He squeezed her hand, gentle and quick. “You’re forgetting to breathe again.”
She inhaled and tightened her grip on his. “There are so many ifs. Too many unknowns.”
“But not up here. Not in this moment.” He sat up and swung his legs onto the floor. His knees bumped against hers. “My grandparents had a hammock in their backyard. On the nights I couldn’t sleep, I’d lie in it and count the stars. My grandmother told me every star was a possibility.”
“If only we weren’t in the middle of the city, surrounded by high-rises. I could count those possibilities now.”
“We don’t need the stars.” Kyle leaned forward and brushed his lips across Ava’s. Just once. Just the smallest caress. But a kiss that left the deepest of impressions. The strongest of possibilities. He pulled back, enough to see her half-closed eyes. “What do you want...?” He paused, watched her eyes close. Held himself still, despite the urge to take more. “What do you want for dinner?”
Her eyes snapped wide-open, locked on him. “Dinner?”
“Let’s start simple—stay in or eat out?”
“In.”
His choice, too. “Delivery or takeout?”
Her teeth bit into the edge of her bottom lip. “What’s in the refrigerator in the kitchen over there?”
“Wine and an unopened appetizer tray that Haley prepared for the finale party.” He tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear, let his fingers graze her cheek.
“Sounds like dinner is already up here.”
“Are you sure?” he asked. “It’s nothing special.”
“It’s perfect.” She stood up and held out her hand.
Together, they created dinner from an appetizer platter, sipped wine and shared secrets. Their conversation interrupted only by a kiss. Each one longer than the last. Each one less about the possibility and more about the reality. The reality of something deeper and heart tangling between them.
Too soon the night chilled the air and sleep beckoned. Kyle walked Ava out to the waiting taxi and opened the cab door.
Ava turned before getting inside. “We didn’t write the pitch.”
“But we had fun like Barbra told us to do.” Kyle grinned.
“We did have that.” Ava kissed him. “Thanks for the breather. I didn’t realize how much I needed that.”
“Anytime.” Kyle leaned on the open cab door. “Besides, we have all weekend to write the pitch.”
“I have to work.”
“Then I’ll get to work, too.”
“Thanks for all of this.” She waved her hand between them.
“My pleasure.” He shut the car door, waited until the cab turned the corner and headed inside. The evening had been more than a pleasure. The evening had been special.
Kyle walked through the suite and stepped into the lab to turn off the lights. His phone vibrated on the desk, where he’d left it. Funny, he hadn’t even considered checking his messages or working the entire time he’d been with Ava on the rooftop. He’d only wanted to discover as much as he could about such an incredible woman.
He grinned, grabbed his phone and sent Ava a text.
Got the perfect pitch.
She wanted to hear it. He wanted to tweak it first and promised she’d have it before the end of the weekend.
She answered with an emoji blowing a kiss.
Kyle smiled and sat at the desk with his open laptop. Messages flashed in his inbox in the corner of the screen. Most were marked urgent. He wrote several versions of the pitch on a blank document and then opened his inbox.
And his night nosedived from a perfect evening with a perfect woman into a perfect nightmare.
He picked up his phone, pressed Play on his voice mails. Terri’s grim voice filled the silence and confirmed the message in the urgent emails.
The committee had rejected his proposal.
Worse, Kyle had until midnight to submit another idea or he’d owe steep penalties. Terri rattled off how much the penalties and fines would cost him. Kyle’s hand shook as he wrote the exact dollar amount on a sticky note. The six-figure number filled the entire square sticky note.
The amount was almost twice what he’d calculated. Nowhere near what he had in his bank accounts. He’d invested in property: his suite, his parents’ retirement condo, the family estate.
He shouldn’t have had the wine. Shouldn’t have kissed Ava. Shouldn’t have gotten to know her. Now she was more than a friend and that ruined everything.
He couldn’t think straight. Couldn’t see past the implications to his family and himself. He had another idea with a proposal already written and a perfect pitch. A pitch he’d just come up with after putting Ava in a cab. He’d worked as hard on the proposal and pitch as Ava. He’d invested as much time as Ava. But the idea wasn’t his, except according to the contest rules, it was his.
All he had to do was attach the documents in an email to Terri and hit Send.
Only a couple clicks and he’d save himself and his family.
Ava had signed the contest waivers, too. She’d understood the rules and the conditions for the contest.
He’d understood the danger of crossing boundaries. The danger of making friends and opening his heart. He’d understood the consequences. And he’d jumped anyway.
Images of Ava holding his hand, laughing at shared memories and wiping away a tear after hearing about his grandfather—those images interrupted his concentration. Those images made her no longer a stranger. Much more than a friend.
He’d let Ava into his heart. He’d fallen in love.
Now he was going to be alone. Alone and in love.
He deserved all that and more for being so careless and stupid.
He opened a new email, attached the proposal for the Virtual Vital Buddy and typed a quick note to Terri. His fingers shook from the eruption inside his chest.
He’d told Ava outside the conference room that they couldn’t be anything more, now or ever. Why hadn’t she listened? Why hadn’t she run? She should’ve known he’d never be good enough for her.
