twinge of irrational annoyance—he refused to dub it jealousy—at the idea she might be interested in another man. He’d experienced it twice yesterday. Once with Mike, who’d obviously been hitting on her. The other when he’d realized she’d have to cancel a date this weekend. Now he was suspicious of his own brother. He was losing his mind and his self-control. His attraction to his wife hadn’t been nearly this disconcerting.
Get a grip.
He ran a hand over the smooth chrome of his armrest. “Pollux is fine. Answer the question.”
She stared at him blankly, a look which he returned with a poker face the pros would envy.
“I love my job.”
He couldn’t mistake the sincerity in her voice. But why, then, did she want to leave? “Maybe you need more responsibility? Or maybe you want to do something else within the company? Although I’d hate to lose you as an assistant—”
He cut himself off. He was babbling now. He never babbled.
“No.” She folded her hands in front of her, and even that gesture had him thinking things he shouldn’t. “I’m not exactly shy about speaking up,” she said.
He chuckled around the frustrating level of tension building in him. “That’s true.”
She tossed him another look—concern obvious in her clear eyes—then turned back to her work, effectively dismissing him. He watched her for a bit, battling with the strangest urge to brush her hair away from her neck. Would she lean into his touch or jerk away?
Needing distraction before he embarrassed himself, he reopened his own laptop and tried to read some new contracts until they landed. The nice thing about flying private was how quickly you got out of the airport. Rather than hire a driver, Leia had a rental car waiting for them at the gate. Their luggage was loaded, and they were away within minutes.
At first, they concentrated on getting out of Fort Collins and heading up into the mountains. Eventually they hit a long stretch.
“So…” Leia broke the silence. “Tell me more about this ceremony.”
