"Oh for God's sake," she rolled her eyes, "I am, you pervert. Now, please, drive or we'll be - "
They both jumped as three taps sounded in quick succession followed by Yash's face filling the driver side window.
"Hey BhagWaan!" The exclamation slipped from Sam as she shut her eyes, hand slapping against her forehead, praying this was all just a fatigue induced nightmare.
"Hey what?" Ryan asked, shooting confused looks between Sam and Yash. "Who's he?"
"My brother, Yash." Sam muttered in a resigned tone.
"Really?" Looking pleased, Ryan lowered the window, letting in the cool air. "I've wanted to meet him...he looks familiar."
Yash stood back, arms crossed, an impassive look on his face that quickly changed to surprise as he recognized Ryan.
"You?" He said, at the same time Ryan said. "Hey, I know you."
Ryan stepped out the car, unfolding his length as he held out a hand towards Yash.
"We used to run into each other in the lobby. Man, I should have figured it out when Sam said she lived here. Ryan Silverton, it's great to meet you."
Wonderful…just freaking wonderful. Sam groaned, opened the door and stepped out, crossing to where Yash stood, glaring at Ryan's outstretched hand as though seriously considering breaking a few bones.
To Sam's relief, however, he accepted the handshake, albeit reluctantly.
"Dr. Yash Bhaat." He responded, both men sizing each other up. "How do you know my little sister?"
Sam glanced down at where their hands were clasped, noting how tightly Yash gripped Ryan's arm, till his knuckles turned white. Still, Ryan didn't flinch or show pain in any way...if anything, he seemed to tighten his own grip.
It was such an obvious display of testosterone that Sam rolled her eyes again, wondering how she got herself into this ridiculousness.
'We work together, Yash." She replied before Ryan could say anything. "Did you want something? We're running late as it is so if it's not important, can it wait till later?"
Yash dropped his hand, gaze still locked on Ryan for a few seconds before shifting to her.
"Nothing important." He finally said, giving her a look that spoke volumes. She would be getting a grilling later on, that was certain.
He turned back to Ryan. "We're meeting at Sam's new place then grabbing dinner later. Why don't you join us?"
"What? No…" Sam sputtered, mortified. Dinner tonight was going to be awkward enough without Yash giving Ryan what amounted to an interrogation.
"I'd love to." Ryan accepted, looking pleased.
"Good, see you then." Yash nodded and walked towards his car.
****
"I still can't believe you agreed." Sam muttered for the umpteenth time as Ryan pulled to a stop at the Silvercorp parking lot. "You know he just wants a chance to grill us both because he knows we're sleeping together, right?"
Ryan chuckled and turned off the engine. He reached back and picked up his jacket and laptop bag, giving Sam a teasing look.
"I know. It's not a problem, Sam." He climbed out and came round to open her door.
"It's going to be awkward!" Sam protested, gathering her own things and stepped down. "You have no idea what Yash is like when he goes into protective mode."
"As someone who once threatened to break my brother-in-law's jaw and knees should he hurt my sister, I think I have an idea."
Sam started at him, incredulous. "You really said that?"
"Yep. And it might interest you to know that he's a former WWE champion turned senator and at least ten years older than I am." He laughed at her expression, eyes sparkling in mischief.
"Sam, relax. It'll be fine." He assured her, then changed the subject. "Are you ready for the meeting?"
Recalling all the questions she'd meant to ask about the project, she silently cursed Yash.
"We need to sync up on your plans for the project so we're on the same page." She told him.
He glanced at his watch and nodded. "We've still got fifteen minutes before the meeting, let's talk in my office."
****
The meeting with Bradford went without a hitch. It was clear to Sam that winning back the Caine contract had eased some of the tension between father and son.
She studied the other members present as Ryan made his presentation, noting their expressions.
Her gaze landed where a pregnant gorgeous blonde sat beside Bradford, startled to find the woman looking back at her, wearing the same expression Ryan had when he was silently assessing a situation.
Flustered, she lowered her gaze, wondering why Ryan's twin seemed so interested in her. This wasn't the first time they'd sat in on a meeting together, but Hailey Merrit had never shown this much interest in her before now.
