by KA Sterritt
I took a deep breath before continuing.
“Okay. You live with your girlfriend in Mosman. Your right hand is in your pocket clutching a small, blue box. It’s a diamond engagement ring you just picked up from Tiffany & Co. You plan to ask her to marry you this weekend. Your parents will be over the moon. They epitomise the happily married couple, living in their mansion overlooking Balmoral Beach. Your sister, Margot, is a paediatric doctor. She’s married to her high-school sweetheart, Joshua, who is also a doctor. He is currently abroad volunteering with Médecins Sans Frontières.”
“Oh my God, Holly. You’re hilarious,” he replied, chuckling. “Is that really what you get from looking at me? A cookie cutter, perfect life?”
“It’s just a silly game I play in my head, smarty pants. You try.”
“I’m going to ignore the fact you just called me smarty pants. Right, let’s see. I’ve just seen you walk past the window. You glance my way because, let’s face it, I’m that good looking.” He cocked his head and wiggled his eyebrows, trying to keep a straight face.
“I was probably looking at Darren. He’s better looking than you.” I saw a flash of jealousy as he glanced over at Darren.
He continued. “You are by far the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen, but there’s a sadness to you that I feel compelled to understand. Perhaps you’ve just broken up with your boyfriend, or lost your job. I would run after you and ask you to have coffee with me.”
“You have no idea how to play fair, do you?” I asked, shaking my head. “You were supposed to give me the perfect life too.”
“I did.” He sat back on his chair and disarmed me with another smile. “You were about to meet me.”
Smooth.
“What made you say I looked sad?” I couldn’t help but ask.
“What made you say I was going to propose to my girlfriend?”
“Touché. So there wasn’t any truth to it?”
Shut up right now, Holly. You’re a freaking masochist!
“Your eyes. You have this face and body men would go to war over, but when you smile, it doesn’t reach your eyes. Don’t get me wrong, they’re beautiful and sexy, but you can’t hide the sadness behind them.”
Who the hell says that to someone they just met?
My alarm bells were blaring. I had to escape. Was I really that transparent today? How was I going to hold it together during the presentation if a man I’d just met could strip me bare that easily?
“I’d better get going. It was nice to meet you, Ryan.” I pushed back my chair and tried to stand up gracefully, but the strap of my laptop bag was tangled around my ankle. I nearly fell flat on my face. Wow. My exit from this man’s presence was going to be as embarrassing as my entrance. I was horrified to feel my sad eyes welling with tears.
I just stared at him and he stared back. The thought of never seeing him again actually made my chest ache. It felt wrong to walk away, but it seemed like the safest thing to do.
“Finish your coffee, Holly.”
“I’m sorry,” I replied, holding out my hand. “I really do have to go. It was very nice to meet you.”
As he took my hand in his, I felt a bolt of electricity at the contact. Pulling away and stepping towards the exit, I couldn’t resist a backward glance. His piercing blue eyes stared right at me. The physical attraction was hard to deny, but that’s not why I had to leave. This man was dangerous territory for me.
Pausing to get some fresh air before going into work, I grabbed my phone from my bag and quickly typed a text to Audrey.
Got dragged into work today. Not good. Met ridiculously hot guy in the café. Will fill you in tonight x
Before I even made it to the entry foyer, Audrey had responded.
Oh Hol, hope you’re okay. Work drinks tonight. Will see if you’re up when I get home. Need details on café guy! Love you x
Chapter Three
“What took you so long?” Jason asked. “I told Slater you’d be right up.”
I put my things down at my workstation. “I was just preparing myself. I’m here now.”
“Well, Slater wants to see you right away.”
“Holly, what are you doing here?” asked Eva, with her usual saccharine bite.
“Jason was good enough to inform me about the last-minute change with the Davenport meeting,” I replied.
Eva “Bitch” McCormack. No prizes for guessing how she hoped influence the decision to have her design chosen.
“You forgot to button your shirt up properly, Eva,” I quipped.
