Chapter 7
(Kit)
Being present at her four-week meeting had been particularly important to Kit. He had ignored all his urges to call and ‘just check in’ on her during the interim. He had also ignored the little voice that had insisted he could get Rich to do it for him. Rich was very busy and would not have appreciated the added task. He would not have appreciated being dragged unwittingly into Kit’s personal matters, either.
The day of her meeting, Kit positioned himself in the room with Rich to await Lori’s arrival.
“Fancy seeing you waiting on the new recruit’s plots. Why the interest in Miss Andrews’s writing, if you don’t mind me asking.” Rich leaned forward, planting his elbows on the table, smiling at Kit, curiosity lighting his features.
“She’s a college acquaintance.” He lied. They had been much more, but he thought Rich need not know the details.
“Oh, just an acquaintance. Hm. I could’ve sworn from her reaction before, it was more than that. Like maybe you two had dated and separated on bad terms. But, okay. She should be here any minute now.” Rich smiled and sat back in his seat.
The smile was that of a self-satisfied cat who just ate the bird and got away with it. Kit didn’t like that smile and didn’t totally understand it. He examined his past actions with Lisa and found nothing damning in them that Rich could ever use against him. That perplexed him even more.
The buzzer sounded and Rich pushed the button. “Yes, Sheila?”
The distinctly female voice, dripping with sexual vibes, answered, “Yes, Mr. Besser, your three o’clock is here. A Miss Andrews.”
“Send her right in, please.” Rich pressed the button again and gave Kit a quick wink. “Here she is, right on time.”
Sheila held the door for Lisa.
“Miss Andrews.” Rich stood and held out his hand to her.
“Oh, Lisa, please.” She took his hand in greeting. “How are you?”
“I’m good, I’m good. How about you?” He took his seat as she handed him papers and a flash drive.
“Good, thanks.” She glanced at Kit.
“I hope you don’t mind that I’m sitting in on the meeting. I like to keep an eye on our new recruits for a little while. Just in the beginning to make sure everything is up to par for you and for us. I like for things to run smoothly.” Kit stood and offered his hand.
After eyeing it as if he had offered her a live viper instead of his hand, she pulled a tight, wincing smile and shook with him curtly.
“Of course. It is your business after all.” She took her seat and averted her gaze.
The stinging tone of her comment hit home. That KR Publishing was his business was not the reason he had sat in on the meeting. Was she really that oblivious, or was she pretending to be? Either way, she had just made it painfully clear that she had no love for him.
He had successfully killed it years ago, he supposed. He deserved her cold attitude toward him. That didn’t mean he had to like it, but he knew it was his, fully earned, like a badge of honor, only without the honor part.
It made him more determined to get back into her good graces.
An awkward silence settled over the room as Rich studied the papers. Kit did not understand the man’s obsession with the printed words. In a book was one thing, but the preliminary works that could be viewed on the computer…he did not understand. Preferring the screen to paper, Kit had difficulty believing anyone could still be attached to paper so much. Then again, maybe that’s why Rich was one of the best. He had his quirks. His quirks had so far worked for him and all his clients, so Kit was not going to be the one to rock the boat.
Especially not with the works of Lisa Andrews.
After several moments, Rich smiled up at Lisa and laid the papers aside, pocketing the drive. “I think we have a winner here. Naturally, I’ll be going over it and making some changes. I’ll send you the electronic file via email in a few days’ time and we can go from there.” He turned to Kit. “Would you like to look over the plots and outlines here?” He pushed the papers to him.
“Sure thing.” He took them, glad to have something to distract his eyes from her. The more he looked at her, the more he wanted to be with her again. The years had been kind and she was even more beautiful than before.
***
(Lisa)
Wishing that Toni had been by her side for the meeting, Lisa sat at the end of the table, disturbed by Kit’s presence. That he was reading over her work made her angry. He had no right. But he really did because it was his publishing house. Of course, he had the right. But in her heart, she felt that he did not deserve to read her works. He had been the one who blamed his cheating on her writing. A complete load of shit, she knew, but still, he had said that’s why he cheated, because she spent too much time writing and not enough time screwing him.
Heat rose to her cheeks and she willed Rich to call the meeting to an end. Her temper getting loose in the meeting would only derail her chances at success and that’s what she had sworn she would avoid. She would let no one, especially Kit Rydell, derail her new career.
As he read over her work, a smile spread on his face. Though it seemed genuine, she wanted to slap it off his face. If he complimented her, she thought she might hit him with a chair and walk out.