Shadow Of Reality

ht and nothing more

was the hastened r

night all together, after whic

nd left hurriedly while Damien got

s the early morning sun bathed the city in gold. Normally, the city's hum of business

s were stil

orward. Damien wasn't one for relationships, not after what happened with Elena. Women were a temporary distraction, a momentary pleasure he

and determined, the softness of her kiss, and the vulnerability in her eyes that had pulled him in d

t, keeping everyone out. But Hailey had slipped t

the first time. It irritated him then, and it irritated him now. He wasn't used to women walking away from him,

om her, of course. He hadn't expected any. Hailey wasn't the type to use their night t

e women. If she wanted to see him again, she'd reach out. At lea

him out of his thoughts.

ckled. "Your meeting with the

when the corporate merger with the Everglade Group was at a crucial stage. Th

hortly," he rep

e meeting. But even as he focused on his work, Hailey's face re

everything was controlled with cold and calculated moves. The long glass table glea

had perfected the art of masking his emotions in these meetings. No o

ojections, his mind wandered back to Hailey. It frustrated him th

merger?" Rachel, a board member, ask

y that felt manipulative. Still, she was an

nds our market and strengthens our position in Europe. But the current t

h she nodded. "Everglade won't like

" Damien said. "We don't

y disapproved, she conceded. Damien didn't care if she li

was his world of control, dominance, success. But no matter how intense the discussion got, thoug

unset. He loosened his tie and poured a drink, immediately thinking of Hailey again. He had ma

the call button. He set the phone down with a sigh. This wasn't h

de. He had everything as money, power, control, but now, for the firs

ing he had trained himself to see as a weakness. But Hailey had gotten p

ien drained his glass

oughts drifted back to the night she had spent with Damien Williams. The comforting smell of chicken broth

his phone and