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February 20, 7:14 p.m. 01 seconds
(Chicago, Illinois)
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Entering the Four Seasons Hotel ballroom with one arm around Juniper’s waist, Kyle’s eyes honed in on his competitors and colleagues. The world’s top CEO’s, innovators and inventors in his field were present today. The theme was Click and Electrify, in honor of companies making innovative camera products.
Kyle was not focused on Click and Electrify.
He was electrified by the girl walking by his side, every inch of her beautiful. Inside and out. It had taken him a few weeks to see that Juniper Mills was the most beautiful girl he had ever met. It wasn’t the green flecks in her irises, her full bitten lips, the sheen of her hair, the arc of her waist, the sway of her hips, or even the way she looked tonight.
Her beauty was rare—the kind that radiated from the glow of her kindness, her intellect, her quiet dignity, her confidence despite her uncertainty, and even her adorable flaws.
It was a quiet beauty. A silent scream. It was something primal inside her that had screamed at him to pay attention. It was something that had settled inside him since the day they met. He just hadn’t known it was there.
Threading his fingers in hers, he tried to recall a time in his life when he had been happier.
He couldn’t.
As they entered the hall, she looked up, the bones of her face illuminated by lavender lights. “How stunning.”
“Yes.” He was still staring at her.
Decked out with blue and purple lights, laser displays, strings of LED lights, and floating jellyfish holograms, the hall was high-end meets high-tech.
“What’s up with jellyfish?” She tossed him a teasing smile. “Is that an engineering thing?”
“No. Just décor props. The theme is electric. Though to be exact, they should have used eels. Or electric rays. Jellyfish and fireflies have bioluminescence, not electricity. They emit light.”
Like you.
“Kyle. Imagine how pretty eels would have looked up there. Not.”
“Hey, did you know jellyfish shut down a nuclear plant in Sweden? Thousands of jellyfish choked the intake port for water and shut down the 1,400 MW power plant. I’d loved to have seen that.”
“Fascinating. Kyle, jellyfish are pretty. End of story. Sometimes you remind me of Cypress.” Juniper’s phone rang and she opened her little bedazzled clutch and looked inside. “Oh. It’s Dean. He must have landed. I have to take this. I’ll go out. Too noisy here.”
Not even Dr. Strange from London could ruin Kyle’s mood. Watching Juniper walk away, Kyle’s hand slipped inside his inner tuxedo jacket. Long nervous fingers clenched the small velvet box. He had been carrying it around for a week.
His heart slammed against his chest bones.
Kyle had bought a ring for Juniper.
He undid the clasp and touched the cold edge of the ring. He had been doing that all week. He would slip his fingers inside and his heart would knock his bones. His ribs had taken quite a beating.
The plan was to propose to her tonight when they got back up to their room. He had it all planned out. The simple but perfect proposal for a simple but perfect girl.
Juniper Mills.
Mrs. Juniper Castillo Paxton. His wife.
That’s what he wanted.
More than anything else in the universe.
But last night, after hearing of her plans to go to England, he had decided to defer his plans. After much chewing and spitting in his mind, he had realized it was the right thing to do. He had stayed awake all night long staring at the soft, trusting body curled up against him. If he proposed to her now, she would never go to England. She’d feel pressured.
She’d feel obligated. To stay and not pursue her dreams.
Kyle swallowed hard. A drip of fear trickled down his throat. The fear of losing her. The fear that something would tear them apart.
No.
Clasping the box shut in his pocket, he shook his head. He had taken care of everything. There were no traces left of the things that could break them apart.
Walking to his table, Kyle felt the hair on his nape rise. Someone was staring at him. He turned and his eyes met Denise’s. He groaned. What the fuck was she doing here? With Royce. Had they made it their life’s mission to disrupt his existence? Then stalk him. Then finish him. And when he saw who they were talking to, his blood chilled.
John.
Of all the thousand people in the room, they had found John. No coincidence.
John was the BirdsEye board president and now served on the Proto-Smash board. One of the richest billionaires in the world, he had made his money by diversifying his holdings. By the end of the millennium, he had majority stakes in a few industrial conglomerates before he turned his eye to Silicon Valley.
John was well known for his campaign contributions to several Presidential candidates. Royce had asked for an introduction several times, but Kyle had been reluctant. Royce had tapped dry all of Kyle’s investors for political donations.
He now wanted to keep BirdsEye Royce-free. Pest free.
They must be trying to recruit John.
My one contact Royce has not fleeced.
A fury ripped through him. John was Kyle’s principal funder and his first angel investor. Getting there had been rocky, as John trusted no one. It had taken Kyle 4 years, 6 months and 17 days of persistence to get John on BirdsEye’s board. And now, one lying word from Denise and it would all be lost.
He went up to John, shooting Denise and Royce glacial stares. “Hello, John.”
John beamed, the wrinkles around his eyes crimping. “If it isn’t the man of the hour. Ready for your keynote?”
“Kind of ready, thanks. Hello, Royce,” Kyle spat, as if he was saying, Hello Newman.
Stiff as the Terracotta Army soldiers, the brothers shook hands.
Denise smirked and kissed Kyle’s stony face. “Such a pleasure to see you, brother dearest.”
Kyle’s stomach churned.
John clasped a plump, pockmarked hand on Kyle’s arm. “No, the pleasure is mine. I got to meet Kyle’s brother and his lovely fiancé. Two brothers of such caliber. One a tech CEO. One a congressman on the fast track to becoming senator. I love my sons to death but they are lazy asses. Your father must be so proud.”
