Codes and Lies (BWWM)

The Promise

I laid in the warmth of the covers and just stared up at the ceiling. Last night hadn't been a dream.  Everything was real, from the Pearl Tower, to the food, to the dance, to the kiss, and following kisses.  I sighed into the covers and recounted everything for the umpteenth time.

The ringing of phone by the bed finally brought me back to the present. "Hello?" I answered.

"Good morning Miss. Wilson. This is your wake up call. There is also a message from a Mei Guan would you like to hear it?" Asked the receptionist.

"I would. Thank you ."

"The message says, you will be having breakfast in The Langham Club in one hour." She stated.

"Thank you." I replied before hanging up the phone.

I maneuvered my way out of the bed, and made my way to the walk-in closet. I shook my head still in amazement at the fact that Canaan had bought me all these beautiful and very expensive clothes. I sorted through the hangers finally settling on a slim fitted black dress with quarter sleeves and paired it with a black and white plaid twill cape and my patent leather red bottoms.

I called June to update him on all the had transpired the night before.

"Now more than ever you have to stay vigilant. Remember the closer you get to him the closer he is to you, and we can't risk him finding out anything. We are still talking about an potentially very dangerous man here. We can't lose sight of the goal." Junjie reminded me.

"Understood." I replied, before we ended the call.

Our talk had been a sobering one. One I needed to get my mind out of the clouds and back to the task at hand.

I continued to get ready, and took a few minutes to review my drafts for the building. I checked the time and had five minutes to arrive for breakfast. I gave myself a quick once over and applied a coat of deep red lip stick. I gathered up my portfolio and purse, and made my way to The Langham Club room.

Once I arrived Mei was near the entrance waiting for me.

"You look nice. New outfit?" She said with a knowing smirk.

"Why yes. It was a gift." I replied going along with it.

"How was your evening once I left?" She asked raising an eyebrow.

"Honestly, I was kind of magical." I smiled.

"Perfect! That means I've officially earned fairy godmother status." Mei said as she tap her chin with the bottom of her pen.

"Oh really?"

"Well you see Mr. DuMonte's instructions were to make you feel like a, and I quote "Disney Princess", and magic always has something to do with them." Replied Mei with a smug smile.

I gave Mei a quick hug. "Thank you Mei."

Mei set down her tablet on a nearby table and grabbed my hand in hers. "Mr. DuMonte is a good man, and he deserves happiness. I've never seen him this way. Ever since you've arrived there's been a light in his eyes I never knew existed. The few times he's tried to date, he's never been like this. Now, I can tell you have a good heart Mariah, but please, promise me you won't break his. He's been through enough heartache."

I looked into Mei's eyes. "I promise."

She squeezed my hand and smiled. I returned the smile, all the while knowing I could never keep that promise. Regardless of that part of me that wanted to, it was impossible.

Just then someone cleared their throat. "I hope I'm not interrupting something." Said Mr. Monroe.

"Oh just some girl talk. We'd better head in Mr. DuMonte is waiting." Mei quickly replied grabbing up her tablet.

We all made our way to the buffet area where Canaan was seated in a corner half booth looking over some papers. He looked up ,and his serious demeanor quickly turned into a smile as he stood to greet us.

"Good Morning." He said as he shook Mr. Monroe's hand. Mei walked over to the buffet as Canaan took my hand next. "How did you sleep Miss. Wilson?"

"Quite well Mr. DuMonte. And yourself?" I inquired.

"Like a dream." He smiled. "Shall we?" He gestured towards the buffet.

We walked over and filled our plates with a blend of Dim Sum and western breakfast options they offered.

"Please, won't you have a seat." Canaan gestured towards the booth seat once we made our way back to the table.

"Thank you." I replied as I took my seat.

Canaan sidled up next to me as Mei and Mr. Monroe arrived with their full plates. Conversation of the plans for our meeting with the Chinese government's Development Department ensued. Mr. Monroe had begun the process of acquiring the environmental impact report. Halfway through we were joined by Mr. Pierre Le Blanc and another Crayton Technologies executive Mr. Howard Wei.

"Welcome gentlemen." Said Canaan as he greeted the new arrivals.

"Good morning everyone." Greeted Mr.Wei.

"Sorry we were delayed getting out this morning. We had a slight glitch with one of the systems, but it has been remedied."Stated Mr. Le Blanc." Ms. Guan, always a pleasure, and Miss. Wilson so nice to see you here as well. I have heard very good things in regards to the new Shanghai headquarters." He said as he took a seat.

"I hope to meet your expectations Mr. Le Blanc." I replied.

"Oh, I have no doubt you will exceed them my dear." He said before taking a deep sip of his coffee."

Canaan gave Mr. Le Blanc a look I could only decipher as a sort of warning as his hand subtly rested on mine under the cover of the table cloth. The simple gesture immediately caused my heart rate to increase.

The rest of breakfast went along seamlessly. Once we had wrapped up our morning debrief, we still had two hours before our meeting with the Chinese officials. We all began to pack up our things and were preparing to leave the table.

"Miss. Wilson, would you mind staying behind. There is something I'd like to discuss with you one on one." Canaan said looking through some of the paperwork.

"Yes of course." I replied as everyone else filed out.

Once they all had gone Canaan continued rifling through the papers in front of him.

"Have they all gone?" He said nonchalantly.

"Yes is just us." I replied

Before I could even register what was going on Canaan's lips were against mine as his right hand cradled the back of my neck. The kiss was deep and sweet. My body reacted, collapsing into his embrace.  
"I've been waiting all morning to do that." he breathed against my lips before he continued his assault. For a moment, time itself ceased exist.

"Please, promise me you won't break his heart."

Mei's words echoed through my head drawing me out of the kiss. I slowly pulled back.

"We, we should get going." I managed to get out, my voice barely above a whisper.

Canaan looked at me and held my gaze as he caressed the side of my face. It felt as if he could see right into my soul. He looked down at his watch mumbling something in French. "Yes, you are right. We will have to resume this later." He smiled as he exited the booth, and offered his hand to help me do the same. He gave me a chase kiss on the cheek, before making his way out. I watched him as he made his way down the hall and was immediately flanked by his men.

My hand gently grazed my cheek at the spot where he kissed me. "All part of the mission." I sighed to myself.

*****
Authors Note

Hello Lovelies,
Life... am I right. This chapter was started almost two years ago and I've finally finished it!! It's the transition chapters that get you. I anticipate future chapters won't take anywhere near as long. Thanks for sticking with me. Things should be getting more exciting for our characters coming up.
As always, thanks for reading!

Lots of  Love,
Michelle