Her voice grew more clipped by the second, and I could tell she was building up a serious head of steam.

“When Cullen told us he was expanding and could push out product more quickly, we took him at his word. I have seventeen stores prepping premium front-of-the-store space for the new line as we speak. If those spaces are empty come delivery time—”

“They won’t be,” I said simply, cutting in before she could lob a threat that would really piss me off.

Our personal shit was set aside. I was here to help Cullen make his company a financial success again, not to let myself get all pissed off and defensive on behalf of Evie. But, damn it, Evie was good at her job. No way she’d just blown off this deadline. I’d seen her bustling around the office all last week, muttering to herself about this very campaign. Something smelled fishy, and I was going to get to the bottom of it.

“Arabella, I’m not sure exactly what happened, but I’m going to find out. Evie is the most responsible person I know, so I do believe there is an explanation. Give me fifteen minutes to get it and call you back, all right?”

For a second, I thought she might have hung up, but then she let out an exasperated huff.

“Fine. Fifteen minutes,” she snapped before breaking the connection.

Just fucking dandy. I stuffed my phone in my pocket and made a beeline to the elevator. Thankfully, Sophia’s office was only a seven-minute walk from here.

When I reached the office, Evie was standing with her back to the door, facing a back wall that was covered with images of women in gorgeous lingerie. The splashes of color and the layout of her presentation were so eye-catching, I found myself distracted for an instant by the sheer punch of it.

“Hey, Smith, everything okay?”

She blushed a little as our gazes connected, and for a moment, I was silent as the memory of our kiss passed between us again.

“Uh, yeah. Wait. No.” I scrubbed a hand over my jaw and motioned for the two of us to sit. “Look, I just got a call from Arabella Christianson. She said you were supposed to send her your proposed ad campaign yesterday.”

Evie’s brows drew into a frown as her cheeks drained of color. “No. That’s not correct. I have it here in my notes . . .” She turned and began riffling through a pile of papers on her desk, tugging one out and holding it aloft. “This is due by end of business today. I still have a few hours.”

She slid the page across the desk to me. Sure enough, the time and date were written there in Evie’s graceful script and underlined twice.

That was good, but it would only take me so far. In her mind, Arabella still believed the agreement was for yesterday.

“I figured as much. You’re never late on anything, and I know how hard you’ve been working on this. Did you firm up these plans via e-mail or phone?”

“Shit. I’m pretty sure it was on the phone.” Evie shot a glance over her shoulder and turned back to me, looking as vulnerable as I’d ever seen her. “This would suck if it reflects on us poorly because, to be honest, it’s been done for two days. I’ve just been putting off sending it until the last minute because I’m nervous that she won’t like it.”

“That’s not possible. I know Arabella.”

“Arabella?” Evie paused, her eyes narrowing. “What’s the story? Is there something I should know?”

I cleared my throat. “It was a long time ago.” And not something I wanted to get into with Evie—ever.

“And what, you’re older and wiser now?” Her eyes narrowed further into the shape of slivered almonds, and I felt my stomach tense.

“Yes, and more importantly, I know how to show some restraint.”

“What does that mean exactly, Smith?”

“It means you have nothing to worry about.” That part was true.

“Why would I be worried? There’s nothing between us, right?”

“The truth is, she and I have a history. Let me go smooth this over. I’m afraid she’s got some old hang-ups, and this really isn’t about you at all.”

Evie shot me a now wide-eyed glare, curiosity written all over her features.

“She and I were connected in the past. And she might be trying to sabotage you to punish me. I’ll handle it.”

“No way. You’re not fighting my battle. And what kind of relationship?”

“It was purely physical.” The words felt sour in my throat. I hated admitting this to Evie, but I wouldn’t lie to her.

“So you slept with her?”

“Like I said, it was a long time ago.”

The moment the words left my mouth, I hated myself. The look of disappointment that flashed on Evie’s features was brief but unmistakable. A few seconds of silence passed between us, and I was left feeling like even more of an asshole than I was.

I shook my head slowly and took another long look at the collage of campaign elements. “If Arabella doesn’t like the campaign you created, then she’s a fucking idiot, Evie. This is brilliant.”

And it was. She’d struck the perfect balance between sensuality and class, each image showcasing the pieces to their best advantage. One teddy in particular caught my eye and I cocked my head, imagining Evie in that very outfit.

“That color would look amazing on your skin,” I murmured softly, my voice dropping to a whisper. “You’d look am—”

“Fucking horrible in that outfit,” a low voice chimed in sharply from behind me. “Ew, Smith. Don’t be imagining my little sister in this shit, or I’m going to have to fire you both,” Cullen said, stepping between us.