His Naughty Lessons
Chapter 108: All Business and Professional

Chapter 108: All Business and Professional

** Eli **

The Hawaiian sun felt a bit unnecessarily intense as Eli stepped off the plane, squinting against the blinding light.

People were milling about all over the airport, a busy sight for a Sunday afternoon. Colorful beach shirts and summer dresses and sun hats filled his view, accompanied by excited conversations and cheerful laughters. Everyone seemed to be in the perfect vacation mood, high-spirited and bright-eyed ... Unlike him, who felt about as dark and gloomy as the black shirt he was wearing.

It was almost comically ironic to think that this was a trip he originally planned with special intentions for Harper. But now, after that shitshow of a baseball game party and a long night of hard musing, he only wished he could cancel the whole thing and save them both from an awkward week.

"The limo is waiting right outside." Justin gestured at the exit as the two of them walked down the VIP passageway. Eli was glad that his assistant seemed unusually good-natured today, offering no comment at all about the very sulky air hanging between them.

He made a halfhearted sound of acknowledgement, glancing in the direction of the exit. A black limo was parked in the special access area, a white plumeria logo printed on its hood. So quintessentially Hawaiian. Some distance behind it, in the general exit section, a crowd of regular passengers were shuffling their way out of the building and into their taxis. The line looked long this time of the day—

Eli halted dead in his tracks when a slender figure at the door caught his eye.

She had her back to him, but he didn’t need to see her face to recognize her. He was too familiar with the color of her hair, the curve of her back, the rhythm of her steps as she walked. Even the off-the-shoulder shirt she was wearing tickled his memory — wasn’t that the shirt she wore the first time he visited her apartment? Or was it the second time?

Damn. That was only a month ago, but the day already felt so, so far away.

"Boss?" Justin stopped a few steps away, following Eli’s gaze to see what it was that caused the distraction.

Eli remembered himself then. Right, what was he doing? Seeing Harper meant something completely different now. After everything that happened at the baseball stadium slapping him right in the face, the bubble of illusion he had created for himself finally burst. Blissful as the past month had been, he had to admit the truth — he was the last person she should get entangled with, and he should never have taken advantage of the situation to get them to where they were now. He had simply been too greedy and cowardly to face his mistake this entire time.

It had to stop, no matter how much he wished otherwise. That was the sole conclusion he could reach last night over a bottle of whiskey.

He forced himself to turn away and continue on the exit path. But before his eyes could manage to move somewhere without Harper in sight, he saw her pause and turn back as well, bending over to check on something behind her.

"Looks like her suitcase got caught in the doorway," Justin commented.

Eli shot his assistant a dark glare, not at all pleased with how quickly the latter had figured out the reason for his diverted attention. Justin only chuckled in response. "Oh, but she’s got help," he added.

Eli’s gaze flew back to the exit immediately. Harper’s luggage was indeed stuck, and behind her, a guy was helping her pick it up. He said something to her, and she looked ... surprised. Then she tucked a loose strand of her hair behind her ear, a telltale sign that she was a bit nervous.

Who was that guy? Eli frowned. And the frown deepened when the said guy wrapped his fingers around the luggage’s handle, taking it from Harper. From where Eli was standing, it looked almost like he was holding her hand for a moment.

A sudden surge of anger hissed inside him. Was this some kind of pervert trying to accost pretty girls at the airport? Instinctively, he wanted to storm the rest of his way and push the asshole aside. But then another figure showed up from behind the two, patting Harper merrily on the shoulder. The three of them laughed together and continued forward.

"I think I remember that blonde," Justin said, nodding at the new figure. "When we were at Miracles for the assessment meeting, she was the one who did the last presentation."

... Coworkers, then.

Eli said nothing as he watched the three get in the line for taxis. The guy still had Harper’s suitcase, and he kept chattering, occasionally eliciting a laugh or chuckle from the blonde woman. Harper, on the other hand, kept only a faint smile on her face. It was hard to tell if she was distracted and not paying enough attention, or if she was feeling uncomfortable and merely trying to be polite.

But why would she feel uncomfortable around a colleague, who should’ve already worked with her plenty on her latest project? Could it be that this guy was trying to ... hit on her or something?

Anger bubbled up in Eli’s chest once more, though this time, the cause wasn’t as noble as before. In all fairness, whether someone was hitting on Harper or how she chose to handle it was none of his business. This guy wasn’t doing anything inappropriate, and either way, Harper had the right to deal with him however she saw fit. But Eli didn’t like the scene in front of him one bit. He didn’t like how close the guy stood to Harper, how familiarly he was talking to her, and how her suitcase was still in his hands ...

Justin cleared his throat slightly, reminding Eli that they were still standing in the middle of the airport. "Have I mentioned that our limo is actually quite spacious?" The assistant remarked casually. "There are lots of extra seats. What a waste, especially considering that the taxi line is so long."

"..."

Of course, the thought of inviting Harper to share the ride had been on Eli’s mind since the moment he saw her. He was using all his self control to hold that thought back, knowing that if he wanted to make things right between them, he’d have to start keeping his distance and let her go. But now, seeing her odd situation and seemingly reluctant attitude ...

Maybe she needed some help? Maybe she was too polite to turn down the unwanted attention of a coworker, and she simply needed some diversion to get her out of that dilemma. He could be the person to provide that help, nothing more.

Besides, as a new corporate partner, it’d be a nice gesture for him to offer the ride. He could handle this, all business and professional.

Having thus persuaded himself, Eli took a wide stride toward the exit. "Why don’t we make good use of the extra space then?" he said to Justin. "Might as well start the teambuilding early and make some friends."