expression told him none of it was obvious. “Just out of curiosity, how long is not permanent?”
“Good question.” Garrett hadn’t thought through the details, but it had to last long enough to convince his grandmother that the marriage was real. But, most importantly, it had to last until he closed the Vivotex partnership and was appointed as the new CEO. It will happen. It has to. His grandmother had been grooming him for the position since the day he was born. It was her greatest wish to see him become Hansol’s CEO. Once he sealed the Vivotex deal, she could give in without losing face. “About seven to eight months until your new position opens up. Perhaps a few months longer. But definitely no more than a year.”
Natalie sighed deeply, and raised her eyes to the night sky. “Why?”
“It involves a sensitive and complicated family issue.” She deserved to know everything about his unorthodox proposal, but not here. “I trust you’ll keep this conversation confidential until we can discuss the details somewhere more private.”
“Anything else?” She met his gaze, but her voice sounded distant and tired.
“You have the key facts,” he said, tension edging into his words. “Will you marry me?”
She stared back at him for a few seconds then shook her head. “That’s probably the worst proposal ever made. Like catastrophically bad.”
A bark of surprised laughter escaped him. “You’re probably right, but this is the most efficient and effective solution to both of our problems. If—”
She held up her hand to stop his words, and he obeyed her silent command out of shock. He was accustomed to deference from executives twice his age. He long admired her strength and confidence but being on the receiving end of her imperious attitude was startling.
“This scheme of yours is beyond ludicrous.” She heaved a ponderous sigh, making the milky mounds of her breasts rise and fall. It took Herculean effort to keep his eyes focused on her face. “But I’m desperate enough to consider it.”
“Good call,” he said with equal parts irritation and relief. To his chagrin, her reluctant not-quite-assent stung his ego, but his rational side was relieved she would even consider his preposterous proposal. Natalie Sobol was practical to a fault, but this time it worked in his favor.
“I highly doubt that,” she said with a quirk of her red lips.
Of course she did. The more she thought about it, the more dubious everything would seem. He couldn’t give her too much time to think things through. “Given this is a time-sensitive situation, you have until tomorrow at midnight to give me an answer.”
“Tomorrow? You’re impossible.” With an exasperated glare, she spun away and stalked toward the staircase inside. His mouth curved into a grin. He’d spiked the ball into her court and she wasn’t the kind of person who would back down from a challenge. He was looking forward to her next move. Before he could turn away, the sight of her softly swaying hips recaptured his attention and his smirk morphed into slack-mouthed admiration.
When she disappeared from sight, Garrett leaned against the railing and frowned at the starless sky. Why is she so desperate that she’d consider giving up a year of her life for a second chance at a promotion?
Конец ознакомительного фрагмента.
Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес».
Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию на ЛитРес.
Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом.
