Total pages in book: 89
Estimated words: 83699 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 418(@200wpm)___ 335(@250wpm)___ 279(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83699 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 418(@200wpm)___ 335(@250wpm)___ 279(@300wpm)
She drove expertly through the city and dropped him off in front of his building, then roared away in the Pantera, the mirror of his.
And he reflected how they’d mirrored each other in so many ways over the years.
* * *
A part of her had wanted to park and follow Ransom into his office building.
But people would get the wrong idea. Not just that the two of them might be sleeping together, but there were things a man in her executive position could get away with that were completely unacceptable for a woman. She had to dress the part. She was judged on what she wore. She had to be polite at all times. Never allow herself a meltdown. And while Ransom could get away with Hawaiian gear, she needed a business suit, shiny hair, and perfect makeup.
She’d lied to him. Even on a Saturday, she would never have gone into work wearing this outfit. There wasn’t a day she went in when she wasn’t as perfectly presented as possible. Because if anyone saw her like this, the first thing they’d think was, We knew a woman couldn’t do this job properly.
She mentored other women and helped them get back into the workforce through the nonprofits she worked with. She was a role model. She had to make them understand how hard it was working in a man’s world, while at the same time learning that it was doable.
It was like that Taylor Swift song “The Man,” about a woman making her way in a man’s world. You were held to a different standard, expected to act a certain way. And when you didn’t, they tried to cancel you. Ava wouldn’t allow that.
She knew how to handle herself, and she did it by being professional and businesslike. She never yelled. She was never rude. And she held her ground no matter what they threw at her. Just as she had with George Twisselman, that mealy-mouthed president of Consolidated Catering, when he’d tried to whittle down her resolve.
Searching her closet for the perfect outfit, she wanted something that would show her to be the confident businesswoman she was and still wow Ransom all over again. Bending down to pull out a pair of heels, she saw the wedge tennis shoes. The glitter sparkled in the closet’s light. And she wanted them. Bad. Wanted the look in Ransom’s eyes when he watched her walk in them. Slipping her feet into them, she loved the glittery feeling that seemed to surround her when they were on.
Maybe they actually were a power move.
* * *
Seated behind his desk, Ransom’s jaw dropped when she walked in. Though her outfit wasn’t one of the power suits she’d worn the last two days, it was no less powerful, no less seductive, hugging her delicious curves, showcasing her gorgeous legs.
And those damn sexy platform tennis shoes shot his temperature into the stratosphere.
He wanted her. Now.
But he maintained control. “Love the shoes with that suit. Very flashy.”
She smiled. He loved her smile. He loved making her smile.
She lifted her foot. “The glitter has the same jewel tones as my blouse.” Which was a royal blue, the suit a creamy wool that set off her skin.
The shoes and the suit, along with everything else about her, dazzled him, but he couldn’t help saying, “You really didn’t need to change.”
She straightened her suit jacket. “If I’m at the office—even more so if it’s yours—I dress the part.”
She so dressed the part—elegantly, temptingly.
“Does it really matter?” he asked.
Walking to his desk, she said, “I’m an executive in a male-dominated workforce. It absolutely matters.”
“You’re not just any executive. You’re CEO of a billion-dollar company. You’ve obviously earned any man’s respect.”
“You have to admit a woman in my position is judged differently than a man.”
He opened his mouth to say he didn’t judge her. But then he recognized the truth of what she said. He’d seen enough of it in his own field, and he’d tried to be different. “I’ve worked with many female chefs in my time.”
She raised an eyebrow, perfectly arched. “And?”
“I have to admit that many of them feel they need to go above and beyond the men to keep their place in the lineup.”
“And the women I mentor, they need help for that very reason.”
He’d been witness to her heart of gold years ago, and it had been pounded into him all over again during the last couple of days. Ava Harrington didn’t just walk the talk, she was the talk.
Leaning back in his desk chair, he crossed his arms. “But the shoes. They’re not your usual style.” He enjoyed the wedges as much as he’d loved her killer heels.
Striding around his desk, stopping right next to him, she said so softly he had to lean closer to hear, “They’re my little screw you to the man.”