False start! Come back! The race is off!
But my pulse leads the charge and is already halfway around the track at a record-breaking pace. I must have stiffened under his touch, because Gavin’s dark eyebrows knit together, and he drops his hand. He takes half a step back and I’m thankful but also want to follow him in my rolling office chair.
“Sorry. Are you okay?”
Define okay. Because if the fact that my body has decided to abandon all good reason and rational thought is okay, then yes. I’m great.
“I’m fine. Sorry. I guess I’m just a little distracted.”
By your strong, clean-shaven jaw and your thick dark hair that I want to run my fingers through. And by the laugh lines by your eyes that tell me you may have ten or more years on me, but you’ve spent them smiling.
“I’ll let you get back to work. But I do have a project that I think would be perfect for you.”
Perfect for me like you’re perfect for me?
Oh, my good gracious, I am going to murder my subconscious. I make a mental note to search for online courses that teach you to keep your thought life in check. I need to stick mine in prison. Better yet, solitary confinement.
Gavin looks at his watch, and I look at the little bit of muscular forearm revealed when he pushes aside his sleeve.
“How about you stop by after lunch? Say one o’clock?”
I nod, not trusting my words. In the true crime podcasts Dad got me hooked on, they talk about something called leakage, where a guilty party unwittingly speaks their guilt. If I say too much now, I’m going to be leaking all over the place.
“I’ve got a better idea. I’ll order us lunch. We can talk over a meal. How does that sound?”
Like a date. It sounds like a date.
Except for the whole work part.
“Sure.”
On the outside, I’m composed. Someone observing might even say I look bored. Inside, there’s a whole marching band now in the center of the track.
I should probably go home sick. Or develop an incurable disease. Maybe it’s time to quit and move to another firm. I can update my resume before lunch. It’s not like working in market research was my end goal. I’m barely more than an executive assistant to Gavin. He has one of those, and then he has me. Nancy takes care of his schedule, and I work alongside Gavin with projects and attend meetings, which allows me to learn and do more than any assistant would.
I wanted to work in marketing or advertising firm, but this is the job I found after school. The pay is good, and I’ve gotten a ton of hands-on experience. But also … Gavin. I stay for Gavin, something I suspect everyone in my life knows, but I’ll never admit.
“It’s a date,” Gavin says, and it’s like all the hormones sprinting through my body swoon at one time. I swear my heart makes a tiny skip, and the breath leaves my lungs. “I mean, a work date,” he says quickly. “A working lunch. You know what I mean.” Laughing, he runs a hand through his hair.
I want that to be my hand, touching the soft locks, feeling his scalp beneath my fingertips.
I want him.
“I got it.”
My tone is too short, the words clipped. If I freeze Gavin out, he can’t see my feelings. I’m convinced this is why he chose me to work alongside him instead of the other women I work with. They’re obvious in their crushes, irritatingly so. Syrupy voices. Flirtation. Innuendo. Batted eyelashes, buttons undone on blouses. I can’t count the number of times I’ve had to deal with homicidal thoughts towards my coworkers.
I’m the only one who seems unaffected by Gavin’s good looks and the confidence that oozes from him like some kind of pheromone. Seems being the operative word. It’s not simply his looks, though that would be enough. For the past few years, Gavin has topped lists as one of Austin’s most eligible bachelors and one of the wealthiest men under fifty in the state of Texas.
Not that I care about those accolades. I mean, they aren’t anything to sneeze at. But my feelings for my boss didn’t develop based on his wealth (though it’s not exactly a turn-off), his success (though I respect it), or his good looks (which I definitely admire).
My crush on Gavin built up slowly over time in the last two years I’ve worked here. The more time I spend with him, the more my feelings took root, like one of those invasive, creeping vines that are so hard to get rid of. Dad has one that keeps recurring, growing right up the side of our house and loosening the mortar of the bricks.
Gavin has been loosening my tight control bit by bit by bit, even though I’m sure he has had no intention of doing so. It’s just who he is.
He’s a good man. Funny. Thoughtful. Kind. But not in a sappy way. He still totally rocks that Alpha thing when it comes to closing deals. Seeing his eyes flash and his jaw harden as he takes charge has made me want to fan myself with a file folder in a meeting.
“Do you want me to order for you, or would you like to pick?” he asks.
