The approaching footsteps got louder, Ashton's exhale brushed against her lips.
Emmaline restrained the urge to quiver like some innocent maiden.
Her heart was pounding just having him this close to her.
Traitorous body! She scolded herself.
Why are you getting flustered all over again over some guy who's not even interested in women?
Instead, she tried to listen as the footsteps got loud enough that they might just be outside. Then it stopped.
Emmaline watched as Ashton tilted his head, angling so that anyone who looked in would see a passionate kiss even though their lips hadn't touched.
His bone structure was even more incredible up close and his scent, like pine trees, was impossible to ignore.
Emmaline's pulse was beating in her ears, she hadn't been this close to a guy in more than a year. The last time someone had held her this close…
She shook memories of Malcolm off, as if she could completely wipe him out of her life like that.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable," Ashton withdrew as the footsteps headed away, getting softer as they went, "I wanted to make sure anyone who saw us got the right idea, that's all."
He must have thought she was trying to make him move away when she was actually trying to forget Malcolm.
"It's fine," Emmaline focused on keeping her voice low, "Do you think they bought it?"
"Not completely," Ashton's face was pensive, but he offered her a small quirk of his lips, "But you did amazingly. How did you even know Great Grandmother has a sweet tooth?"
Emmaline shook her head, "I didn't, I just wanted to bring something sincere and I only know how to bake a few things."
He regarded her with respect and amusement, "You only know how to bake muffins that can win the great Wright matriarch's heart and act like an award winner, I see you're very humble."
Emmaline felt herself flush with the praise.
"Won't…" Now that Emmaline knew the Wrights, they were no longer the imaginary rich family in her head. They were good people as far as she could tell and now, she didn't want them to get into trouble.
"Won't the company suffer losses if the heir comes out as gay?" She asked, hoping she wasn't throwing her two million dollars away by asking that question.
But she knew how society viewed the LGBT community.
She had seen how they had been shunned and denied fair treatment.
Wright Enterprises was a huge corporation… Even with his family's backing, would Ashton take such a huge risk?
Ashton looked mildly surprised that she had asked the question at all.
"Do you think so?" He asked but his voice was careful, as if he was curious about what she would answer more than the actual question.
Emmaline shrugged, trying to remember her two million dollars at stake.
"I just… Wondered if stocks might fall if people weren't as open-minded as your family," She hedged.
Ashton nodded slowly and then patted her head like she was a kid! Or a puppy!
Emmaline wondered if she should be offended or not.
"Don't worry about that," He told her firmly, "We have good partners and anyone who doesn't take the news well shouldn't be working with or for us anyway."
Emmaline had to admit that she was not all expecting his steady response.
Looking at him in the dim lighting of the parlor, he had a serious look in his green eyes.
Despite his casual dressing of a fitted sweater and pants, he looked more responsible and like the Wright heir than she had ever seen him.
She was about to nod or respond when her phone buzzed.
At first, she wanted to ignore it or turn it off. She was technically working and it would be unprofessional to take a personal call, right?
But the phone kept buzzing, indicating that it wasn't a text but a call.
Ashton motioned for her to take it, obviously very used to having conversations interrupted by calls, and with that, she did.
"Em!" Camilla's panicked voice blasted out over the phone speakers.
Emmaline thanked every god she could think of that Camilla hadn't called her by her full name.
Quickly, she moved to the corner of the room, just a little further away from Ashton for privacy.
However, the moment she had seen Camilla's name on the phone screen, Emmaline had begun to worry.
Camilla knew where she was and what she was doing.
She would have only called if it was a real emergency.
Emmaline's thoughts immediately went to her mother and icy fear gripped her, causing her to grip her phone tightly.
"What's up?" She tried her best to sound casual.
"The auditions for producer Penhas' new show!" Camilla sounded out of breath, as if she was running. But that was impossible because like Emmaline, Camilla never ran unless she had to.
Knowing it wasn't about her mother, Emmaline relaxed slightly.
"You mean, 'Touch of Love'?" Emmaline asked, giving the title of the show that she had been eyeing a role in.
"That one!" Camilla tried to catch her breath, "You wanted to audition for the second lead, right?"
Emmaline brightened a little at the mention of it, "Yes! Aren't the auditions next week?"
Emmaline had cleared her schedule for next Tuesday afternoon when the auditions were to be held.
"Yes!' Camilla gasped, "But not anymore!"
Emmaline frowned, not understanding.
"Someone must have known you were planning to audition because it's been shifted!"
Emmaline stopped breathing.
Not again. Not another doomed audition.
"To when?" She asked, already dreading the answer.
"To right now!" Camilla cried.
Emmaline's heart sank.
"What?" She couldn't keep the shock and dismay from her tone. Any other time and she would have cleared her schedule to make it… But there was no way she could leave and leave her current job unfinished. It was too unprofessional.
"But it's eight in the evening," Emmaline protested weakly, "How can any audition run now?"
"Seems like when you have money, it doesn't matter what time you want the audition, any time is a good time," Camilla scoffed bitterly.
Emmaline's whole body felt weak.
It was happening.
The auditions she had looked forward to were happening right now and there was nothing she could do about it.