❦Kate❦

As soon as we boarded the jet, Jason went back to ignoring me. He spent an entire hour talking to Ben about football. I was sitting across from him but he pretended I wasn't there. And Ben, who I thought was quiet and not much of a conversationalist, proved me wrong by talking animatedly and even laughing out loud.

Frustrated with both of them, I got up from my seat but not even one of them glanced my way. All the same, I sent a glare their way as I headed to my room.

It was getting on my nerves how Jason was acting. One minute he was talkative and approachable, the other second, he was brooding and angry, then the other times he ignored me as if I didn't exist. It was like he had PMS or something.

Flopping on the bed, I took out my phone and checked if there were any messages from Peter. To my disappointment, there were none. I sighed, knowing I needed to give him more time.

I fell into a restless sleep and was woken up by a knock on the door.

"Kate?"

Jason's voice came from the other side and I scrambled out of the bed. Yawning, I opened the door, trying to shake the sleepiness away.

It was only when I noticed his eyes focusing on my hair that I realized it was a mess, sticking out in all directions. I hastily ran a hand through it to calm it down.

"I'm sorry to wake you up but lunch is ready." His voice was tight and eyes guarded as if he was thinking of something else entirely.

"I'll be right out." I said and with a nodded he walk away. Ten minutes later I joined him.

"Wow. I could get used to travelling like this." I grinned at Jason, who was seated opposite me. I gestured to the delicious looking avocado and prawn salad, red snapper with pine nuts and asparagus on the folding table "Usually I get a packet of peanut and weak coffee when I travel."

He looked amused as he picked up a basket of bread sticks and placed in front of me. He was back in a good mood and I was glad for that. Even though the meal was delicious, I knew I couldn't possibly finish all of it. I thought of the entire cheesecake I had finished all by myself the previous night. I really needed to restrict my calorie intake.

Jason frowned when I pushed the half-eaten plate away and grabbed a napkin. "Something wrong with the food?"

"No, it's wonderful but I don't want to eat any more." When he raised an eyebrow, I hastily added. "I'm trying to lose weight for the wedding."

"If you ask me you look perfect just the way you are."

I was startled at the sudden compliment. It was said in an offhand way but then our gazes met. His eyes held so much masculine appreciation that I was flustered and had to remind myself to breathe.

Trying to cover my reaction to him, I regarded him with a teasing smile which, I hoped to God hid how flustered I was. "Thank you. But when you see me in the wedding dress looking horrendously fat then remember today." I joked.

"Am I getting an invitation then?" He said lazily with a smirk.

"Will you come?" I kept my tone light and teasing just as he was. I was feeling relieved that we were able to have a normal conversation and act as if we were almost friends.

He leaned back in his chair, toying with the stem of his wine glass, and stared at me intensely. "No."

With that soft denial on his part, the friendly atmosphere I imagined we had between us, vanished instantly.

He dropped his napkin on the table and got up. "I'll be in the meeting room. Join me when you're done."

I watched him walk away and sighed in frustration. Were we never going to be able to have a normal conversation between us again? One minute he seemed relaxed and friendly and the next minute he was cold, distant and tense.

The only thing I asked him to do was to treat me like a business colleague. Was that too much to ask? We were working together for crying out loud. The look in his eyes when he looked at me a while ago made it clear that he was regretting his decision in hiring me.

I froze when a realization stuck. He offered me a deal when he thought he had a chance of getting me to bed. As soon as I made it clear that I wanted nothing but a business relationship between us he didn't want me working for him. So then why didn't he cancel the deal? Because then it was too late to back out. My subconscious explained. He didn't have a choice but to give the project to me.

I pushed my plate back. I needed to talk to him. I couldn't go on knowing that he didn't want me on here. I was going to make it easy on him and walk away from all this. With a determination I didn't know I possessed, I headed towards the meeting room.

Jason was seated at the long conference table typing on his phone with a frown on his gorgeous face.

"Did you offer me the project so that you could sleep with me?"

Jason snapped his head towards me so fast I knew he was startled. "What the fuck are you talking about?"

The scowl on his face could have had even the bravest of men running for cover. But I wasn't going to let him intimidate me. I silently thanked the glass of wine I had drunk and faced him.

"Ever since you realized I wouldn't sleep with you, you have been acting like a jerk."

With a deadly look on his face he got up from his chair and started walking towards me. I panicked as memories of the exact same thing happening in his suite on board the cruise ship came to me. I pushed it firmly away and refused to back down. I was going to have this conversation with him.

"I saw the way you looked at me a while ago. You had so much anger in your eyes and I know you're regretting hiring me. I mean, you could have hired someone else, someone who was willing to sleep with you." As he closed the distance between us, I babbled on, the panic returning full force.

He stopped a couple of feet away from and rested his hips on the conference table. His long legs were crossed at the feet and arms crossed across his chest as he studied me with dangerous glint in his eyes.

"Are you implying that the only way I could get a woman to bed is by luring her into it with a job offer? " His voice was too low, too soft and too calm but I heard the barely controlled fury in it.

"I..I didn't mean that." I swallowed hard. "It's just that I have a feeling you don't want me here. When you offered me the deal you assumed sex was part of it but when I made my terms clear you became distant."

He stared at me in disbelief. "You think I hired you so that I can fuck you?"

Say no. Say no. My subconscious recognized the dark fury in his eyes and tried to warn me.

"Y...Yes."

He unfolded himself and took a step towards me. I held my ground not giving into the urge to step back.

"I don't want to keep having this conversation again and again Kate. So listen to me well. I hired you because I saw something in you. When you talked about opening your business you sounded so passionate about it. I saw what the work you have done. You are talented." He was standing too close for my comfort but the words held me transfixed. "I never, ever make business decisions based on my personal feelings."

My heart contracted at his words. I saw from his expression that he meant every word he said. "Then why do you act like you don't want me here? I know we agreed to be professional but if we are going to work together we should learn to coexist in a friendly atmosphere."

A dark unreadable look passed on his face. He didn't look angry now but he was tense. I was afraid he was not going to answer. Then he sighed running a hand through his hair.

"Alright." He said carelessly shrugging. "I can do that."

Even though his tone was bored, I knew he was going to try. With a grateful smile, I held out a hand. "Friends?"

He stared at my hand frowning then an amused smirk formed on his face. "If that's what you want." He drawled lazily and grasped my hand in a firm shake before letting go quickly. "Shall we get to work?"

I returned his smile and nodded. I was glad we cleared the air. Now all I had to do was treat him like a friend and not let the unexplainable effect he had on me to ruin that.