He clicked on the send button.
God, he hated himself.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
“THANK YOU FOR agreeing to meet with me on such short notice.” Ava shook hands with Terri Stanton, the vice president of Tech Realized, Inc.
“Barbra Norris is a longtime friend.” Terri motioned to a seating area near the windows in the glass-walled lobby. The windows granted waiting visitors and vendors a view of the towering four-tiered fountain flowing into a massive reflective pool.
Ava smoothed her mouth into a smile, trying to hide her confusion. She’d assumed she’d be giving her pitch in a conference room or a private office. Not out in the open lobby with employees and vendors and guests streaming through like schools of fish. Nothing about her life since becoming a finalist in Kyle’s contest had gone as she’d expected. That included Kyle.
Thoughts of Kyle bolstered her courage. He’d tell her to believe and not worry about the setting. Ava straightened her shoulders and reached into her tote bag “I have a printed copy of my presentation.”
The woman stopped Ava from handing the color presentation to her and invited Ava to sit beside her on the couch. “I’m not sure how to approach this, as I’ve mentioned that Barbra is a dear friend.”
Ava lowered herself onto the couch. “But...you’re not interested in the Virtual Vital Buddy?” That bubble of hope burst inside her, leaking defeat through her. Barbra had cautioned her about being prepared for rejection. She hadn’t thought it’d be so soon.
“On the contrary, the invention has merit.” Terri crossed her legs at the ankles and folded her hands on her lap.
Ava studied the woman. Terri Stanton wore practical heels, trendy oval glasses and a navy business suit. Everything from her French twist to
her starched and ironed white blouse broadcasted a no-nonsense attitude. “I’m afraid I don’t understand.”
“Neither do I.” The woman indicated the presentation Ava clutched inside her binder. “This idea has already been presented to our committee.”
“But it’s my idea.” Ava let the binder drop back inside her tote bag, along with her fear.
“That seems to be up for debate.” Terri pushed her glasses up and stared at Ava, straight and not blinking. “I’m not sure what you’re trying to prove, but presenting ideas as your own can have disastrous consequences in this industry. Word travels fast.”
She was trying to prove her idea—her invention—was worth the investment. Worth the financial commitment of a corporation dedicated to bringing the device to market. “I’m only here now. How has my own idea been submitted already?”
“I’m afraid I cannot discuss the details.” Terri rose and brushed her hands over her skirt as if Ava’s deception might’ve clung to her. “However, I can offer a word of caution. Stealing from Kyle Quinn, then scheduling a meeting with his current employer probably wasn’t the wisest move. I’m not sure how you convinced Barbra to believe you, but you can be sure I’ll be calling her as soon as I get back to my office.”
Kyle? Stealing from Kyle? That was impossible. Ava’s stomach twisted into knots. The woman had everything all wrong. Kyle had helped Ava create the presentation. He’d even designed the perfect pitch. Ava had spent all morning memorizing the two lines. Ava cleared her throat, discovered her voice. “Can you at least tell me when the idea was presented to you?”
“Late Friday night.” The woman checked her watch. “If you’ll excuse me, Ms. Andrews, I have important meetings to attend.”
Meetings that didn’t include thieves like Ava. Those were the words left unspoken in the quick clip of Terri Stanton’s heels on the marble floor. The woman wasn’t Ava’s concern—she could have her fancy business suits and high-powered meetings. Ava never wanted that.
But Kyle—she’d wanted Kyle.
She’d wanted to make the impossible possible with Kyle. She’d wanted to make a life with Kyle. She’d given him the best of her: her heart.
She curled her fingers into the presentation binder. Shredding the paper in the lobby of Tech Realized, Inc. would only make a scene. Another one. She was already being discussed on Terri Stanton’s floor, whispered about and scrutinized. Even the receptionist at the lobby desk grimaced in her direction.
Ava forced her hands to uncurl the presentation and everything inside her to uncoil. Meltdowns were best handled in privacy. She’d never liked meltdowns—public or private. But Kyle had betrayed her. He’d stolen from her. Stolen more than her idea.
He’d stolen her trust. Her heart.
And that entitled her to a full-scale meltdown.
Ava rose and walked out of Tech Realized, Inc. with her head high, despite the turmoil surging through her.
* * *
INSIDE KYLE’S BUILDING, Ava took the elevator, too afraid her shaky legs wouldn’t carry her up the stairs. That meltdown tried to suck her down like a fierce undertow. She wouldn’t drown in her emotional turmoil yet.
Kyle opened the door, tousled hair, bare feet and a sleepy grin. He reached for her.
Ava shoved past him and kicked off her heels. She’d have her feet firmly on the ground this time. “How could you?”
Kyle eased the door closed, his grin slipped away. But the way his gaze slid from her face betrayed him. “I’m not following.”
“I just left Tech Realized.” Ava threw her presentation across the room. Papers scattered like shattered dreams. “Barbra scheduled a last-minute meeting with Terri Stanton for this morning.”
Kyle thrust his hands in his hair and yanked as if that would right his world. “Barbra never mentioned where she’d scheduled the meetings.”
