The Fashion of Love | Adult F/M Romance [COMPLETE]

ch. 38 - July

Ravi drew his finger along her hip. She couldn't tell if it was a love note or a dress this time.

"I happened to catch a couple of clips from an interview a certain publishing powerhouse gave to Forbes just today."

"Anybody I know?"

"Beautiful. Gutsy. You might have heard of her."

Sora feigned ignorance, opting to stretch her gloriously exerted muscles. "Maybe."

He huffed, his eyes glimmering in amuse. He traced the sinew of her thigh. "It was heady stuff. There wasn't an ounce of fear to be found. She was forthright, knowledgeable; she was personable. Not even Anthony Himura could help falling in love with a woman like that."

He's complimenting Anthony just to compliment me. Imogen's right. My man's got it bad. Sora grinned up him.

"It's funny you should mention interviews since someone emailed me a very entertaining read from Vogue Italy. Something called 'Splendour in Silk.'" Sora wrinkled her nose. "It sounds better in Italian." Most things do. "It's something to do with a world-class designer in love."

"Designers fall in love every day, that's when we thrive."

"You made me a white dress."

"I made my client a white dress that flattered you."

"It was organza."

"It was ivory chiffon, the research assistant got that wrong. The red dress was after that." He trailed butterfly kisses up the inside of her wrist. "That was a dress made in love. It was supposed to put into words the things I didn't know how yet. Every stitch was a stanza in itself."

"You'd already poured your heart out to me."

"I shared my pain and that was part of it. Sharing your future is a different challenge."

Sora rubbed her foot along his shin. He trailed his finger up her bare ribcage.

She squirmed. "Why are you so determined to tickle me?"

"I enjoy seeing you laugh."

"I can't seem to find anything funny lately. My life's become one long, endless board meeting bout dividends and profit margins."

"Has the Board been giving you trouble?"

"Tracy dropped in. The Board isn't thrilled, but they agree that we've comported ourselves with an appropriate amount of discretion so far. Not to mention that our relationship hasn't impacted Himura's bottom line. We're reporting record profits thanks to the revenue brought in by the poetry contest. They wish us the best."

"But?"

"I have a PR problem."

"Sounds serious. Is this PR problem handsome and talented?"

"Devastatingly so, and expensive to boot."

"I'm sorry, I never wanted to cause a problem for you."

"I'm no innocent victim here, I knew what I signed on for. I may have a spy out for my job, but I won't let them win if I can help it. Sam and I are convening a war room. If I go down, it'll be fighting. I'm just trying to figure out where my limits are. When do I give in? How much of my soul am I willing to sell to keep the corner office?"

"If you want to succeed in the corporate world, you've gotta play the game. Business is a full-contact sport."

"It's possible I'm not meant to succeed. These die are loaded. This company is full of Himura loyalists."