Chapter Three

Walking him through the labs as well as the creation process was interesting. She could tell that he wasn’t paying much attention to what she was explaining but he was drinking in all of the confidence she had while explaining it to him. How she motioned with her hands and understood the process just as if she were doing it herself. Most people didn’t know that other than being schooled in business and economics, she had a nursing degree. Not one that she ever practiced with but it helped her to better understand data, studies, medications, and other things that were important in running a medical technology business.

“In summation we grow the tissue artificially. It has amazing taste and the meat is quite filling but no fat and no calories. As to how that’s accomplished, well it’s a trade secret.” She chuckled as she motioned through the last window on the tour. It looked into a lab where samples were currently growing and at various sizes. The labels on them were technical and numbers instead of names but that didn’t mean no one knew who they belonged to. The intent was not to influence guests too much into making a decision on the spot if they didn’t want to.

“No fat and no calories? You mean everything I just ate-”

“All the meat products-”

“Okay, most of it…how in the world do you get that type of flavor with no calories?” He asked, sounding absolutely stunned. If she had an additional dollar for everytime she was asked that same question even after already explaining that it was a secret she could have been a billionaire.

“It’s a secret, as I said.” She repeated herself. “Right this way, Mr. Hellström.”

“I told you already, Ryker is fine.” He said.

“My apologies, being formal is force of habit I suppose.” She told him and used her keycard to open the next door. It took them into the main foyer of the building where the receptionists sat and there were a few people milling around as they got their day to day routine accomplished. They both stopped by the elevators and she used her key to call one down to the lobby for both of them. “I should probably mention that I was a big fan of Luna Cove. Season one, at least.”

“Were you?”

“Oh yeah, it got kinda bad after that then really bad in season three. I kept watching for some reason but…probably only because I liked you.” She laughed. The elevator doors opened and she stepped on first, him following close behind her. She once again had to use the key to be able to press the button for the very top floor. Security was high in her place of work for various reasons. Some of the testing they did was dangerous. Other things were secret and they couldn’t have blueprints copied or stolen. She wasn’t worried about her safety physically as much as she was worried about her empire and profit margins.

“I don’t disagree with you there.” He said. “I told them not to change the character so drastically but I was a nobody back then. Still kind of am now.”

“Not after starring in two Stephen King movies and making bank on that Butcher series.” She said, “Working with guys like Matt Masterson and Hugh Darcy? You’re a bigger name now than you think.”

“Am I?”

“In horror, yes, and it’s a pretty big genre. I wouldn’t underestimate the fans.” She smirked. He laughed and ran his fingers through his hair trailing his hand down over the back of his neck which he scratched kind of nervously. There was a moment of silence, his cheeks getting rather red with embarrassment before he turned to look at her again.

“You’re gorgeous, you know. If you don’t mind me saying.”

“Of course I know.” She laughed, “Sorry, it’s just that I figured out why you are here in the hall if you didn’t notice and if I didn’t think highly of myself I wouldn’t still be in this position. It comes with the territory.” The elevator doors opened and she motioned for him to step out ahead of her which he did. She followed after and they both took the short walk back to her private office from that point.

“I could tell you figured it out, I think I’d have been slapped or something otherwise.” He said, “The truth is I was never interested in giving your company a sample as much as I was in just meeting you.” She arched a brow, very amused by that statement and she walked over to the minibar. From there she pulled out a bottle of water from the fridge and motioned towards him with it. He shook his head and she opened it then took a few sips. He sat down on the couch where he had been before and tugged on his suit once again to straighten it out a bit.

“Me? Are you sure you aren’t confusing me with the actual owner of the company? Leila Dawson?” She asked. Even though she was the head CEO and by all accounts in charge of everything in the long run, she did not truly own the company. There was a woman (who also happened to be her best friend) who was the actual heir to the business. However, she’d never wanted to go into running it. From a young age her parents had tried to groom her to take over because she was their only child but she’d refused. She had insisted on taking a career path where she could actually help people instead of wallow in corporate greed. It was why she’d become a psychiatrist and lived in the United States. The thing about her was that she was also very attractive and growing up she drew plenty of media attention for her looks. Since she was so wealthy and by title she owned one of the most profitable businesses on the planet, it wasn’t as if she didn’t get photographed every so often (if she liked it or not).

“I’m not going to sit here and claim Leila is hideous but she’s not my type.” He said with a shrug. She came over to sit down across from him again and removed the vaping pen from her blazer to take a drag. After she did, she held it out to him and he took it to do the same. “I just have a thing for women in power.”

“So is this the part where I should be offended because what you’re really saying is looks aren’t important to you?” She laughed. He held the pen back towards her and she took it, manipulating it through her fingers casually as she watched him squirm. She could tell he was aroused, even still, just not as much as he had been when he’d cornered her in the hallway initially.