“It never occurred to us that it mattered,” Ava shot back. It never occurred to her that he’d betray her. That he’d pretend to help her and pass off her invention as his own. His own. It never occurred to her that she’d need to protect more than her heart from him.
“It’s not what you think,” he said.
“So, you didn’t submit the presentation and pitch for the Virtual Vital Buddy on Friday night?” she lashed out. Friday night. Minutes after she’d left the building. Minutes after she’d poured out her heart and shared her secrets. Minutes after she’d fallen into his kisses. Fallen even more head over heels in love. She curled her toes to keep from buckling.
She’d rode home in a taxicab, sighing and smiling from the inside out.
He’d walked into the development lab, no doubt cackling from what an easy mark she’d been.
His mouth opened, closed and opened. Only the air of guilt escaped.
Ava crossed her arms over her stomach to hold the turmoil inside. “At least have the guts to admit it.”
“I sent in the presentation.” His words rushed out. “But it’s not what you think.”
Ava thrust her arms over her head and shouted, “I trusted you.” Trusted him with her heart.
“I can explain,” he said.
“There’s nothing to say,” she countered. “What? Were you going to put me on the payroll like Iris? Pay me from the profits of the Virtual Vital Buddy sale?”
He rubbed his hand over his mouth, but not fast enough to cover the truth. He’d considered that an option.
“You were,” she accused. She gathered her voice around the fist choking her. How stupid could she be? “You think I’m worth nothing more than a monthly handout. After all, Ava’s desperate. Did you convince yourself that I’d take whatever meager amount you gave me and believe I’d hit the jackpot? Did you convince yourself that I’d be grateful and in your debt?”
“That’s not what I thought. That’s not what I planned.”
“But you had a plan,” she charged. Where she only had one plan: build a different future for herself. She’d known not to reach for more. Known the dangers and yet took the risk. Now she fell, and the impact would be shattering. “What about Friday night up on the rooftop? Was that part of the plan to betray me? And the talk about falling in love.”
“I never said...”
“That’s right. You never said you loved me.” Ava clutched at her own throat, trying to open her airways. She’d felt love in his kiss. Felt it in his embrace. So many lies, and she’d fallen for every single one. “How stupid I am.”
Kyle stood silent and distant.
“And you know what’s even more pathetic?” Ava narrowed her eyes, trying to stall the spill of her tears. She wouldn’t cry over him. “I’d have given you the invention if you’d asked.”
“It was already mine.” The crisp bluntness in his voice was like a lethal injection.
Ava recoiled.
He had one more shot to inject. “You signed the consent form for the contest, waiving your rights to your idea.”
“Of course I did.” She’d handed him her life and her heart and only ended up with a dead-end future. She walked to the door and turned around. “We could’ve been something special.”
“We still can.” His voice was earnest, but his gaze guarded.
“Just stop.” She stepped toward him, met his gaze, heartbroken but not defeated. “We could never work, because you can’t believe.”
“I believed in us,” he countered.
“That’s another lie,” she challenged. “How do you sleep at night? You should be suffocating on all your lies by now.”
He retreated. She followed.
“You need to believe in yourself first.” Ava pointed at him and injected her own hard truths. “You need to believe you deserve to be happy. If you’d sit down long enough to really look at yourself, you’d see that it’s you who isn’t happy. Stop using your money to fix everyone around you. They�
�re already satisfied with their lives. Fix yourself instead.”
Kyle crossed his arms over his chest as if intent on deflecting her words. “You’re not happy.”
Ava flinched and walked toward the door. “I could’ve been. With you beside me.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
“YOU NEED TO go get Ava.” Iris rushed inside Kyle’s suite, her voice as urgent as her footsteps. “She’s down in the lobby and she’s crying.” His sister drew out the word crying into too many syllables, emphasizing her alarm.
Crying. Ava’s tears weren’t the hardest blow. Her tears had knocked him sideways. The despair in her watery green gaze had made his knees buckle. But the quiet way she’d shut the door and walked out as if he wasn’t even worth her anger. That he wasn’t worthy. That she’d given up on him. On them. That had flatlined him.
He deserved every bit of pain and more. She’d called herself stupid. He was the idiot. The fool. And fools deserved to be alone. He knelt and picked up the scattered presentation papers. The truth turned his voice raw. “I made her cry.”
And he despised himself even more.
“All the more reason to get down there and fix this.” Iris bent and yanked on his arm. Everything about his sister was in emergency mode.
Kyle gathered the papers into a pile. If only the same methodical approach could be used to pick up the pieces of his life. But he knew nothing would fit right without Ava. Nothing would ever feel the same. “There’s nothing I can do.”
“There’s always something you can do.” Iris dropped onto her knees and shifted until their eyes met. “You have to try.”
How did he fix the heart he broke? Confessing his love for Ava now would be like stomping on those broken pieces. I stole your idea because I love you. He wanted to crush his own broken heart. “It’s complicated.”
“Any relationship that is worthwhile is complicated,” Iris argued.
“Let it go, Iris.” He crumpled one of the presentation slides in his fist.
She opened her mouth.
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