A Worthy Man

by Jaime Reese

  “Li, did you send that message?”

  “They should be here any minute.”

  He’d battled with this in his mind for weeks. Struggled with the desire to help and the fear of failing. But now, the timing and decision was crystal clear in his mind. Vann straightened to his full height, feeling a swell of confidence that only came with absolute certainty in one’s actions. “You were warned to not disrespect your fellow employees.”

  Sean smirked and straightened his stance, seemingly unfazed by Vann’s words.

  “Consider this your formal notification. You’re officially fired.”

  Sean laughed so hard he bent over, planting his hands on his knees for balance. “You’re insane. You have no authority—”

  He stopped when Vann raised a hand. He glanced over his shoulder as Mia entered the department room with security guards in tow. Vann returned his focus to Sean and felt a surge of confidence commanding his actions. “Security will escort you to gather your personal belongings and Mia will check any items to ensure you aren’t taking anything confidential. If anything requires further inspection, Drayton will review it and send it to you via your forwarding address. Mia, did I miss anything?” he asked, his focus never wavering from Sean’s piercing green eyes.

  “For now, I need him to sign a release of employment.”

  Vann reached his hand back like a marathon runner reaching for a baton, taking the page from Mia. He extended the paper toward Sean, refusing to let his guard down and break the stare-down with the man carefully watching his every move. “Sign it.”

  “No. You don’t have the authority.”

  “Yes, I do.”

  “He does,” Mia eagerly added.

  The smile slid from Sean face as his focus jumped from Vann to Mia and back again. “What the hell is going on here?”

  Vann looked at the page still in his hand and quickly scanned the letter, smiling at the signature block. He grabbed a pen from the neighboring desk and signed above his name. He then handed the sheet back to Sean who snatched it from his hold.

  Sean quickly scanned the letter and slowly glanced up, his mouth gaping, at Vann.

  “I’m not sure if we’ve been formally introduced. I’m Shaw. Vannguard Shaw,” he said, emphasizing his first name with a pause. “I’m Drayton Shaw’s partner.” He stressed the word, enjoying how that clearly implied a whole hell of a lot more than just the business end of things. “Sign it.”

  Drayton is mine, you fucking son of a bitch.

  Vann took a step closer, resisting the urge to grab Sean by the shirt collar. He gritted his teeth to bite down the anger waiting to be set free.

  Sean took the pen and signed the paper before handing it to Mia.

  “I’ve changed my mind. Get out now. We’ll mail you your personal belongings.”

  “Security will escort you out,” Mia said, instructing the guards who quickly stood at Sean’s side, bookending him.

  “You don’t have a clue what the hell you’re doing,” Sean said. He glanced over Vann’s shoulder. “You’re going to fail. You won’t have a model release in time.”

  Vann turned and saw Drayton standing by the doorway. His heart thundered, wondering how much Drayton had heard and seen.

  “Vann, will I have a model release in time?” Drayton asked, without an ounce of stress or worry in his tone as he casually stepped over the threshold of the department.

  The tension within Vann’s body eased; the trust in those pale gray eyes recharged his confidence. “Hell yes.”

  “We’re finished here,” Drayton said to the security team, his voice booming with authority.

  Sean launched forward, stopped only by the force of the security guards restraining him as he fought the hold. They escorted him out as he yelled and cursed until his voice faded down the hall.

  Vann swallowed heavily, walking over to Drayton. “I’m sorry I stole your thunder. I know you wanted to fire him,” he whispered, trying to keep their conversation away from the other curious members of the design team.

  Drayton took a step forward and slid his hands into the pockets of his slacks. A subtle, barely-there smile made an appearance. “Welcome to the team.”

  Relief filled every crack and crevice in Vann’s soul. “I was always on your team, you snarky little shit.”

  “I’m not little.”

  Vann bit his lip, holding back a grin. “No, you’re not.”