Jason stifled a laugh behind her.
“Jealousy’s a curse, Holly,” Eva said, glaring. She placed one hand on her hip and prodded me in the upper arm with the other. “It doesn’t suit you.”
“Jealous? Why the hell would I be jealous of a crazy b–”
“Breathe, Holly,” Jason’s calm voice whispered in my ear as he dragged me away. “She’s not worth it. She’s just trying to rile you up before the presentation. It’s classic Eva – you know that. And you don’t usually bite back.”
Breathe in, breathe out.
“Well, I don’t usually have to talk to anyone today, so she’d better watch her back.”
“Feisty Holly is kinda hot,” he smiled cheekily.
“Don’t you start.” I was momentarily transported back to my chance encounter with the uber-hot Ryan.
“Okay, not sure what you mean by that, but you need to get your butt into Slater’s office right now.”
Shrugging my shoulders in defeat, I took a few steps away from Jason. Stopping, I turned back. “What would I do without you?”
He gave me a warm smile. “Never going to find out.”
I returned his smile then made my way to Slater’s office. Eva was already there, of course.
“Thanks for joining us, Holly,” Mr Slater said, genuinely. “I know you booked today as annual leave – I hope you didn’t have anything important planned.”
Vitally important, but that was not information that needed to be shared with anyone, least of all my boss and my nemesis.
“It’s absolutely fine. This is a big opportunity for me.”
He nodded. “So, you both have your presentations ready. And remember, I’ll be there to back you up.” He stood up and gestured towards the door. “Let’s head to the conference room for a run-through.”
An hour later, I was well and truly ready for a breather from the suffocating presence of Eva and her breasts. Mr Slater, on the other hand, was mesmerised by them. It was fair to say Eva held the upper hand. The managing partner was showing clear favouritism towards the busty blonde who would no doubt warm his bed if it helped her career. Hopefully Mr Davenport would choose my intelligent design and creative ideas for sustainability over Eva’s cleavage.
“Okay ladies, let’s take a quick lunch break. Stretch your legs and be back here in an hour.”
The second Slater left the conference room, Eva turned on me.
“You don’t stand a chance Holly. I have this in the bag.”
“What do they say about counting your chickens?” I retorted, wishing I could come up with something better.
Ignoring me, she pulled out her phone and started tapping away. “Have you checked out Mr Davenport online?” she asked, without looking up. “He is unbelievably hot. Makes our Jason look like a complete waste of time.” Looking up from her phone, she flicked her hair over her shoulder. “When my design is chosen, I’m sure there’ll be lots of opportunities for one-on-one time with him, discussing layouts. And by layouts, I don’t mean –”
I cut her off. “Ugh… I know what you mean, Eva. I hate to break it to you, but you don’t get to be the successful CEO of a multinational corporation by choosing inferior work based on who is going to warm your bed for one night. I tailored my design to complement the Davenport signature style whilst maintaining my own architectural stamp. If he prefers your approach, good luck to him.” With my rant over, I collected my notes and stood up.
“Oh and by the way, don’t ever say ‘our Jason’ again.” I quickly exited the room, leaving a shocked looking Eva alone with her slutty thoughts.
When I got back to my workstation, I found Jason hard at work with his earphones in, bopping his head to whatever music he was listening to. As if sensing my presence, he looked up, pulled out one earphone and gave me a heartwarming smile.
“Want to grab a bite?” I asked. “I don’t have much time, but after what I just endured, it would be nice to have some decent company.”
“Of course,” he replied immediately. “Let’s grab a sandwich and hit the gardens.”
Our office was located one street away from the beautiful and tranquil Botanic Gardens. Jason and I often spent our lunch breaks running through the gardens and along the harbour foreshore. Sometimes we preferred to eat under one of the spectacular trees, surrounded by friendly white ibises. It was one of Mum’s favourite places to take me. We would stare up at the buildings of the CBD, chatting about the architectural genius, or lack thereof. Her passion had inspired me to be an architect, too.
