Heat rushed to Eleanor's face.
"Dylan, take Faith and Nadia out for market research."
"...oh...sure..."
Dylan caught the subtext a beat late, but got moving, herding Faith and Nadia out of the office fast.
With the room empty, Eleanor no longer had to worry about anyone catching her blush or putting the pieces together on her and Julian.
"Julian, why are you actually here?"
"I already told you. Withdraw from the competition."
No room for negotiation in his tone. A command, not a request.
Eleanor nearly laughed.
She'd finally landed a real opportunity, and he expected her to just walk away from it?
Julian caught the stubborn glint in her dark eyes, unmistakable.
"Withdrawing saves you the embarrassment. You can't win this."
She remembered the last time he'd said almost exactly t
