Faceless Desire

Chapter 7- Is It An Olive Branch or A War Tactic?

Sakura tries to keep a straight face while sitting beside Ino Yamanaka. Five minutes after two o'clock, the V.P. and Sai are late. Her best friend whispers while anxiously fixing her hair for the millionth time, "Are you sure the meeting's at two?"

"I'm sure! They'll probably be here any minute." They better be, or that pale-skinned liaison is going to get a piece of her mind. He's the one who assured the meeting would be possible at this time, after all.

Today hasn't gone as planned so far. First, the Haruno woman missed the elevator by mere seconds and ended up having to climb the stairs to the eleventh floor because if she waited for the lift to come back down, she'd definitely have been late. She reached Mr. Uchiha's office at precisely six o'clock, gasping for breath with her leg muscles burning. Her feet have been killing her since, of course.

Speaking of the Director, that asshole started an argument today because he didn't believe her when she said she had a meeting with his elder brother. Karin had to vouch for her, saying she overheard part of the conversation yesterday. Really, Sakura'd simply told her about it in the car on the way home.

Since yesterday, it's like the Uchiha man is hyper-aware of Sakura's every move. She can feel his eyes on her when they're in the same room, and it makes the tiny hairs on her arms stick up. What's his problem? Yesterday, he seemed annoyed but fine. She thought he'd finally overcome whatever issues he had with her, but apparently not. She's even willing to forgive him for not saying he was sorry for what happened with the company credit card.

The door to the room suddenly opens, startling both women into standing up and turning around. The Vice President enters, Sai close behind, and extends a hand toward Ino, "Please accept my apology for our tardiness. There was an urgent matter to attend to."

Sakura watches her best friend peripherally, inwardly impressed by the confident, calm aura she suddenly dons. Ino accepts the handshake, "I understand. It's no trouble."

"My name is Itachi Uchiha. I'm the Vice President here. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Blue eyes sparkle excitedly, "Ino Yamanaka."

Oh, God. She's staring! Get it together, Ino!

Sakura almost sighs as the blond snaps out of her stupor and turns to the other man, letting go of Itachi's hand so she can shake hands with Sai, "And you are?" That's surprising. Ino seems way more interested in Sai than she is in the V.P. In Sakura's eyes, the longer-haired man is noticeably more attractive. Evidently, her friend disagrees.

The liaison's grin is tense, as it always is around strangers, but he shakes the woman's hand, "Sai."

Sakura's phone vibrates in her pocket.

"Please, let's be seated," Itachi says. Once all four are sitting, Ino and Sakura across from the men, the V.P. wastes no time getting to business, "Our company has two locations under construction that will have their grand openings on December first of this year. One of these locations will focus solely on women's beauty. It will have a hair and nail salon, a spa, cosmetics stores, and more."

Ino nods, "I think it's a great idea. That side of Konoha doesn't have anything like that, so there won't be much competition."

Sakura's phone vibrates again.

"That's a relief to hear because we're interested in running an ad campaign with you as its star. We're thinking a few television and radio commercials, social media advertisements, and having you host the grand opening ceremony will be the minimum of what's expected. You'll be paid generously, of course."

Don't just jump on board, Ino. Take it slow. If you look too eager, they might try to rip you off. Sakura tries to send encouragement telepathically to her friend.