Ulterior Motive (Armin x Reader)

Part two

The taxi pulled up to the Tyber building in a slide of tyres though puddles.

Since arriving at the hotel earlier, preparing for tonight, and sliding into your heels as you left, the skies had opened with a drizzle of rain. You tried not to think of it as a bad omen - tired not to see it as Armin arriving like the clouds to steal your thunder on this deal.

You'd spent the better part of the evening going through past contracts, conducting research on Tyber Industries. Armin had even bounced a few ideas off you. But as the night had deepened, you'd both separated to prepare alone. Now, you were together again, stepping out of your ride as you readied yourself for this deal.

Tonight would be a success.

You had no idea how Armin might try to steal your credit, but knowing that was his motive was enough. You had the upper hand so long as you parried any of his attempts to undermine you. He shut the door of the cab behind you then, and you turned, meeting his grey-blue stare in the evening air.

It killed you to admit it, but he looked good.

Every time you'd seen Armin, he'd been all neat and tidy in his soft greys and warm browns. But tonight he wore black. A classic fitted suit, his dark tie neatly woven beneath his white shirt in a way that had you itching to tug on it, see it fall loosely around his throat. His matching umbrella kept him dry as he approached, shoes clicking on the wet footpath leading up to the building.

"Are you ready?" he asked when he met your side, offering you space under the umbrella with him.

But you held up a hand, taking another minute to look him up and down. You swore he flushed a little beneath your stare, as if he were unused to this sort of attention. Though why, you weren't sure, because right now he looked... like a man that needed to be messed up. Looked like he needed fingers running through his hair and ripping at his buttons.

Really, if he were someone else you might have fallen for him.

"I am," you replied.

As the two of you began to walk up the stairs of the main entrance, you enacted step one in the plan you'd spent all afternoon cultivating. You flashed Armin a smile over your shoulder as the doorman allowed you entry and he deposited his umbrella. "You look nice tonight," you said to him.

He arched a brow, a glint in his eyes that was almost too innocent as he looked himself up and down. "You think so?"

"I do." Stopping by the glass elevator of the ground floor, you pushed the button on the wall, waiting to be delivered to tonight's arena. When the lift doors popped open, allowing you both to step inside, you added, "In fact, if you were someone else I'd even call you handsome."

Armin straightened the cuffs of his jacket, checking the clips of his case as if he were nervously preparing for the meeting. An action no doubt intended to let you think you had the advantage here. "If I were someone else?" he asked absently.

"Yeah." The lift doors drew open again with a ding, revealing a foyer of scarlet carpet and sleek, marble walls. You stepped forward, drawing close enough to whisper by your colleagues shoulder as you passed him on the way out, "You're far too pretty to be called handsome, Arlert."

And in a cloud of perfume and confidence, you stepped into the buzzing foyer of the restaurant entrance.

You didn't dare look back to see if your plan had worked, but the small silence between your departure and Armin's let you know your words had at least some effect. Enough to make him hesitate at least. Whether you'd rattled him was impossible to know, but you hoped - because this was the only plan you could think of to counter him.