“But, seriously, I was thinking of more cost-effective ways for bringing in materials when I was still at Oscars. I just brought that mindset here with me, and after looking at the supplier information over this past week, it just stood out to me, knowing about Ananda.”
“It’s brilliant.”
“If it works.”
“You losing confidence in your idea already?” I tip my head to the side, my lips lifting at the corners.
“No, just playing it safe until I have the deal in the bag. I don’t want to get excited about it in case it doesn’t happen.”
“I get that.” I nod, handing her the handkerchief back.
She tucks it into her pocket. “I’m guessing we need to present this idea to your mom and dad.”
“Yeah, we should run it past them. They’re technically still here in a chief officer capacity until the end of this week. And it is their company. I’ll call them and set something up.”
“Great.” She picks up her iPad, pushes her chair back, and stands. “Well, just let me know when and where, and I’ll be there.”
I’m dismayed to see that she’s leaving already. I feel like I need to keep her here even if just for a little longer.
Funny how I was dodging to see her, and now that I have her here, I don’t want her to go.
“So, you’re heading to another meeting now?” I stand, too, and walk over to my desk.
“Yep. Just with accounting.”
“Tim or Justin?”
“Tim.”
“You’ll probably need another coffee then to keep you awake. The guy is boring as hell.”
She giggles, and I fucking love the sound.
“Are you supposed to talk about your employees like that?”
“No. But the guy put me to sleep in a meeting once, so it’s only fair to give you warning.”
She laughs again. “Thanks for the heads-up. I’ll make sure to have an industrial-strength coffee before I go in.”
She’s heading for the door. And I’m still not ready to let her go.
“So, any plans tonight?”
“Any plans tonight?”
Jesus. Could I be any more transparent?
She pauses and regards me with a tilt of her head. “Yep. I have a date with Jamie Fraser.”
Disappointment lands in my chest like rocks.
“Jamie…is he your boyfriend?”
She barks out a laugh. “I wish.” At my puzzled expression, she says, “He’s a character in a show—Outlander. I’m guessing you’ve never heard of it.”
“Nope. What’s it about?”
“Kind of hard to explain, but it’s about this woman who goes back in time to the 1700s in Scotland. And, once there, she meets Jamie Fraser. The hot Scottish warrior. It’s based on a series of books.”
“Sounds shite.”
She laughs again.
“Does your boyfriend like it?”
That stops her laughter. And I want to punch myself in the face.
“Does your boyfriend like it?”
Fucking hell, Cross. Are you back in grade school?
She’s appraising me with her eyes again. A small smile touches her lips. “I don’t have a boyfriend.” She gently shakes her head.
Pressure lifts off my chest.
“Oh. Cool. Well, have fun tonight with Jamie Fraser.” I move around my desk and sit down.
She smiles, clutching the iPad to her chest. “I will. You, too. Have a good night, that is.”
She turns, and I watch her leave, the door closing behind her.
Could I have been any more obvious just then? Jesus. I’m so off my game, it’s ridiculous.
But I can’t be on my game. Not with her. She’s off-limits, no matter how much I don’t want her to be.
Morgan and I are having dinner with my mom and dad. When I called Mom to tell her that Morgan came up with a great idea for the business, she suggested a dinner meeting. I checked with Morgan to see if she was free, and she was, so we’re meeting at my parents’ favorite restaurant—Alinea.
I take a cab from my place. When I arrive, I’m the first one there. The hostess seats me, and I give the drink order—beer for me and a bottle of red for the table—to our waitress, who I’m ninety percent sure I’ve hooked up with before. When you sleep with as many women as I do, it’s hard to keep track. But she looks familiar, and the way she keeps looking at me tells me that we’ve quite likely bumped uglies in the past.
“Hey.” Morgan slips into the seat beside me, putting her clutch on the table.
I turn my eyes to look at her, and—
Holy fuck.
She’s wearing a black lace dress. Her lips are red, hair down and poker straight, falling past her shoulders.
She looks fucking gorgeous.
It’s going to be hard not to get hard tonight.
“Hey. You look nice.” Hot. Fuckable.
“Oh. Thanks. You, too.”
I’m wearing a dark red shirt, which is oddly the same color as her lips, and black pants.
“I was worried I was going to be the last one here. Traffic was a nightmare.”
“You drove?”
“Took a cab.” She smiles.
“What do you want to drink? I ordered a bottle of red for the table, but I wasn’t sure what you’d want.”
“I’m not a red-wine drinker. Gives me the worst hangovers.”
I wave our waitress over. She approaches the table wearing a smile that dips when she sees Morgan sitting beside me, but Morgan doesn’t seem to notice.
“What can I get you?” she asks Morgan.
“I’ll have a vodka, soda, and lime, please.”
Our waitress swivels on her heel and disappears off. But it’s not her I’m looking at or thinking about. It’s the woman sitting next to me.
The woman I work with.
The woman I want to fuck more than I’ve ever wanted to fuck anyone before.
“Did you mention anything about my idea to your parents?”
I shake my head. “I thought you’d want to tell them.”
She smiles at me, her eyes warming, and I get the feeling again, like I’ve won something really important.
Our waitress appears with my beer, the red wine, and Morgan’s drink.
“Thanks,” Morgan says as the drink is put in front of her.
Her attention is back on me, but my eyes never left her.
We’re staring at one another, and I feel like I should say something.
“Your lips match my shirt.”
Really, Cross? That’s the best you could come up with?
For fuck’s sake.
She laughs softly. “So they do. At least, if I get lipstick on you, it won’t show.” Then, she realizes what she said. “Not that I plan on getting my lipstick on you. I just meant…” Her face is bright red now, and I’m as amused as I am turned on. “Oh Christ. You know what I meant.” She picks up her drink and takes a big gulp.
I chuckle.
Actually, I don’t know what she meant, but I’m not going to push her on it.
Even though I am enjoying seeing her squirm.
She puts her drink down but doesn’t look at me.
I move a little closer, and in a lowered voice, I say, “If you did get lipstick on me, I wouldn’t mind.”
Her eyes whip to mine, but she doesn’t look offended. She looks…interested, and there’s a definite hint of desire in there, too. And, right now, it’s hard to remember why I can’t kiss the hell out of her.
Her breathing has gone shallow, like my own.
It feels like all the oxygen has been sucked out of this place along with everything else.
Nothing exists to me right now, except for her.
Her tongue darts out to wet her lips. My eyes are pulled to it.
I want to kiss her.
And I know she definitely wants me to.
I lift my eyes back to hers. “Before, when I said you looked nice, what I was actually thinking is that you looked gorgeous.”
Her breath catches.
Fuck it. I’m going to do it. I’m going to kiss her.
“Darling!” The sound of my mother’s voice pierces right through the moment.