“That’s fine. We don’t mind if they stay,” she said.
I turned on my laptop and plugged in the projector cable. Skye would begin the presentation, and then I would take over halfway through just as we practiced.
Liam sat next to Rebecca, and for the first time, I didn’t avert my gaze. I looked straight at him. My breath caught. Damn, those blue eyes could melt hearts...and panties. I felt my cheeks heat up. Was he still thinking about the bathroom incident?
His gaze dropped to my chest—only for a split second, but I caught it—right before he flashed me a knowing smile.
Oh boy.
Two things were clear.
One: he was still thinking about me half naked.
Two: I really had to stop blushing if I wanted them to take us seriously.
Chapter Two
Tess
I sat in the first row of the auditorium, a few seats away from Liam and the rest of his staff. Skye was standing right next to the desk where we propped the laptop. The screen was projected on the wall behind her. She started by presenting the financial growth we had over the last three years. Pride swelled inside me as she moved from one slide to the next. We built this business from the ground up, and last year we introduced customization options, which were a complete game changer.
Skye’s final slides were about what we planned to do if we partnered with Harrington & Co., focusing on the fact that we wanted to open a second brick-and-mortar location. We also wanted money for a more robust online shop. The one we were using now was barely keeping up.
“By doing this, we’d be able to reach more clients faster. Tess will go into more detail about the type of products we’d develop with additional funding as well as show you the products that contributed to most of our growth,” Skye concluded.
She sat next to me, and I squeezed her hand, whispering, “Good job, Sis,” before walking to the front. Midway there, my heel caught in the gap between two pieces of hardwood, and I stumbled a bit.
Please, God, no. One embarrassing incident a day is more than enough! I was already worrying that Liam Harrington wasn’t going to take me seriously. I didn’t want Rebecca and David to think I was a ditz.
Thankfully, I didn’t fall on my ass. I regained my balance and walked to the desk, standing next to it.
I rolled my shoulders, smiling as I spoke. “Soho Lingerie’s unique selling proposition is that we have something for everyone. Ever since we introduced our customization options, it’s become easier to deliver that. Customers can play with designs in our online shop. We also give them the opportunity to come to the physical store for fittings. Since we incorporated this program, the rate of returns dropped by 90 percent. We literally have something for everyone, from adult women knowing exactly what they want to young girls looking for guidance when they enter the store. They’re at a fragile age, first-time lingerie buyers, and it’s easy for them to question their sense of worth.”
I pressed my lips together, smiling. I’d spoken too much, as I usually did when I reached this topic. I hoped it wasn’t obvious to everyone how personal this was for me, but Liam’s gaze had turned soft. He saw right through me. Well, that was a good thing, right? They wanted passionate business owners, and it didn’t get more passionate than this. But I felt exposed, like I revealed a part of myself I’d rather have kept hidden. He was much more observant than I expected, and when I glanced from him to my sister, my protective instincts kicked in.
We both had curves early on, and that had attracted a lot of attention, but Skye had one of those crazy growth spurts, and kids made fun of her. Buying lingerie was a confidence builder for most women. When you felt good in what you were wearing, it gave you a self-assurance like nothing else could. We were determined to ease the step into womanhood for any girl who entered our shop.
I moved to the next slide, which showcased one of our hit products.
“This is an example of one product you can customize. Just as no two bodies are identical, sensory perception isn’t the same. For some, velvet straps are too soft, for some too cutting. So we give them a variety of options to mix and match when it comes to straps, cup decoration, and even the inside padding of the bras. For example, I prefer cups with silk on the inside. It feels soft against my skin. Cotton just scratches me.”
Unfortunately, I chose that exact moment to make eye contact with Liam, and the heat in his gaze made me blush.
Holy shit! Is it warm in here, or is it just me?
His pupils dilated a little. He was gripping his pen tight enough that I was certain the plastic would give way any second now.
Had I overshared? I thought referencing my personal experiences would help them relate and understand our business.
I carefully looked at the rest of the audience, and no one seemed as...affected as Liam. Damn. I hoped he was judging the business case, not just fantasizing about my involuntary strip show.
I chanced a glance at him again. Yeah, that heat in his gaze only intensified in the few seconds I looked away.
I willed myself not to blush even more as I moved on to the products we planned to design if we had more funding, describing them in painstaking detail.
The more I spoke, the more enthusiastic I became. I talked loudly and gesticulated a lot, and I even brought up more of my personal findings. This was just like me. I did everything at a grand scale. I was almost out of breath by the time I reached the last slide.
“Okay, well, that’s it from our side,” I said, glancing at the audience. Involuntarily, I lingered on Liam. “I mean, I hope what we’ve shown you here entices your investment interest in our business. However, if you need more information, please ask away. Any questions?”
Good Lord, his gaze was burning a hole through me, but I was determined not to look away, even though my whole body was buzzing with awareness.
***
Liam
I straightened myself in the auditorium’s comfortable leather chair, tapping the pen against the stack of papers. I’d rarely seen anyone speak with so much passion about their clients and their products.
Sure, everyone who came in to pitch to us had pride in their financial success and accomplishments, but these ladies were different. From the way they’d spoken, this was clearly personal to them, and I liked that. I just had to stop imagining Tess wearing every design she’d spoken about.
Hell, when she said how silk feels against her skin, I nearly lost my mind. Gone were any thoughts of business. Instead, I wondered what she was wearing under her skirt. Did it match the bra I’d seen in the bathroom? I could almost feel her soft skin beneath my fingers as I took off whatever she wore.
I was still thinking about that. Damn it, I had to get a grip on myself. What was I, fourteen? I forced my thoughts back on the straight and narrow and told another part of my body to slow its roll. All eyes were now on me, waiting for me to take the lead since I’d been the most skeptical about their business.
We rarely got involved in the fashion industry, but their lingerie business was solid—impressive even. My previous skepticism disappeared because I realized their growth coincided with the introduction of the customization options. Their sales would continue to increase. But they had to strike while the iron was hot and get as many customers as possible to establish themselves as the go-to store when it came to customizable lingerie before others started copying their business model.