Could it be that Kelsey, Ryan's mom had mentioned something of their airport encounter? It was possible, Sam mused, recalling how sceptical Kelsey had been when Sam had insisted there was nothing more than a working relationship between her and Ryan.
Kelsey may have expressed her doubts to Hailey, hence the silent interrogation that made Sam nervous.
She rubbed at her temple, feeling the start of another migraine. Between the confrontation with Yash this morning and now, this, today was not looking to be a good one. This thing with Ryan was supposed to be free of complications, but it was rapidly turning into a shitstorm.
Maybe it was time to take a step back?
Her head throbbed harder and coils of unease settled in the pit of her stomach.
She was roused out of her thoughts as Ryan rounded up his presentation. She watched him, looking coolly assured as he resumed his seat beside his sister.
Bradford leaned forward, arms on the table.
"Let's try to wrap up this project as soon as possible." He began, his direct gaze on Ryan. "As per your plan, you will fly to Maui with the team next week to personally supervise things on ground. Ms. Bhaat will remain here and run the department as well as any logistics needed on the resort."
Ryan nodded. "Yes Sir, that's the plan. Once I'm on ground, I'll be able to set a timeframe for completion."
"Okay." Bradford "Since that's settled, let's move on."
The rest of the meeting passed quickly then Bradford dismissed the group. Sam gathered her stuff, exchanging pleasantries with a few of the executive members she was familiar with.
She caught sight of Ryan, talking to his sister, blonde heads together. His eyes met hers and he smiled then returned his attention to his sibling, who caught the exchange. The blonde looked towards Sam then murmured something to Ryan who merely shook his head in reply, leading her out of the room.
Sam watched them head towards Hailey's office.
Were they talking about her? Feeling uncomfortable under the scrutiny, she broke from her group and stepped out of the conference room, intent on getting back to her office.
Seriously, this whole thing was becoming too much to handle. Her phone rang, startling her from her thoughts. She glanced at the screen and frowned.
"Hello?"
"Good morning Ms. Bhaat," the cultured voice of Bradford's assistant filled her ear. "If you have a minute, Mr. Silverton would like a word with you in private."
"Now?" She raised her eyebrows in surprise, wondering what he wanted to discuss with her that couldn't have been said in the meeting.
"Yes, please. He's available now."
"Okay, I'll be there."
She ended the call and turned, heading back down the corridor that led to the private elevator leading to Bradford's office on the floor above. She contemplated texting Ryan to let him know what was going on, but changed her mind.
She'd talk to him later.
Bradford's office had not changed much since the last time she'd been in there. It was huge, taking up half the entire floor, sleek marble walls rising up to meet a coiffed ceiling with recessed lights casting a warm ambience on the room. Floor to ceiling windows showed a stunning view of the skyline.
Bradford sat at his desk, chair turned towards the window, speaking into his phone. He didn't acknowledge Sam's entrance, and she took the initiative, settling on one of the white chairs in front of his desk and waited for him to finish.
Five minutes turned to ten before he wrapped up the call, spinning around to face her, his piercing blue eyes pinning her in place. He kept his expression impassive as he studied her.
"I must say, I'm impressed at how far the division has come in the past few months." He began abruptly, flicking open a folder and studying it. "Other than the Caine project, there's been significant improvements and I must say, Sam, I'm impressed."
"Thank you, Sir," Sam replied, hands folded on her lap. "It was a joint effort, sir. Ryan worked just as hard to turn things around."
Bradford's eyes flickered up to her face briefly then went back to the folder.
"I see. That's high praise, considering how sceptical you were of his capabilities in the beginning."
"I'm willing to admit I was wrong. He's definitely exceeded expectations."
"Interesting." Bradford leaned back in his seat. Something flickered in his eyes, but was gone in a moment.
"I just wanted you here to clarify what was in the report you sent in earlier this week."
A knock sounded on the door and seconds later, Ryan walked into the office.
"You wanted to see me?" He asked, striding towards the desk. Catching sight of Sam, a look of surprise crossed his features.