2011
Edward Harvey POV
"Here she is now." Alice, the woman at the front desk, announced the presence of the Legal Executive I was to meet with.
Bennett, I had been told was her name. The name was familiar yet I couldn't place why it was so familiar. As I turned to greet her the answer was staring straight at me. Never had I ever expected that the woman that stood before me would be her. The woman from the blog. Whitney. I had travelled halfway around the world and here she is. She had come to life from inside my computer screen and here she was in front of me. The fact I had finally found her made me smile like the Cheshire cat.
"Whitney Bennett, lovely to meet you." I shook the hand she held out to me but my heart sank when she tensed at the exchange. I needed to remind myself that although I know who she is, she has no clue who I really am. My brain seemed to stop working as I stared into her hazel eyes and searched for the Whitney that I knew.
"It's you." the words slipped from my mouth before I could reel them back in.
"Excuse me?" thank goodness she didn't seem to have heard me.
"Sorry, it's you I'm to meet with I believe." I corrected myself hoping she didn't think I was mental.
"Oh, yes. Please follow me, I will take you to Mr Hardman. Mr...?" her face questioned as she asked for my name. She really had no clue who I am.
"My apologies. Edward, Edward Harvey."
"Pardon my surprise, I was expecting your father. However, it's lovely to have you here in his place." I needed to remember to thank my father for insisting I handle this deal on my own.
"My father is taking a step back from international dealings, he is planning to retire in a few years. I will be handling business outside of the UK from now on."
I couldn't take my eyes off her, thankfully she was walking ahead of me while I followed her down a short hallway leading onto a large conference room. Whitney held the door for me to go before her. She blushed as I moved behind her to hold the door and let her go ahead of me, "Ladies first, after you Ms Bennett."
Suddenly this meeting seemed of less importance. My father had stressed the importance of our business in the Asia Pacific region and the necessity for knowledgeable legal representation. Our success in the area was vital for the continued growth of the company. I too understood the importance and was more than happy to spend time in this part of the world, now more than ever. She was here and I didn't want to be anywhere else.
I watched her closely as she sat behind a laptop. A glass of ice water to her left and a lined notepad and pen to the right. The sun from the window behind her momentarily peeked through the clouds to shine on her back and made her look angelic and peaceful. Alex Hardman began to speak, he talked at length about the history of the firm, his background and the future of the firm. He talked openly about his hopes of securing our partnership to make a better name for the firm. Hardman wanted to be transparent and to ensure that they had nothing to hide. If only I could say the same for myself.
Whitney watched me intently as Alex spoke, not yet typing as I was sure she knew what he was saying and had committed it to memory from previous deals. As if sensing Alex was drawing his pitch to an end, Whitney raised her hands to her hair and pulled the strands into a ponytail and secured them with an elastic. I pictured her with a camera hung around her neck and doing the same action before pulling the camera up to start her creative roll.
"I'd like to understand your vision for the Asia Pacific market and want to hear in your words a background of your company and where it all started," Alex Hardman probed me and I was more than happy to oblige.
My father is my greatest hero. He had worked so hard to build the company and himself up from such small beginnings. He was everything I strived to be. As a young boy, I would watch my father work tirelessly at what he loved. He believed in equality, hard work and reward. In the office, he was a force to be reckoned with. He knew what he wanted and he would walk on fire to achieve everything he put his mind to. At home, he was the epitome of love and warmth. I was constantly in awe of him. I am incredibly proud of him and my entire family. I could hardly contain my joy and happiness when I spoke of my family and our company.
There was something about the way that Whitney would type away on her laptop as I spoke, her eyes never leaving my face, that made me feel so exposed. I could feel her searching for information while she scanned my face. A smile crept across it as I boasted about the Harveys as if she were proud of me too.
I couldn't deny that Whitney made me nervous. I worried she knew exactly who I was. She knew so well the parts of me that I kept hidden from outsiders. I had yet to reveal to her my true identity. I feared how she would view me if she knew my name. A name that carried expectation and a reputation that preceded me. I wanted her to know me for who I am not just who my name dictates me to be.
