One Night With The Boss
CHAPTER 18
The journey back through the forest to the inn was filled with tension, the atmosphere between them became tense after the overflow of emotions in the coffee garden.
And it was no surprise, Elgort said to himself as his long legs took some distance. Women are never at their best when they are caught. Kate Rutherford knew it well. No more hiding. His deception was revealed, the consequences of his actions plastered on his face.
Elgort even thought of the facts in his head once more, just to make sure he was unlikely to make a mistake. Is there any way Kate could be innocent of the scam she found? Answer's no. Not likely. He has access to the account. He knows the company numbers. In addition, the financial person in charge of his company is his own father. So obviously it's family work.
Glancing behind him, Elgort was surprised to see him right behind him. He walked quickly but the girl, despite her height and lower stature, kept following.
And then she sees the emotion in Kate's eyes and knows that the girl is not even aware of her surroundings.
Was it just the anger and frustration he saw? Might as well. After all, his money fraud scheme has been revealed and terminated.
She has no doubt that Kate's reassuring expression of regret in the coffee garden has played out for the benefit of Gilbert and Hayek.
Why is she impressed when she, better than anyone, knows how well a woman can perform when she finds herself in trouble?
Doesn't she know better than anyone how low a woman can bend to pull herself from poverty to riches?
Kate Rutherford's business is on the verge of bankruptcy and despite her fiery pleas, Elgort has no intention of giving her the lifeline that the girl so desperately wants.
Elgort frowned and focused his attention on the road ahead. He had arranged for the helicopter to pick up Kate the next morning and fly her back to Puerto Vallarta so she could catch a commercial flight to London.
Which means he's got one more night in the rainforest to regret his mistake.
Only she has no doubt that once Kate reaches the privacy of her room, she will not waste time showing emotional remorse. Why bother if he doesn't have an audience?
They arrive at the inn and Elgort turns to Kate, "you have two hours until dinner. I thought you wanted to rest."
Kate could not be seen hearing it, so she repeated her words and this time Kate glanced at her in shock as if she had forgotten the whereabouts of Elgort.
"I'm sorry?" Kate blinked a few times, clearly forcing herself to concentrate. "Yes. Thank you." Thank you."
Elgort still felt Kate not hearing anything she said and Elgort found himself noticing Kate's pale skin and dark shadows under her eyes. He looked beaten. Weary. Elgort frowned. They had walked for miles in challenging conditions and he had never once complained.
"You need to take a shower and lie down for a while." As she said those words, Elgort wondered why she bothered to show such attention and Kate must have wondered the same thing because her eyes were wide.
"Sorry to trouble you by staying one more night." Kate again sounds like a polite child who is away leaving the party and Elgort finds himself hoping Kate will return to him with the fighting spirit he used to do as long as they walked through the woods.
The woman was full of contradictions and almost impossible to read. He is a strange mixture of humor and seriousness. Innocence is mixed with intense sexuality that seems completely unconscious. She was not seductive, yet every movement of her body seemed seductive.
"I'll see you at dinner." Until then Elgort has no intention of having dinner with Kate and a flash of shock in Kate's eyes tells her that the girl is as her invitation.
Only he knew that letting go of the girl would not be that easy.
The kiss in the forest was more than just a heated encounter between consenting adults. Far more.
Even now it was among them, glittering like an invisible force, uniting them. And Kate must have felt it too because she made a nervous and backward gesture. "Maybe I should have dinner in my room. I will be grateful for the use of the phone. I'll replace your money, of course."
Given Kate's ailing financial circumstances, she wanted to ask 'with what?' but Elgort held back those words. "There's a phone in your room. Use it, but you'll have dinner with me."
Kate doesn't argue, looks submissive, but Elgort wonders if the girl is too tired and slumped for a debate. He looks defeated?
That's a good thing, Elgort reminded himself firmly, rubbing the back of his neck to prevent himself from touching Kate's arm. If his regrets were sincere then he might even delay doing the same thing again.
***
Kate drops the phone into place and drops back into bed.
there's nothing
nonexistent
His father was away on business, as were the managers he appointed to help with his business expansion plans. He even tried calling the dealer himself but nothing more than a messaging service.
The answer to the desperate question that formed in his mind was clearly not going to come easily. Especially when he was thousands of miles away in the tropical forest. He must now return to London, tracking down the man who cleverly cheated his company.
But he's still in the woods. And still have all night to go. One night with a man who has every reason to think he's a lousy worker.
It was ironic, he thought helplessly, that the act that finally confirmed to him that Elgort Downey was not a cold-hearted man who would eliminate his beloved business.
He was going to withdraw his loan not because he was determined to extort the final profit from it. It was because he did not like to see her deceive honest people who were struggling to survive beside nature.
And how could he blame the man for his decision, given the facts he had?
Everything he built would be reduced to dust. People will lose their jobs and it's all his fault. He should have known. He should have noticed. Except that he knew that there was no way he could realize it. He knows it.
Should he tell Elgort the truth?
But what good is that? Whatever he says now will only look like an excuse. It's too late for an explanation.