“Er, not today.” I tried to keep the rising emotion out of my voice. “Let’s just grab a bite downstairs, okay?”
“It’s okay to think about her, Holly.” He put his arm around me, steering me towards the lift. “Come on. Lunch is my treat.”
Chapter Four
As we walked into the café, I couldn’t help glancing around the tables to see if Ryan was there. It was ridiculous, but I was having serious trouble keeping him out of my thoughts. I was embarrassed to acknowledge the explicit nature of these thoughts. Seriously, get a grip Holly.
“Order anything you want. Go crazy,” Jason joked. He knew full well I’d order the niçoise salad like I always did.
“I’ll have the ni– actually, you know what? I’ll have the burger. Just call me crazy.”
“Seriously?” Jason threw his arms in the air. “Thank God.” He grabbed me by the shoulder and tried to keep a straight face. “It’s pained me to watch you miss out on Darren’s burgery goodness for this long.”
I struggled to stop myself laughing. “I’m pretty sure ‘burgery’ isn’t a word.”
“It’s totally a word. Wait ’til you try it. The only question you’ll have is why you wasted so much time with beans and cat food.”
Dropping his hands, Jason turned to Darren, who was grinning broadly.
“Hey, don’t knock the niçoise,” I interjected. “It’s the best of the salads.”
Inane as our chat might have been, it felt really good to switch off and enjoy some banter before the big presentation. Jason was my comfort zone and I loved him for it.
Having inhaled his burger in record time, he wiped his mouth then clapped his hands together. “Alright. It’s nearly go time, superstar.”
Mum used to call me superstar. Shit.
“I don’t think I can do this, Jase.” I rubbed my forehead, perhaps in an attempt to force out my negative thoughts. “I’m fine one second and then feel like I’m going to hyperventilate the next. I met a guy here this morning when I was getting coffee and he said I looked sad. I nearly cried in front of him.”
Jason grimaced slightly but didn’t interrupt.
“I almost bit Eva’s head off back in the office and if anyone says anything that triggers a memory, I’ll blow it. I know I will.” A lump was forming in the back of my throat as I continued. “You know how hard this day is for me. It’s just better if I’m away from people.”
Jason pulled his chair across and put his arm around me. “You’re going to be fine.” He squeezed my shoulder reassuringly. “You’re going to be more than fine. You go in there and show Mr Davenport why you are the greatest thing to hit the Australian architecture world since the legendary Anna Wilson.”
I flinched at her name.
Jason must have felt my body tense. He pulled me around to face him and held both my arms. “You go in there and show Eva ‘Bitch’ McCormack why she will always be runner up. But more importantly, you go in there and focus on the good memories of your mum.”
I swallowed the lump in my throat, but my eyes still blurred as Jason continued.
“From what you’ve told me, she was strong and smart – just like you. Do this for yourself and for her. Tonight, we’ll get really drunk.”
“Thank you. I seem to be saying that to you a lot today.”
“Just own this, Holly. Don’t let today’s date ruin it for you. Tonight we’ll celebrate.”
We returned to the office in comfortable silence. I needed to get a hold of myself. Jason was right, I needed to own this. But first, I needed to freshen up, so I made a quick trip to the bathroom. Touching up my makeup in the mirror, I made a conscious effort to ignore the sadness my eyes refused to hide. My hair was being very well-behaved so I made a quick decision to pull the elastic band out, allowing it to fall loose down my back. I could hear Audrey’s voice in my head, reminding me to take advantage of my natural assets. I reapplied my pink lip gloss, pinched my cheeks for a bit of extra colour, stood up straight and pushed my shoulders back.
I was ready to face off.
Chapter Five
Mr Slater appeared at the conference room door accompanied by the three Davenport representatives. One by one they filed into the room. As Slater began the introductions, I couldn’t believe my eyes.
“Ryan Davenport, Michelle Cartwright and Piers Holloway, I’d like you to meet two members of the Slater Jenkins team. This is Eva McCormack and Holly Ashton.”
