The meeting ran for an hour long.

The main objective of this project was to remodel one of their older hotels located in Santa Monica, next to the beach. Although fancy looking, the hotel seemed to be a little outdated. Xavier had mentioned that it had been constructed during the time his father was CEO. He thought that if their older hotels looked more modern, it would bring in more customers.

Throughout the meeting, Xavier had barely said a word. His face held no expression, but Aurora felt his eyes occasionally glance at her.

"Any ideas on how to begin?" Asked Liam, looking around the conference table. One thing that Smith Architects encouraged was that everyone had equal opportunity to present their ideas. However, nobody spoke up, afraid to present in front of the rumored ruthless CEO. "Aurora?"

Everyone's heads turned to look at her at the mention of her name, causing her face to slightly redden. Even Xavier's eyes were on her.

Taking a deep breath, Aurora reminded herself that the people looking at her were just her colleagues.

"Well I was thinking since it is right next to the beach, we should lean towards a more open concept." Aurora said as she accidentally made eye contact with Xavier.

"Can you elaborate?" Asked Xavier, as he held her gaze.

Aurora nodded, pushing back a loose strand of hair behind her ear as she got up from her seat. She felt eyes, or more specifically a pair of grey eyes, follow her as she made her way to the front. On the board were photos and diagrams of the hotel. Plans, elevations, and sections were scattered across the surface.

Aurora began pointing to the photos, her nails slightly tapping the board. "I mean of course I'll have to go down there to see the hotel for myself, but as a suggestion to begin, I was thinking maybe we can tear these walls down at the entrance and have some sort of an open lobby. We can choose furniture that is contemporary to create a more modern and chic vibe. Maybe use colors that stand out more as well."

Aurora's head was slightly tilted to the side as she continued to survey the images. "Yeah, we will definitely have to go see the hotel for ourselves. We also should check out the surrounding buildings to see what the vibe is in order to attract more customers. "

When she finished, she turned back around to face the room. There was a proud glint in Liam's eyes and everyone seemed to be nodding in agreement to what Aurora had said.

"I like that idea," acknowledged Xavier.

"Me too," added Liam. "I think with that approach, people will want to stay at the hotel more. When will be a good time to go see the hotel?"

"I have meetings all day tomorrow. Friday will be the most convenient time for me," said Xavier just as Aurora sat back down on her seat.

"Alright Friday sounds good," confirmed Liam added before dismissing everyone. "I will be letting you all know the details of Friday tomorrow. I don't think all of you need to be there, since I know there are other projects you are working on."

Aurora stood up from her seat and began to follow the trail of people out the door before Liam stopped her.

"Grace you can head down first." Aurora handed the iPad to Grace. "Can you please place this on my table?"

"Of course, I'll see you in a bit."

Aurora turned to look at the three remaining men in the room. Joshua seemed to have been taking notes throughout the meeting.

"Is your schedule free for Friday?" Asked Liam.

"I think so, I'll have to double check with Grace again," Aurora felt Xavier's eyes on her as she replied to Liam. "But I'll definitely be there. I want to check out the site before we start."

"I'll ask Joyce to forward you all the floor plans and the other diagrams to your email." Added Liam before turning to look at Xavier. "I told you, she's the best we got."

"I wouldn't say best," muttered Aurora, a blush forming on her cheeks.

Liam rolled his eyes. "She's just being humble. You won't be disappointed with the outcome."

"From what I hear so far, I doubt I would be disappointed," Xavier nodded in agreement. Aurora was sure her face was blazing red now. "If this turns out well, we'll be working together quite often in the future."

"I've been telling you this man,"Liam grinned ear to ear, clapping Xavier on the back, causing Xavier to glare at his friend.

Liam suddenly turned back to look at Aurora as if he remembered something. A concerned look overtook his face, which soon turned into a scrutinized look. "Did you eat lunch?"

Aurora rolled her eyes, knowing where this conversation was going. "Not yet. But I had a donut when I got into the office."

"Aurora how many times have I told you that your health comes first-"

"I'll eat in a bit," Aurora immediately cut him off, not wanting to hear his nagging. Liam saw Aurora as a younger sister he never had, and ever since she had almost passed out from working 10 hours straight without a break in between, he had made sure to remind Aurora to eat. "I asked Grace to grab me something when she went on her lunch break earlier."

"Why didn't you just go with her?"

Aurora gave him an incredulous look. She knew he already knew the answer to his question. She had been too caught up with work that she forgot to eat again. Aurora was glad Grace knew her well enough by now to always grab to-go for her. And she was grateful Liam looked out for her despite her acting like she was annoyed at his nagging. You know, typical sibling-like reactions.