“That isn’t what I’m trying to say, at all. You’re gorgeous, you’ve already heard me say it, I’m not just blowing smoke up your ass.” He insisted. She took another hit from the vape pen and set it down on the coffee table between them. He leaned forward and rested his elbows above his knees trying to make direct eye contact with her. She allowed it. “I’ve read about you, Rika, I’ve studied your success. What you’ve done since taking over DTI in the wake of the death of Matthew and Kate is mindblowing.”

“Well finally we have someone who recognizes the genius behind the labcoat.” She snorted. “I’m just kind of surprised that a man like you would-”

“Man like me?” He asked, snatching up the vape pen from the table and taking a pull from it. “Care to explain that?”

“As you can imagine I have met my share of celebrities. Not just through this whole Cafe Idol business but at benefits, premieres, auctions, you name it. A lot of them are more looks than brains. You’re in the business, you should know what I mean by that.” She pointed out and reached for her bottle of water. He chuckled and nodded his head as he took another hit from the vape pen before setting it back on the table where it was before. “Don’t get me wrong, I always knew you were…or rather are a very talented actor but that doesn’t always translate to being intelligent.”

“Tell me about it.” He sighed, “I’ve met more than my fair share of bimbo actresses and though they are fun for a night-”

“They aren’t relationship material.” She said, “Yeah, I get it. I’ve had my share of bimbos and meat heads just for the good time. Money can outright buy you any kind of person you want for a night or two. My sex life isn’t lacking.”

“Nor is mine, physically but the more I read about you and the more I think about it, the more I need to dig a little deeper.” He said. If she was being honest with herself, or even with him, she knew she was already not in the market for a long term relationship. At least, that was how she felt. Since DTI was her number one priority that meant so was her career. She felt that meant if she dated it would be entirely unfair to someone who didn’t understand what her life was or didn’t agree with her level of loyalty to her own hard work. She wasn’t even forty years old yet, and since she never had any desire to have children (or even get married) she believed she was only at the beginning of what was to be an amazing career. If it had been any other man asking for this, or woman, person…whatever…she’d have told them to fuck off. This wasn’t just any person though. It was Ryker Hellström. Few other celebrities ever struck her with as much awe as he did. Even if she was just a box for him to check off on his fetish list, how could she deny it?

“I can’t say that I’m not interested, Ryker. However, I’m a very busy woman and my career comes before anything else. I find that people in general-”

“I’m an actor.” He cut her off, “90% of my year is filming on location and much like you my career is my top priority. We could both make it work if we both wanted it bad enough.” He wasn’t wrong about that, and him being an actor with a schedule like his would only benefit her. He wouldn’t expect her to be with him every night in bed or to always be around for cute couples dinners, events, or even anniversaries. Both of them had their energy built 100% into their line of work which already made them more compatible than anyone else she’d ever tried to pair herself with.

“You drive a hard bargain and I hate to admit it but you’re right. We could make it work if we wanted. The question is…do we want to?” She asked and then took a few sips of her water.

“Normally I would say no, I’m surprised you are entertaining the notion and aren’t already taken, to be honest. Coming here was a random whim and taking it this far was just a shot in the dark. I’m not going to turn back now, though. That would be stupid.” He laughed. She nodded and picked up the vape pen from the table. If he was feeling what she was at that moment then they were both on the same level. She didn’t believe she’d ever met anyone like him willing to be as understanding.

“Miss Takashi, your 11:30 is here.” Keiko said over the intercom before she was able to respond with what she had to say. She took one last hit from the pen and held it out towards him. He looked confused.

“Take it, I’m sure I’ll have it back by morning.” She said. The grin that spread across his face was beautiful, especially with how it made his eyes light up. She walked over to her desk and grabbed her card and an actual pen. On the back she wrote her personal phone number then turned back towards where he was seated and he was already up and moving towards her. As he took the card from her hand he leaned down to kiss her firmly on the lips. Only for a split second before breaking the touch to step away towards the door.

“I’ll be calling you, you know.”

“Of that I am sure.” She said with a nod. With a smile on his face and a bit of bounce in his step he opened the door and walked out of there. As soon as it was shut behind him she breathed a loud sigh of relief and leaned into her desk. Her legs a bit wobbly and her heart pounding. Was this really happening? Could a man like Ryker Hellström really be that into her? She guessed she would know if and when he followed through with his promise to call her. She had no way to contact him and even if she did she wouldn’t. He could either make the first step or hold his peace. She had business to attend to and as much as she did like him, she wasn’t ever going to allow romance to be a distraction from her work.