What? No, no, no, no! This is not happening!
Ryan from the cafe was none other than CEO Mr Ryan Davenport, and he was standing right in front of me. I sucked in a loud breath as he shook my hand for a few seconds too long, piercing me with those eyes. I was stuttering when I managed to croak out my greetings. My eyes darted around the room, trying to work out if anyone had noticed my unprofessional demeanour. My brain was having a hard time catching up. When I dragged my eyes back to his, Ryan seemed calm and collected. He was a professional and I was a silly girl, overreacting.
Once everyone else was seated, Mr Slater walked to the head of the table.
“Welcome,” he began. “Firstly, thank you for choosing Slater Jenkins for this exciting project. I think you’ll be really impressed with Holly and Eva’s individual visions for your building.”
Before Mr Slater could continue, Ryan interrupted him. “Ladies, before you present your designs, I’d like a brief idea of your background and a sense of your architectural style.”
This was the last thing I needed. Talking about my past would take my brain places I needed to avoid today.
Own it, Holly. Breathe in, breathe out.
Eva stood immediately, clearly thrilled by the opportunity to talk about herself. I didn’t mind. It gave me some extra time to compose myself.
“Thank you, Mr Davenport,” Eva purred. She then proceeded to gloat about her exemplary academic record and various university accolades. She also felt it necessary to point out that she’d chosen architecture over a career in acting, like her father. Her father being the famous Marcus McCormack. Of course, the crazy bitch also managed to work that in. She was beyond reproach. During her speech and as she presented her design, I stole a few glances at Ryan. He was completely fixated on Eva. I had to admit she was impressive, and her talent was undeniable. Taking her seat, she looked directly at me and mouthed the words “in the bag”.
She was going down.
“Okay, now we’ll hear from Holly,” Slater said, still smiling at Eva.
I stood up and pushed my shoulders back. Flicking my hair over my shoulder for good measure, I took a deep breath. Then, as if I had no choice, I made eye contact with Ryan. The way he was looking at me made my face flush. I felt the heat rise up my neck like an impending tsunami of panic. Perhaps sensing my distress, Ryan cleared his throat and asked me what the inspiration had been for my design. His calm, sexy voice settled my nerves and I momentarily forgot my r
aging emotions. I also forgot about the other people in the room.
“My mother was my inspiration, actually.”
“Really? Tell me about that.” He seemed genuinely interested, giving me the confidence to continue.
“She’s the reason I pursued architecture. She showed me how to look at things in ways I never would have done before.”
“And what ways would they be?” Ryan asked.
“She taught me to look at things from every angle, not just the obvious ones.”
Ryan’s warm smile urged me to continue.
“Lie down on the footpath and look directly up at the building next to you. Do a handstand against a tree in the park and look back at the city skyline.” The memories came freely. “Take a boat to the middle of the lake then jump overboard. How does everything look when you first resurface?”
Ryan leant forward on the table, just as he’d done in the café earlier. My confidence grew.
“Whenever we were admiring a building,” I continued. “Mum would ask me to tell her the thing I liked most about it. The first couple of times, I said the obvious things, like the colour of the bricks or the sandstone footings. But Mum wanted me to look for the less obvious things, the things I really loved. When I was studying your apartment building, I visited the site both during the day and at night. I watched the way the light refracted off the water and transformed its appearance. The water became the most important factor in my redesign concept.”
I rambled on about my ideas and aspirations for sustainable living. It was all just a bit of a blur. Barely drawing breath, I eventually ran out of steam and the room came back into focus. That’s when I noticed the shocked look on Slater’s face, and the smug grin on Eva’s.
I sat down wondering what the hell I had just said. It definitely wasn’t what I’d rehearsed earlier.
As Slater discussed some of the more technical issues, I could feel tears welling in my eyes. Staring at Slater, I barely heard a word he said. I was just willing him to stop talking so I could get the hell out of there. I had never gone rogue by allowing my personal life to affect my work before. I refused to look at Ryan.