  “I heard you. Did you just out yourself as my partner?” A hint of playfulness brightened those pale gray eyes.

  Vann stepped closer.

  Drayton’s eyebrows twitched. “What are you doing?”

  “Don’t move.” His heart raced. There were almost a half dozen pairs of eyes on him. People he wanted to respect him for his skills.

  “You’re going to kiss me, aren’t you? In front of everyone?”

  “Don’t. Move.” He fought with every argument, shooting down every excuse to step away. Maybe he could talk his way out of what the team had heard him say. He could shrug it off as some wisecrack joke he’d said to challenge Sean and his arrogance. He could cook up some bullshit excuse about being a business partner, not really a “partner” in every sense as he had intentionally implied. They already knew he had a twisted sense of humor, so they’d buy most of the excuses he’d dish out. They’d laugh and go with it. And it wouldn’t be because he was cozying up to the boss.

  “Just kiss me. Don’t think about it so much,” Drayton whispered, knowing him well enough to recognize the raging battle in his mind and the arguments and excuses he shot down with each passing millisecond.

  “Give me a sec.” If Dray moved, maybe everything would fade away. Maybe this was a dream. A mirage. Had he really just put himself out there in front of everyone?

  “You’re killing me, Vann. You’ve got this whole teasing thing down to a science.”

  Had he just fired a key member of the team and actually thought he could stand in and do the job? Yes…he had. He was finally going to man up and face his fear head on. He had outed himself and stood up to that little shit—for himself, for Drayton, and for everything they represented. This was about him and Dray. Us. It didn’t matter what other people thought. All that mattered was the synergy and strength of the Shaw team. If they stood alongside each other, they would stand strong against anything and overcome whatever hurdle the following few months would bring with the new model launch. And the people in this room would stand by their side…by choice.

  He reached up, his fingers hesitating before they finally made contact with Drayton’s warm skin. He closed his eyes and exhaled. The excitement thrumming through his body overpowered the fear and hesitation, awakening a steady surge of strength in his veins. This was real. They were together. They were a team. And he was sure as shit ready to broadcast it to the world.

  He pulled Drayton in and planted a kiss on his lips, sealing their partnership for all to see. He firmly gripped Drayton’s face and plunged into his mouth, branding him enough to fuel the office gossip so it would spread like wildfire and let everyone know the Shaws were a package deal. A muffled groan escaped when Drayton’s hand landed on the small of his back and tugged him closer.

  He pressed a soft kiss to Drayton’s cheek before finally pulling away.

  Drayton sighed. “You can’t talk your way out of that one now.”

  Vann steadied his pounding heartbeat and looked up to meet those pale gray eyes. He smiled at the love staring back at him and the huge smile and dimple on Drayton’s face. He chuckled and shook his head. Fucking Dray was a hopeless romantic. He reached for Drayton’s hand and laced their fingers together. “C’mon.”

  “Where are we going?” Drayton asked, letting himself be led to the desk of one of the team members.

  “I want to introduce my unicorn to our team.”

  Our team. He definitely liked the sound of that.

  Vann sat next to Li at her desk, resting his forearms on his thighs as she worked. “You
should take his office.”

  “I like it out here,” Li said. “You should take his office.”

  Vann tightened his lips, hiding a smile. “I like it out here.” Vann stared at Li’s computer screen as she tweaked the last of the wireframe details. He was still in awe how something he’d sketched on a page could come to life with such detail. The wireframe was simple yet complex and allowed him to see through the design and around it.

  “You’re good with him,” Li said, slashing her pen across her tablet. “He’s trying.”

  “Who?”

  “Your unicorn.”

  Vann frowned. “I’m totally lost. What the hell are we talking about?”

  “When you introduced us to him, you can see it’s hard for him.” She swept her stylus across the tablet as she spoke, quickly flicking between screens and program tools to complete the next task. “I don’t think you realize how hard because it’s so easy for you.”