As the meeting went on, the more on edge I became. I worked hard to contain my nerves and to hide any hint of how uncomfortable I was feeling. Out of habit, I fiddled with my lip when Hardman spoke or I could feel Whitney's eyes burning holes in the side of my face. Relief washed over me as Hardman was finally finished.
"Well, if you have nothing further to add or any questions then we're done with the formalities. Edward, join me for some refreshments while Whitney tidies up the paperwork."
Whitney amazed me. I had sat behind my computer screen and admired her ability to capture the beauty that many people never appreciated. From behind a camera lens, Whitney could see truth and vulnerability in an instant. Even in nature. I always felt she would be beautiful in person. She had shown her vulnerability to me, well to me as Muse-Less, and shared feelings with me that she hadn't shared with anyone else. The way she viewed the world and rationalised things on her blog had shown me her inner beauty. When she posted images of her in a hammock, I saw her outer beauty too and I was captivated.
Hardman and I chatted about things he seemed to believe I was interested in, things the many magazines and articles had mentioned. Travel, wine, food and cars. All things that my mother, father and I shared an interest in. What I really wanted, was to spend time with Whitney, talking about art and the meaning of life. I wanted to change the subject and move on from all the superficial and fake-ness of the conversation. I had noticed earlier three photos on the walls of the conference room. Enlarged and stretched on a canvas. There was no denying the artist. I knew the style and theme to the pictures. I hadn't seen them on full display like this, ever. They were stunning.
"These photographs are wonderful, who is the artist?" I tried to sound oblivious to the fact I knew very well who the artist was.
"Do you enjoy a bit of art and culture, Mr Harvey? If we're finished here then please, let me show you some of the other pieces around our offices, you might find something you simply can't pass up." Hardman held out his hand for me to shake and as I gripped it firmly the door opened slowly.
She seemed flustered as her head peeked around the door but as soon as she locked eyes on our handshake her expression was replaced with one of relief and a smile, that half smile, fake and pretend, appeared.
"Ah Whitney, there you are. Mr Harvey was just admiring the art and asking who the artist is. These are all courtesy of our own Whitney Bennett." he animatedly gestured to the photos around the room.
"They're delightful. You are very talented Ms Bennett."
"Please call me Whitney. Thank you, it's nice to have them displayed here for people to enjoy them rather than hiding away on my hard drive."
I could have sworn I saw her blush for the faintest moment.
With every word that left her lips, I was captivated. I had waited so long to hear her voice and be in her presence and finally, here I am.
So much of me wanted to forget why I was initially here and whisk her away. Take her somewhere we could be alone, just us. Edward and Whitney. But I had business to attend to. The sooner I could wrap things up with Hardman, the sooner I could have her to myself.
"Mr Hardman, I'd like to take you to dinner to celebrate our new partnership if you are free." It was normal practice to wine and dine after deals like this, if I didn't offer, it would be extremely rude.
"My apologies Edward, unfortunately, I'm travelling away with my family tonight so I won't be able to join you. But-," Hardman looked over at Whitney with a cheeky grin, "Whitney, isn't Finn away this weekend? If you have no plans then maybe you could accompany Edward for dinner. You're much better company than I am anyway."
This couldn't have worked more in my favour. I stood with my hands behind my back and played the cards I had been dealt. If this was how I was to get Whitney alone then I was not going to let this opportunity slip away.
"That sounds like a wonderful idea. Ms Bennett, what do you say? Will you have dinner with me?"
"Yes, of course, it would be my pleasure. I have a few things to finish here-" she was cut off by Hardman who was practically shoving her out the door.
"Nonsense! It can wait till Monday. Go and show Mr Harvey around the city. Enjoy yourself." Hardman disappeared without another word.
"Shall we?" At last, I could finally spend some time with her.
"I need to get a few things from my office first, you can wait here, I'll only be a few minutes."
What? If this was some type of game, then Whitney was winning. I wasn't enjoying it either.
"I'll follow you if you don't mind. I'm worried what Alice might do if we're left alone," thinking on my feet I gave Alice a sly wink.
"Come on then." Whitney giggled as she led me down a hallway.Edward Harvey POV