"Anyways, I should get back to my office," She turned to look at Xavier who had been quietly studying her. "If you have any specific requests, Mr. Knight, feel free to let me know."

"Of course, Ms. Young. It's a pleasure to be working with you."

Liam looked at his friend in surprise before eyeing the two of them. Pleasure? He wasn't sure if his ears had heard correctly for he couldn't believe the words that were coming out of his friend's mouth.

Aurora gave Xavier one last smile before making her way towards the door.

"And Aurora," Liam called out causing her to turn around in confusion. "Eat."

Aurora gave him a playful glare. "Okay dad."

She turned back around and left the conference room, giving them a little wave above her head.

When Aurora got back to her office, a McDonalds bag was waiting for her on her desk. Immediately a smile was plastered on her face as she turned back around and made her way towards Grace. She had taken out a twenty from her wallet and placed it on Grace's desk, causing Grace to immediate decline. After a stern look from Aurora, Grace accepted the money.

Sighing in happiness, Aurora sat at her desk and opened the bag. Sitting deliciously inside was a sausage, egg, and cheese McGriddle with a golden hash brown on the side. She thanked the lord McDonalds had decided to make breakfast 24/7 because she could honestly eat it at any hour of the day.

As she began to eat, a knock on the door made her stop in her tracks. Her eyes were round with surprise when Xavier stepped into her office. Grabbing a napkin, she quickly wiped her mouth.

"I hope I'm not interrupting you," Xavier had his hands in his pockets as he stood by the now closed door. "Your assistant said I could find you in here."

"No, of course not. Please take a seat," Aurora was still surprised at his sudden appearance. Her expression probably gave herself away as she had been told she was easy to read at times. "What are you...?"

He quietly made his way to her desk and sat down in front of her. They were now sitting face to face.

"I didn't know you worked for Liam," Xavier said, his voice growing soft in the end. "If I did, it wouldn't have taken this long to find you."

The last part was inaudible, causing Aurora to completely miss it. "I'm sorry but I couldn't hear what you said at the end."

"It's nothing," denied Xavier shaking his head slightly.

"Well, I have to say I was quite taken aback as well, Mr. Knight. I-" Xavier cut her off.

"Xavier."

"What?"

"Call me Xavier," Xavier had a look in his eyes. "Please."

"Alright, Xavier," Aurora carefully said his name, giving him a small smile. "I didn't know you were the CEO of Knight Industries. I actually didn't know anything at all. I really should start paying attention to these things. It's like I've been living under a rock."

Xavier let her continue on without interruption. He was glad she was becoming more comfortable with him, seeing how she was comfortable around Liam and people she knew. "Honestly, it was a breath of fresh air."

Aurora nodded as she took a sip from her cold brew from the morning that was now watery. Xavier eyed the food that was now scattered around in front of her.

Aurora followed his gaze. "Oh, I was having a late lunch."

"I know," Xavier nodded as he remembered the earlier exchange she had with Liam. "You should really eat your meals on time."

Aurora groaned, covering her face with her hands. "Not you too Xavier."

Xavier gave her a pointed look before letting out a small chuckle. "Do you get McDonalds often?"

"Occasionally since it's quick and easy to eat. I just really like their breakfast menu," Answered Aurora, hoping what she said made sense since she was technically eating "breakfast" at 3PM. "Usually Grace will grab me something when she goes out for her lunch break."

"Well, my company isn't too far from here. Maybe I can steal you away for an hour to get lunch together," suggested Xavier, making Aurora's eyes go wide. Was this man flirting with her? Did he just indirectly ask her out on a date? "That is, if you want to."

"Really? I mean you're probably really busy. I don't want you to go out of the way just to have lunch with me," Aurora stopped herself before she could continue rambling, changing her mind. "You know what? I'd like that."

Xavier looked at her with amusement dancing in his eyes. Before he could say anything else, his phone dinged to let him know he had a text. His face turned to that of annoyance as he let out a sigh, causing Aurora to giggle. Xavier lifted his head to eye her with a small smile playing on his lips.

"I should be getting back to the office." He said as he stood up from his seat. Aurora trailed after him as they made their way to the door. "I'll hold onto your word about lunch."

"Of course," Aurora held the door open as he stepped out and turned around to look at her. Grace was sitting at her desk, staring at the two with wide eyes. "I'll see you on Friday, Xavier."

Right before he walked away, Xavier leaned forward, his lips softly brushing against her ear. Aurora felt her cheeks redden as her eyes went wide as he whispered something only she was able to hear.

"I'll see you on Friday, sweetheart."

❤︎ ❤︎ ❤︎

Xavier freaking Knight. That's it.