Page 58 of The Billionaire Who Hated Me (Until He Loved Me)

If he doesn’t kiss me, I may not survive.

He lowers his face to mine as he presses my hand tighter to his chest.I close my eyes and lift my lips.

Beep!Beep!Beeeeeep!

Cal laughs.The moment is over.I’ll have to wait for that kiss.

He cups my elbow in his hand as we leave the house.Declan is waiting for us outside in a Mercedes SUV.He rolls down his window and whistles when he sees us.

“Damn!You two look like aGQad.”

“How would you know?”Cal asks.“You only readPopular Mechanics.”

“And damn proud of it.”Declan laughs.“You’ll never catch me in one of those ridiculous suits.I know how to look good and be comfortable at the same time.”

Cal helps me into the back, then takes the passenger seat up front.He turns to his brother.“You can twirl around in one of Jasmine’s tutus if it makes you happy.Just get us to San Francisco and back safely.”

We start down the ranch road when I realize what Cal just said.

“You’re flying us?”I ask.

“Yes, ma’am.In the StellaR Tech corporate jet.Wish we could take the new Bell Long Ranger since I love to show it off, but we’d have to stop to refuel.Maybe I’ll take you up when you get back.It’s got heated seats!”

“Declan flies anything and everything, but his heart belongs to that helicopter.”Cal turns around and smiles.“You’re in excellent hands, Victoria.If it’s got wings or rotors, he can do whatever needs doing.”

I nod.I’m not nervous about flying.I’m just a little confused.StellaR Tech must be far more than a startup bidding on military contracts.A private jet?A helicopter?That billionaire-level suit?

Obviously, my fact sheet was missing a few facts.I pull out my phone to text Millicent, but we’re out on the state highway where I can’t get a signal.A thought occurs to me… maybe the ranch’s cash infusion came from the MacLaine brothers’ tech company and not a high-interest loan.Would my father do that to me?Send me out here with the wrong information?Does he really want me to fail that badly?

“Hey, no worries, Victoria.”Declan looks at me in the rearview mirror.“I won’t do anything crazy, like buzz the Golden Gate Bridge.I’ll take excellent care of you.”

CHAPTER 30

Cal

As much as I’m enjoying this negotiation, it’s taking longer than I’d assumed, so I step outside to make a few calls.I return to see that she’s still at it, wearing them down, using tactical maneuvers and smarts to take what she wants before they even realize that she’s taken it from them.

When I come back through the conference room door, one dude flashes his eyes to mine in a near panic, but he quickly looks away.I almost feel sorry for him.It’s shaping up to be a smackdown of epic proportions.For each of the four men sitting opposite Victoria Backlund, this may go down as one of the worst days of their careers.

I suppress my smile.

She’s been magnificent this whole meeting.All I’ve had to do is sit back and let it unfold.I knew the second that Victoria opened her mouth, we would have the upper hand.Scratch that—I knew before she’d said a word.Because she walked in the door and held out her hand for a professional shake, and every one of them looked dumbstruck.

She’s wearing a pale green lightweight wool business suit today.It’s modest but perfectly tailored to her body.Her hair is shiny and swept over one shoulder, simple but stunning.Subtle 18-karat gold sparkles at her neck, ears, and wrist.

The necklaces are quite plain, though.She doesn’t need bling, but something a bit more personal would suit her better.I’ll have to see what I can do to fix that.

If she’ll let me.

Hours have passed since that initial display of bulging eyes and dropped jaws.The men in drab suits soon recovered their composure and settled in for a brutal back-and-forth.

I’ve watched Victoria smile politely, listen attentively, and ask all the right questions.And then bury them in their own unforced errors.

I like this girl’s style.

“I’m not at all certain that language will be acceptable to my client,” one of her counterparts says.

“I hear what you’re saying.”Her voice, kind but firm.“However, I would like to remind you that your team has already approved that language as used in Section seven, Mutuality Terms and Conditions, which begins in the third paragraph of page forty-nine.”