Total pages in book: 111
Estimated words: 105311 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 527(@200wpm)___ 421(@250wpm)___ 351(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 105311 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 527(@200wpm)___ 421(@250wpm)___ 351(@300wpm)
“Might?”
“Will be.”
I offer her two hands palms up. When she slips her hands in mine, I caress the feel of them and help her to her feet. Standing toe-to-toe, she doesn’t pull away as the heat builds between us. The tip of her tongue dips out to lick the center of her top lip, and I retreat, turning my back to her as I return to my desk.
She doesn’t play fair for someone who’s only supposed to be my friend. “Then I won’t wear it to the office anymore.”
“Let’s not get carried away.”
The blush I love colors her cheeks when she giggles—wait! Love? What the fuck? I turn to my monitor. “I, uh, yeah . . .” I run my hand through my hair, forgetting I had pomade in it.
“You? You need to get back to work?”
Refusing to make eye contact with her or that skirt or those sexy fucking shoes, I force my eyes to stay on the screen. Despite my eyeballs burning, I add, “Yes, I have a lot of work to do.”
My willpower is shit, and as soon as her back is to me, I do what I’d fire another employee for doing—I stare at her ass.
She looks back suddenly. I’m not sure that she actually busts me, but she smirks, which makes me think she did. I remind myself again that we’re nothing more than friends, despite my pants currently being too tight for comfort. She says, “Have a good day, boss.”
“Yeah, have a great fucking day,” I mumble to myself.
“What was that?”
I look up again, this time with a smile on my face. “Have a great day.”
“I plan to.” The remark isn’t snotty or sarcastic. It’s as if once she sets her mind to it, nothing can stand in her way.
As soon as the door closes, a knock disturbs the peace of my office. Nick’s waltzing in before I have time to rearrange my package. Fuck. “What?”
He pushes the door closed as he comes charging toward me. “You’re bangin’ the new girl?”
I jump and stalk to the door. “Keep your voice down, Nick.” I double-check the door to make sure it’s closed. It is, thank fuck.
When I turn back, he’s leaning against the windowsill with his arms crossed and a smug smirk on his face. “I have to admit, big brother, I didn’t think you had it in you for an ethics code violation.” His arms go out. “But look at you being a rebel.”
“No codes, ethics or otherwise, have been violated for your information.” I roll my eyes and return to my desk, wondering if I’m going to get any work done at this rate. “And I’m not bangin’ the new girl. This is how rumors get started.” Shaking my hand at him, I add, “While we’re on the topic, don’t call her the new girl.”
“She is the new girl. The next hire will be the new guy or girl, and the cycle continues. Why are you so bothered by it?”
“Because she has a name. You should use it out of respect.” I sit down in my chair and am about to reacquaint myself with how the market’s doing this morning, but his silence demands attention. He’s like the kid who you leave alone for too long—if you hear him playing, all is safe. It’s when he’s silent that trouble’s brewing. “What?”
“You’re very protective over someone you claim to barely know.”
“Because I’m not fucking her doesn’t mean I don’t know her.”
“How well?”
“Don’t you have work to do, or do we need to find more for you?”
He glances at his watch before pushing off the glass and heading back to the door. “I have plenty, but I heard what happened. I wanted your take on it.”
“And what is ‘it’ exactly?”
“Justin being called into HR.” I don’t know what that fucker did, but this is New York. I can easily find an equally, if not better qualified accountant in this city.
“I know nothing about that.”
“Rumor has it he crossed a line with Juni,” he says with emphasis on her name.
My hackles rise, but I try to remain calm. “Oh yeah? What’d you hear?”
Stopping before he opens the door, he says, “Don’t worry about it. Joseph will handle Justin. Oh, and happy Monday.”
“I’m noting sarcasm.”
“Note it in my file, so it’s official.” He walks out laughing. For a lawyer, he sure laughs a lot. It’s a nice change from when he used to mope around. I’m thinking it’s not the work that makes him happy, but his wife.
I’ve never been in the market, but he makes it sound more appealing.
As I watch the TV, the numbers scroll by, but my mind is still elsewhere. Like inside Laurie’s office. I wonder what was said or what he did this time.
I need to let HR do their job and not get involved. That asshole is just so fucking infuriating. My curiosity gets the better of me, and I stand. But then I sit. I should stay. They can handle it.