  Vann rubbed his forehead. “What’s hard is trying to follow your conversation right now.”

  Li set her pen down and clasped her hands together as if calling to some higher power for patience and help on the best way to structure her thought. “Drayton is very intelligent. And sometimes, very intelligent people have social anxieties. I noticed his body language when you introduced us. He looked really uncomfortable. But he relaxed when you stood at his side and jumped in.”

  Vann could easily recall a hundred different situations where he had noticed the same thing or struggled to convince Drayton to do something that involved interacting with others. But Drayton would often psyche himself out, thinking about every possible outcome to the situation and deem it a risk. “They’ll hate me. They’ll tell me I’m rude.” The least he could do to help was ease Drayton’s tension the only way he knew how, by standing at his side and offering support.

  “It’s a good thing. Whether you know it or not, you’re teaching him.”

  Vann chuckled. “I doubt I could teach Drayton anything.”

  Li fully turned in her chair to face him. “You’re his people tutor.”

  “You’re funny.”

  She looked at him with a deadly serious face. “I have an older cousin. He tested at the genius level. But forcing him in a social situation…” She shook her head and raised her eyebrows. “He didn’t know how to handle it on his own and no one ever bothered to help him. I was too young to be his people tutor at the time.” She quieted for a moment, her mood sobering. “He chose to isolate himself and now does his computer programming from a cabin in the mountains somewhere. He refuses to speak to any of us. I think he determined that to be the right answer.”

  The right answer. Drayton always sought “the answer” to any problem or formula. He had told Vann hundreds of times how difficult things were when people—his variable in the equation—threw off the answer. Vann chewed his lip. He couldn’t imagine Drayton shutting down or distancing himself. Pain speared his heart, wondering how Drayton had managed all those years on his own.

  “I’m guessing you’ve picked up on some of that or have seen hints of it. You’re really good at reading people.”

  He nodded. “Drayton is logical and his instinct is to state facts. He’s usually really good about catching himself, but the man doesn’t know how to sugarcoat things in the delivery. That rubs people the wrong way sometimes, but he doesn’t mean to do it. I’m just there to clarify things sometimes.”

  “You do more than that. Even if you don’t realize it.” She shifted in her chair, returning her focus to her computer screen and tablet. “Okay, we’re ready to go,” she yelled out.

  Milo dimmed the lights and Zoe closed the blinds.

  A wide beam of light flickered.

  Vann gasped when the same wireframe image on Li’s machine suddenly appeared in the center of the large room, at actual size. He slowly stood from his seat, unable to tear his focus away from the outlined model of the sketch he had drawn. He fidgeted with the phone clipped to his belt. He glanced down for a moment to dial the number then quickly returned his attention to the bright, glowing model in front of him.

  “Hey,” Drayton’s voice came through the line.

  “Get your ass down here. Now. Like…right fricken now. You need to see this.”

  He ended the call and continued to stare at the life-size version of his sketch.

  It was striking and a loud and clear message that this was all real.

  And he needed to share this with his Dray.

  ∞ ♥ ∞

  Drayton jerked up and out of his seat, heading toward the elevator the moment he heard Vann’s tone. The only thing that settled his nerves was the last thing Vann had said before ending the call. “You need to see this.”

  Maybe Vann had sketched a new design and was excited to share it. The euphoria of excitement multiplied when you had someone to share the news with.

  Something he hoped to have from this point forward.

  He stepped out of the elevators when the doors slid open and headed toward the department. He frowned, seeing an odd glow coming from the otherwise dark room.

  He opened the door and froze.

  His heart violently thumped as he stared at—what looked like—a hologram projection of the sketch Vann had drawn a few weeks ago. Every curve, breathtaking, and every sharp line cut through and created angles with purpose.

  He scanned the room. Li sat at her computer, tapping away at the keys as Milo and Vann yelled out at her. The guys were crouched, seeing the 3D projection at eye level.

