“Yeah, don’t hold your breath. She can’t stand me. Apparently, I did something that I don’t know about and she doesn’t want to talk to me unless it’s work related.”
She cocked her head. “Work related?”
“I hired her to help me come up with some ideas on reconnecting the youth with the elders. She’s worked for her family’s foundation for a long time. She’s pretty good at bringing communities together.”
“She sounds wonderful.”
“She is,” he grumbled. “And frustrating. Sexy. Has gorgeous eyes and an amazing smile. Is completely pigheaded. And can cut a man down to nothing with a single glare.”
His mother choked on her soda. “I really like her and I’ve yet to meet her.”
“You’ll meet her soon. It’s just going to take some work,” he sighed. “I don’t know how to make up for what I supposedly did.”
She laughed and shook her head. “Honey, have you not learned anything about women?”
“Apparently not.”
“Ryan!”
“What? I’m tired, frustrated and all I’d like is for her to talk to me.”
She stared at him as if he were an idiot. “So talk to her.”
“She doesn’t want to talk about us.” He drank his soda and thought of how angry and hurt Parker had been. He wanted to ask more of what it was she meant but she’d been too furious, and he didn’t want to mess up the possibility of her helping him with his pride by pushing her on the subject.
Fuck, but he wanted her. She was his. When he saw her in that outfit, all he thought of was shoving her skirt up and bending her over the table until she came on his dick. Her scent had driven him insane the entire meeting. His tiger demanded he take her. He wanted her. Yeah, good luck with that.
Parker had been hurt by something she thought he’d done. If he could only find out what it was, he could clear things up between then.
“Mom, she won’t talk to me.”
His mother cursed. Ryan gaped at her angry face. “Since when did I raise you to be an idiot?”
“Mom!”
“Don’t mom me, boy. You forgot the way to a woman’s heart?”
“Mom, I’ve never been interested in the way to a woman’s heart until now. Other parts of her body, that’s another story,” he said honestly.
She rolled her eyes. “You sound like Barrick. Think, Ryan. When your father upset me, what did he do?”
His father would buy his mother’s favorite flowers and humbly ask her to listen to his side of the story.
“And how am I supposed to find out this information?”
She smacked him upside the head. “Really, son, your stupidity is starting to worry me. How did you meet her? Who is she? The internet? Social media? I don’t know, you’re the young one with the security company that can access people’s whole lives.”
Right. Fucking hell, he really was an idiot. He’d been so wrapped up in her being angry at him he hadn’t thought of ways to get her to speak to him.
After dinner, he left his mother’s house and went home. He pulled up everything he could find on Parker Nolan. Her favorite flowers, according to a magazine article, were pink peonies. She loved cotton candy Jolly Ranchers and blue M&Ms. Her favorite food was pizza and she loved singing along to Disney movies. He laughed at that bit of information.
Apparently, she had a massive library of books she collected through her years of travel. She loved antique books and first editions. An idea came to mind and he got to work. He’d get to talk to Parker, even if he had to do it with a bit of manipulation.
Chapter Ten
Parker sat on her living room sofa, laptop on her lap, the fireplace on and the television on mute while she worked. She shoved a strand of wet hair behind her ear and sighed. That bath had worked wonders to help her relax. Some of her best ideas came to her in the bathroom. It was why she had a tub desk, but she’d focused on relaxing for tonight’s bath.
She glanced at her list of questions for Ryan and the ideas she had on how to reconnect the community of younger and older tigers. Her first idea was going to be something she hadn’t done since her college years, but something she found helped her feel connected to the people she’d worked with.
Her phone rang. “Hey, Harry, what’s up?”
“You have a delivery.”
She glanced at the time. It had to be her pizza. “Thanks. Send it up.”
Back at work, she became distracted with her email until her doorbell chimed. Padding on her soft carpet barefoot, she walked to the door and opened it with a smile. Her smile froze when she saw the massive bouquet of pink peonies in front of her.
“Oh my god,” she gasped. “You can put them in here,” she said, unable to see the delivery man from behind the huge bouquet.”
She rushed to clear coffee table and watched him place them down. Once he put them down, she moved them until they were at the center of the table. Staring at them in awe, she forgot all about the delivery. “They’re beautiful.” She frowned at the flowers with confusion. “I don’t see a card,” she said and glanced back at the delivery guy, who’d backed away to stand behind her while she’d been busy gushing over her peonies.
Ryan had shut the front door and was busy walking back to her. “I’m glad you like them.”
“What are you doing here?” She turned to look at the flowers. “You think bringing me flowers is going to make me forget what I saw?”
He raised his hands in surrender. “Hold on, Parker. I think we need to talk.”
She folded her arms in front of her chest and glared at him, her blue eyes blazing angrily. “I don’t think we do. Unless it’s about my job, there’s nothing to discuss.”
“Look,” he took a step closer to her. “I did something that upset you. I don’t know what it was, but I’m sorry.”
She gaped at him. “You’re sorry? You don’t know what it was? How about tall, leggy and red hair. Does that ring any bells?”
He stared at her blankly. “No.”
“Are you for real?” she accused. “Do you sleep with that many women that you can’t remember the one you were with this afternoon?”
“Hold on a second,” he said. “I’ve been in my office all day. I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
She laughed. A dry, bitter sound that made her chest hurt. God, how stupid was she that she wanted to believe him? “Ryan, I saw you. I saw you at Lucio’s at lunch time. You were busy making out with a gorgeous redhead. You can deny it all you want. I saw you.”
“You didn’t see me.”
She wasn’t moved. “I don’t believe you. I believe my eyes. I saw you. Clearly. You were less than ten feet away from me.”
“Impossible,” he argued. “I was in my office.” Then he stopped and rubbed his forehead with one hand. “Wait. You saw me?”
Her heart shattered then. The way his shoulders dropped. It was clear she’d been right. He was about to confess to being with the redhead. “Yes. I saw you.”