They excused themselves to Alex’s office, leaving Gage and Cass staring at each other.
“What was that all about?” Cass demanded. “Waltzing in here with a US senator and throwing him at Fyra like some kind of peace offering.”
“You say that like it’s a bad thing.” Gage shoved his hands in his pockets. “Does that mean it didn’t work?”
“That’s what it was?” A little stunned, Cass sank into her chair. She’d been about to grill him on his angle. Without reason apparently. “A peace offering?”
“Yeah. I needed an ‘in,’ in case you wouldn’t see me otherwise. Phillip was my trump card.” He grinned and she fought to keep from smiling back. Too many unanswered questions for that.
“But why did you ask him to work with us on the FDA process? If we file for approval, that’s a pretty clear indication we’re not going to sell it. To you or anyone.”
“That’s why I did it. I don’t want your formula anymore, but this seemed like the only way you’d believe me. Now it’s not a factor between us.” He took her hand and held it without making any other move, but that alone connected them. “I owe you, and turnabout is fair play.”
“You owe me?” She shook her head, still dazed. “You’ve got that backward. You’ve been quite clear that it’s the other way around.”
“That was before I fell in love with you.”
Her breath caught and she drank in the emotion spilling from his gaze. Love. Tenderness. All of the things she’d witnessed in his expression when he looked at his son. The same emotion she’d dreamed of seeing directed at her. And now it was.
Shell-shocked, she stared at him. “I...what?”
“Oh, am I stuttering again? Let me start over.”
He swept her into his arms and laid his lips on hers, infusing his warmth into her dark and frozen soul. Everything thawed instantly, blooming under his talented mouth as he kissed her senseless. All of her feelings for this man surged to the surface, spilling out of her heart in an endless flow. He was in love with her, and all of the sharp, painful places inside smoothed out as she united with him, body and soul.
No. No, no, no. She wiggled away, breathless and still fuzzled because, oh my God, she wanted to dive back in and forget the past miserable week had happened. But it had happened.
“When did you decide this?” she demanded, but he just grinned and yanked her back into his embrace.
“For such a smart lady, you’re being very slow to catch on,” he murmured into her ear. “I’m not letting you go again. So you might as well forget about throwing up your walls. I’ll keep knocking them down until you admit you’re in love with me, too.”
“Why would I do that?” She scowled but he just kissed the line between her brows.
“Because I’m sticking around this time. Forever,” he promised and crossed his heart, catching her gaze. The depths of sincerity in his expression put a slow tingle in her midsection. “And I’d like to know up front where we stand. No seeing how it goes. No agendas. Just two people in it for the long haul.”
“That’s not what you want.” Eyeing him suspiciously, she tried to cross her arms, but he wouldn’t loosen his grip on her waist enough to give her room. “You want the formula, not me. So what exactly is all this Gage-speak supposed to mean?”
He pursed his lips and contemplated her. “Here’s the thing. I haven’t given you any reason to trust me. So I’ve spent the past week convincing Phillip to clear his schedule, and then I cleared mine. Because I want you to go to market with your formula so we can compete head-to-head. May the best CEO win.”
That sounded more like Gage. There was a gotcha in there somewhere. A yet-to-be-named angle she couldn’t see. “Now you’re just talking crazy.”
“No, I’m finally sane, thanks to you.” Tenderly, he tucked a chunk of hair behind her ear. “You have moved past my mentorship. Far past. And turnabout is fair play. Show me what you’ve learned since then. I fully expect you to win.”
It was as if he’d opened her heart and read the words she’d longed for him to say like a script. Where was this stuff coming from? Because if he kept going, she was going to completely lose all her safeguards against a bad decision.
But it was far, far too late for that. She’d been sliding toward Gage since the moment she’d recognized him in the parking lot of her building.