“You have no idea,” Kyle said with a strained smile. “John, I’ve been meaning to talk to you about the AI prototype that we’re developing. Can I steal you for a minute?”
“Let me finish,” Royce said through clenched teeth. “John, I am hosting a dinner at my house tomorrow for a few senators and DC movers and shakers. I’m sure they’d be thrilled to meet you. Would you like to join us?”
Before John could answer Kyle asked, “What are you all discussing with these movers and shakers? Campaign finance reform to upthrow Citizens United and release politics from the grip of special interest groups?”
“No, Kyle. As a capitalist, you should appreciate that Citizens United made it okay to say corporations are people too. If you have time you’re welcome to come,” Royce said.
Denise inclined her pretty head. “Oh, I’m sure Kyle does not have time. He is ever so busy with his new arm candy. What was her name again? Izzy? Oh no. That was your last one, right? Or was it Linda? Oh no. That was the girl you were with a few months ago. I’m really confused. I’m sorry. I don’t mean to be so dense. I’m just very forgetful. You change girls so often.”
Kyle wished he had a metal muzzle handy.
John looked back and forth from Kyle to Denise, his forehead creased. A well-known family man who donated to politicians supporting his family values platform, John was the last person on earth Kyle wanted to share his past with. He had kept him away from even a breath of negative PR about him. Kyle was BirdsEye, after all.
“Really?” asked John. “I did not know that about our Kyle. Well, he is a handsome young man. I’m sure the ladies dig him.”
“Yes,” Denise giggled. “Our Kyle is such a ladies man. A turnpike.”
Recovering his vocal cords, Kyle said, “Juniper. Her name is Juniper. I’m surprised you forgot, Denise. She met the family on Christmas. She is very special to me. In fact, she is The One. The one I plan to spend the rest of my life with.”
There was a joint gasp and they rotated to him. Clearing his throat, Royce congratulated him dully and patted his arm. Denise said nothing but her withering glance told Kyle exactly what was going through her mind.
John clasped his hands together. “My boy, this is great news. I’m a family man myself. There’s nothing more beautiful in this life than love. Nothing more fulfilling than having someone to love and share your life with. My net worth is not my 11 billion dollars. No siree. It is the sum of my wife and my three children. Take them away and I have nothing. Nothing. Your news has made me happy tonight. Kyle, when you get back to San Francisco, you and I must meet up. And I will be happy to take a look at that AI prototype. Also, you must bring the lucky young lady over. The wife would love to meet her.”
Kyle nodded a thanks and realized he had never been invited to John’s house. Without another glance at Medusa and Macbeth, Kyle walked off. Looking for Juniper, he scanned the room and then swore under his breath.
Double fuck.
Standing on the other end of the room was Sylvia and by her side the CEO of Cirrus, Chad the D-bag.
Why, why do the filth and the scum of the world keep getting together?
Shitty people were evil magnets.
Just then Evan came up to him, walking fast and huffing. “Kyle. Surely you’ve noticed our old friends. Unified as expected.”
“Who cares? Due process was meted out. We had an internal investigation. Sylvia was found guilty of leaking confidential information to Chad. We let her go. End of the matter.”
“Not. We should have pressed charges.”
“Evan. Let it go,” Kyle said, still scanning the room for a sharp blue dress. “Conference update?”
“We wrapped up the conference booth. Our marketing people are at our table. They set up a meeting with the integrated solution guy from London and the Tokyo AI lead you wanted to meet. Hey, your table is in the front row. With John. I have your card.”
“Thanks. Evan, come and sit with us.” Kyle gave him a friendly hug. “Really appreciate everything you do. You are more a brother to me than anyone who shares my blood.”
“Where the effing hell is the real Kyle? Stop acting like a pussy or I’ll sucker punch your nose and knock some sense into you. Also, never touch me again.” Evan shook imaginary dandruff off his elegant tux jacket.
Kyle smiled. He had discomfited Evan. No easy task.
Evan looked around. “Where is your better half? The one that I like more than you?”
“She stepped out to make a call.”
Evan raised a cocky eyebrow. “Have you proposed yet?”
“Not yet. Maybe tonight. Maybe not.” Kyle licked his dry lips and told Evan about Juniper’s opportunity in England. “I have decided to wait.”
Evan folded his arms and shook his head. “There are no laws against engaged people working abroad. I think you hesitate because you’re not sure yourself. Too many changes. Too soon.”
“Look, I’ll spend as much time as I can in England. If I propose, she’ll feel conflicted. I know she loves me so I’ll just wait.”
And I love her.
“Not buying it. I think you rushed in and now regret it.”
Kyle put his hands in his pockets fingering the box again. Evan was wrong. Not so long ago, he wanted what John had.
Billions. Power. Control. The world under his heel.
Now he was so ready to have what John was talking about. The sum of his life reduced to one person. And maybe—one distant day—more than one. Nothing else mattered. Not millions in the world. Not the inventions in the world. All of his galaxy of headaches fell to the wayside when it came to that singularity, this nirvana he felt that John had put in simple terms. The net worth of his life was Juniper.
He bit his lips and shot Evan a wan smile. “I regret nothing.”
Kyle felt her before he saw her.
She was back in the room. She entered the ballroom and his heart stilled. Instantly his stiff body relaxed and his mind decompressed. For a moment, he paused. Juniper stood out, an indigo light in the cloud of black-suited men around her. Looking anxiously for Kyle, her head tilted, she floated to the stage. She had never looked more beautiful. No—she looked more beautiful when she was lying next to him, eyes wide open and her irises clouded with need equal to his.
He couldn’t wait to get out of here. With her by his side.
