Chapter 11

Bruce was a man everyone he met respected.

He hadn't dealt with defiance he couldn't crush.

He was focused on the rules and always ensured even the thought of insubordination did not enter the minds of the people who worked under him or for him.

Interrupting the over-excited tone of Sasha's, although something Bruce would have done to be rude and establish a power dynamic normally, had not been to upset the girl this time.

Why he had not done it to be cruel this time, he was not sure.

But he had only done it to quickly bring the discussion back to the matter at hand.

The discussion was only set to happen for fourty minutes and time really was of the essence as he had mentioned.

He did not understand why the Dearcroft girl refused to look at him anymore.

When he had first thought to stop the girl's enthusiastic ramblings, he had done so without hesitation.

The way she had stopped and looked up to see him, her eyes betraying her shock and sadness had first stopped his heart for a moment or so.

He had regretted his tone and words, something he had never done before.

But as Rayne picked up the conversation, Bruce had pondered in his mind whether he should extend an apology. Maybe a sincere smile to ease the dynamic between them when she'd looked back at him again, and through her thick lashes, glared at him; actually, glared at him!

No one had dared to do that in their lives, not even his mother who was sure he would grow up to boss her around and micro-manage her activities.

His mouth had opened in surprise and jaw slacked as she had broken eye-contact very abruptly and opened her notepad to scribble something irritatedly on the paper.

Something told him, what she was writing inside her notepad had nothing to do with the conversation between Rayne and Clara Kane.

--

Leah stared at her self in the mirror.

She stood almost naked in her tiny bed shorts and a small spaghetti top.

Pushing the redhead out of her mind, she examined her reflection.

She had long, silky blond hair that reached her waist. There were slight curls at the bottom that Sasha had always complimented.

Her hips were not as prominent as Sasha's but they were a gentle slope that dipped into shapely legs. Her chest was round and beautiful and her neck was lean. Wisps of uncombed, messy blond hair fell over her strong shoulders.

Leah forced herself to stay objective.

She surveyed her form one more time.

'Attractive', she told herself, 'I wouldn't want to change these things. My chest is covered up all the time and I need a haircut. I am a very attractive lady.'

She took a deep breath before she gathered a towel and a small bath-scrub.

A quick shower and meal later, she was going to focus and hurry over to the Hotel.

The discussion may end by the time she reached but she wanted to meet her Cousins as they stepped out. She wanted to at least join them to check on the offices they would be given for the next month.

The first day of this amazing project would not be missed by Leah.

Stripping of her clothes and stepping into the warm shower, Leah let the water wash off the ickiness and grime of the night before.

Leah needed healing from the wounds. She would focus on helping her cousins for now and step-by-step, she would get over Tim and their two-year-long relationship that had clearly meant nothing to him.

--

An attendant placed a beautiful tray of snacks on the table between the cousins and Clara Kane.

"Please," Clara stopped speaking before gesturing to the tray of food, "Help yourselves! We can resume the conversation once you've tasted some of these treats."

Rayne chuckled appreciatively before nodding and laying down his pen, "Thank you. How kind! We don't have much time left but I'm very satisfied with our discussion so far."

Bruce moved from his place beside Clara to make his way to the couch beside Sasha's left leg that sat empty.

She didn't pay him any attention when he sank his heavy, muscled body into the seat right next to hers.

A flutter of her eyelids suggested she had glanced at him, before she looked away and at her cousin who was speaking.

Rayne was addressing Clara again, "You seem to already have quite a vivid picture in mind! This will help us a lot. I suppose I should ask you, would you like us to inform you of any ideas we might like to add to the Event or are we free to make the changes ourselves?"

Clara laughed, clapping her hands together, "Oh I really do want some elements to surprise me on the day of the party! I will leave those to you! However, you can approach Bruce here for any questions or issues you might face when trying to implement them."

Sasha reached over to grab a small cake from the tray.

Bruce resisted the urge to admire the curve of her back.

It wasn't hard to notice the way her clothes hugged her body.

Her skirt struggled against the gorgeous thighs and her tank top occasionally peeked its contents when she bent to pick things up.

The girl was quite clumsy, and he bit his lip to keep from smiling, thinking of the five or so things she'd dropped in the thirty minutes they'd been here.

She looked up at him sharply and his expression sobered as he looked down into her eyes.

Her gaze was steady before she turned away, her ponytail bobbing as she let the spoon slice into the tiny chocolate cake.

Bruce blinked.

Was she mad at him? Still?

After thirty minutes?

His interruption seemed hours ago with all the official business they'd talked over.

Surely, her mind had not stayed on his words for so long.

He eased forward slowly, hesitating as he slowly balanced himself by placing his arms on his knees, "The cakes we have here are rather good." He said.

Clara looked at him in alarm.

It wasn't like him to start small talk for no reason or fill silences.

Sasha was watching him through her big, pretty eyes.

"But the peach cobbler in a cup," he said, his voice light as his strong arm reached across the table to slowly pick it up, "is what our chefs make best."

He reached over to hand it to Sasha, his arm still outstretched, as though trying to appease her.

Her eyes stared at the Peach cobbler he held out to her before her face lit up and her eyes began to sparkle.

She took them from his hand, a smile forming on her pink lips without her even noticing, "Thank you."

A warmth blossomed in Bruce's chest and his heart began to race.

He pushed out a breath quickly and composed himself. His mind was blank and he was really uncertain why his brain wasn't talking as it always did.

His mind was clear and he seemed to float so he sobered up and tried to conjure up his to-do list so he could feel sane again.

Sufficiently calm, he looked over at Clara's shocked expression and a full blush broke out on his face.