  “This part needs to be lowered a little more. Milo?” Vann called out.

  Milo walked over to Vann, nodding in agreement when Vann explained the revision. He yelled over to Li an exact measurement that would accommodate Vann’s request while taking into account the battery tech that resided at the base of the frame.

  “Shaw, what about adjusting this curve so it flows a little more with the rear spoiler,” Zoe commented, the glow from the projection illuminating her face.

  Drayton stood there, in awe, watching the team interact with each other. They were responsive, receptive, and fluid in their exchange.

  “Update coming up,” Li announced as the projection flickered and the requested changes magically appeared.

  With this revision speed and new process, they would have a prototype in time.

  A mesmerizing, striking, aggressive beast of a prototype.

  “There you are!” Vann yelled out, drawing his attention. “What do you think?”

  Drayton opened his mouth, but couldn’t utter a word. He stepped forward when Vann walked over to his side, pulling him by the hand toward the live wireframe model.

  He stood there, gawking at the glowing lines casting a cool blue wash of light on his dark suit. He reached out, extending his finger and swiping it through the glowing wireframe. He slowly circled the 3D model, assessing every slope and curve. This model was more breathtaking than the first.

  “Li coded a hologram program so we could speed up the prototype process,” Vann said.

  Drayton’s focus snapped to Vann, then flicked over to Li. “You did this?”

  Li straightened in her seat and nodded curtly.

  “Tell her she did a good job,” Vann whispered in his ear. “You sound pissed off.”

  He sharply turned toward Vann and scowled. Pissed off? How could he be angry about something she created that would make the prototype development schedule a possibility for this model year? A million thoughts per second flooded his mind—the technology, the specs, the custom projection machine sitting on the table in the corner that was obviously crafted with basic equipment. His first worry was that Sean had seen something of this before he’d left and had taken the technology Li had developed. “I’m not pissed.”

  “Then tell her she did a good job.”

  Drayton glanced back at Li. “Set up a meeting with Mia today and bring all your development notes and write-ups.”

  “Yes, sir,” she said, retu
rning her attention to her computer screen.

  His focus lingered on Li, something wasn’t right. He glanced back at Vann carefully watching him, his lips thinned in a tight line. Drayton wanted to yell. This was exactly why he relied so heavily on Mia and Taylor. People were fucking frustrating as shit and he didn’t want to screw things up.

  He grabbed Vann’s hand and pulled him in his wake toward Li’s desk. She shifted her gaze slowly upward.

  “Did Sean see any of this?” he asked.

  “No.”

  Drayton’s heart pounded wildly. “Did you build the projection machine and write all the code for the program yourself?”

  “Yes. Sean was taking too long with the design, so I tried to find a way to speed things along.”

  She had done this to keep things on schedule. To help the company. To help…him. He ducked his head and screwed his eyes shut. Shit. A comforting hand rubbed his back, easing some of the tension thrumming through his body.

  “Dray, why’s the meeting so important?”

  He focused on supplies sprinkled on her desk, rather than her face. “Timing is important. When you call Mia to schedule it, ask her to coordinate with our IP attorney. He’s going to need a little time to do existing patent searches to determine the uniqueness of what you’ve designed so we can patent the technology.” He took a deep breath and focused on Li’s questioning face, seeing a slight easing in her expression. “You did a really good job. And I don’t want anyone to steal it from you.”

  A slow smile stretched her lips. “Thank you,” she said. Her focus shifted to Vann, mumbling something that sounded remotely like “tutor” but he couldn’t be sure and didn’t know how that could possibly make any sense.

  He turned to face the glowing prototype, mesmerized by the skill and talent of the design team surrounding him. He slid his arm around Vann’s waist and pulled him closer. “You did a good job,” he whispered in Vann’s ear, pressing a kiss to his temple.

  A huge smile beamed from Vann, almost as bright as the wireframe design glowing in the room. “That just earned you one hell of a blow job when we get home.”