“Surprise me,” I tell him, though I’m not sure why. I loathe surprises. Give me the steady, the expected, the sure thing every day of the week.
Gavin rubs a hand over his chin in mock thoughtfulness. “Hm. What would Zoey want?”
You. I want you.
I feel like he is making this whole crush thing worse with every word he speaks. I really am serious about updating my resume. Maybe Zane knows some places that are hiring. I know he’s been looking for more of a nine-to-five since he fell for Abby and decided to leave not only his startup, Eck0, but the whole startup life.
“Good luck,” I tell Gavin. Immediately I want to slap a hand over my mouth. I know my cheeks turn pink. For a tiny second, I didn’t keep things under control and look what slipped out: flirtation.
Gavin looks surprised by my comment, then gives me a wide grin that feels a delicious sort of torture. “Oh, I think I can figure you out, Zoey. And I’m sure I will make you happy.”
Seriously! Could the man say any more things that I can take another way? This lunch meeting is going to be sweet, sweet torture.
I turn away, not bothering to say goodbye as Gavin leaves my small office. If he thinks I’m rude, that’s fine. Better he think I hate him than know the truth: I’ve fallen head over heels for my boss.
Before you get to Zoey’s story, want to read how Zane proposes to Abby? Snag that bonus scene here: https://emmastclair.com/zabbybonus
Love Clichés
Falling for Your Best Friend’s Twin
Falling for Your Boss
Not So Bad Boy Sweet Romance Series
Stealing the Bad Boy
Forgiving the Football Player
Winning the Cowboy
Taming the Cowboy’s Twin
Managing the Rock Star
The Billionaire Surprise Series
The Billionaire Love Match
The Billionaire Benefactor
The Billionaire Land Baron
The Billionaire’s Masquerade Ball
The Billionaire’s Secret Heir
Sandover Island Sweet Romance Series
Sandover Beach Memories
Sandover Beach Week
Sandover Beach Memories
Sandover Beach Christmas
Sandover Beach Series
Secrets Whispered from the Sea
The Lost Light of Summer
A NOTE FROM EMMA
You made it to the author note! Give yourself a nice high five.
I have been planning this book and this series for over a year, waiting until I finished (or got close to finishing) other series that needed to come first.
It has been SO good to finally start writing! The rest of the books will follow Zoey, Delilah, Harper, and Sam as they deal with more love tropes. I can’t wait!
Comedy is a scary thing to write.
I feel like you really have to put yourself OUT THERE in a way that’s even more vulnerable than just telling stories to begin with. I know not everyone finds the same things funny. I also know every book isn’t for
every reader.
My other books are a little sweeter in tone, but most have humorous elements, even my most serious books. This won’t be for everyone, but I hope that you have loved it. As I’m writing in 2020, I think we could all use a little comic relief.
I’d love for you to join my Facebook Reader group:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/emmastclair/
If you haven’t left a review on this book (or my others), that would mean the world to me! Thank you so much for being a reader!!
-e
PS- Don’t forget your bonus scene when you sign up for my newsletter! (Unsubscribe at any time.)
https://emmastclair.com/zabbybonus
PPS- If you want to find Zoey and Gavin’s story, click here: https://emmastclair.com/zoey
Thank You!
A huge thanks to all the people behind the scenes for making this book happen.
To Rob, for always telling me when placenta jokes need to NOT be in my books.
To Sarah Adams, an amazing author who made me feel like this might work.
To Stephanie, for your honesty. You have no idea how much I appreciate it!
To Judy & Devon, for catching my errors.
To Jillian, Lori, Leslie, Rita, Judy, Lisa, Anna, Amberly, Marsha, Lissa, Sandy, and anyone else I missed in this list who read early for me! You guys really are amazing.
About the Author
Emma St. Clair is a USA Today bestselling author of over twenty books. She loves sweet love stories and characters with a lot of sass. Her stories range from rom-com to women’s fiction and all will have humor, heart, and nothing that’s going to make you need to hide your Kindle from the kids. ;)
You can find out more at http://emmastclair.com or join her reader group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/emmastclair/
Did you get your bonus scene about Abby and Zane? If not, snag that here: https://emmastclair.com/zabbybonus
Falling for Your Best Friend's Twin: a Sweet Romantic Comedy (Love Clichés Sweet RomCom Series Book 1) Page 21