‘Yes,’ he said.
She blinked. ‘I’m sorry?’
‘Yes. Let’s go and get some dinner.’
‘But what about the food you made?’
He shrugged. ‘It’ll keep.’
She thought about it. Well, no, she didn’t. She actively didn’t think about it. Because she hadn’t realised until she’d walked through the front door that she didn’t want to be alone. Today, being alone was a problem she needed to fix. And if she’d realised that before she’d come home, she would have stayed at Dom’s for dinner. Distracted herself.
‘You know you don’t have to do this, right?’ she asked quietly.
His lips curved into a small smile that soothed something inside her. It had the faint sound of alarms going off in her head. But since she wasn’t listening to anything going on inside her head, it didn’t matter.
‘I know,’ he said. ‘Why don’t you take a shower and change, and I’ll finish up here?’
She nodded and went upstairs. Her house was all wood and cream, in the design she and Kian had agreed on after the countless vision boards she had forced him to make with her. She adored it, and would have even if Kian hadn’t agreed to the design, too. It made going into her bedroom with its soft plush carpet and muted colours more comforting than disarming.
What was disarming though, was showering when Tyler was in her house. She put it down to the fact that usually she had her house to herself. She wasn’t used to anyone being around. It was as simple as that.
But she was naked, and she couldn’t deny that her body was feeling much more than simple. She could see the way her nipples were reacting, her skin turning to gooseflesh, her body aching in places that hadn’t ached in literally years.
She turned the water cold so she could blame the reaction of her body on that, and not him. The man who worked for her. The man she hadn’t known for more than two days—didn’t know anything about, really. The man she’d asked out to dinner.
What am I doing?
She dressed quickly, not answering herself, and went downstairs. Tyler was waiting for her in the living room.
‘I put Mochi outside with some food and fresh water.’
‘Thank you.’ And when that felt awkward, she added, ‘Are you sure you want to wear that?’ She gestured to the jeans and T-shirt he’d changed into from his suit. ‘I happen to know you have a different outfit that would be—’
‘Brooke,’ he interrupted, his voice gentle but firm. ‘Let’s go eat.’
And somehow, despite her nerves, she laughed.
* * *
It wasn’t crossing the line. He was doing what she’d asked. It contravened the distance he’d been determined to put between them, but what should he have done? Said no when she’d looked so...so...vulnerable?
He was beginning to realise that look was a trigger. It took him back five years to when he’d thought he was making a new friend. To when he’d thought that their friendship would someday develop into something more.
He had known at the end of the week, when they’d shared that kiss and she’d all but run from him, that he had been wrong. So why was he acting as though this was the first time he’d discovered he’d read more into things than he should have? Why was he still trying to find reasons for what had happened?
Like the fact that apparently, she had been married. Or was married. But people who were married lived together, didn’t they? Unless their relationship was on the rocks, like his parents’ relationship had been before they’d got divorced.
When his father had left to work in Dubai for two years, it had been for the sake of the family. That was what he’d told them. Until two years had become three, then five, and then the end of a marriage.
Back then, his mother had slowly removed all the pictures of his father from the house. His belongings had followed. Based on that experience, Tyler didn’t think Brooke would have a picture of her ex-husband on her fireplace mantel. Except he hadn’t seen any other signs of a man in her home...
He exhaled. He needed to let it go. All of it. The constant memories of the past. The comparisons. The questions he would get no answers to.
If he was going to survive working for Brooke, he needed boundaries. She had set them by not acknowledging the past, and he’d already decided it wasn’t worth it not to respect that. For his sake and Tia’s.
Now, he had to set boundaries within himself, too. To remember that everything that had happened was in the past and that he needed to leave it there.
Which he would.
After tonight.
‘I know this is pretty far to go for dinner,’ Brooke said when they met in the car park. She had taken the lead, with him following her—he tried not to read too much into that—and she’d driven to the beach.
It was a beautiful night for it. The sky was lit with the moon and the stars, as if it were a painting of a perfect night rather than the real thing. The weather was cool, but not cold enough that they needed covering—a welcome reprieve from the heat of the day.
The street was busy, cars and taxis full of people taking advantage of the summer night. From the promenade came the sound of laughter and chattering, of a kind of carefreeness he envied. And beyond the promenade was the beach.
He could only see as far as the night sky allowed, but that was okay. He could hear it. The gentle crash of the ocean, which he knew wouldn’t sound so gentle if he went any closer. He could smell the salt in the air, feel the moisture in the breeze when it caressed his face.
‘If I’d thought about it, I would have come here, too,’ he said.
She took a deep breath. ‘I needed it, you know? The ocean and the sound of happiness.’
They lingered, those words, when he didn’t reply. But he couldn’t manage to. He was caught in the contradiction of her. The way her mouth curved but her eyes glittered with sadness. The relaxed set of her shoulders but the tight way she clasped her handbag.
Despite himself, he remembered the curious mixture of hope and defeat she’d carried with her before, five years ago. It had fascinated him then, too.
He shook it off. ‘I’m glad we came.’
She turned to face him, a soft smile eclipsing the confusing emotions on her face. ‘That’s kind.’
‘Don’t get used to it,’ he said gruffly, when her smile set off an explosion of happy butterflies in his stomach.
His response only had her smile widening.
He braced himself, then said, ‘What do you want to eat?’
‘Oh, I don’t know.’ She looked around at the street, lined with restaurants. ‘Should we walk until we find something that appeals to us?’
He nodded and let her lead the way. She chatted casually as they went, pointing out restaurants that looked good or making suggestions. He liked the sound of her voice. She spoke in a unique pattern of rising and falling, as if her words were dancing to some tune only she had the pleasure of hearing. It sounded easier now, as if the tension she’d shown before was slowly escaping from her body like air from a balloon.
It felt as though the tension in him had eased, too.
He shook his head. Did he need to make an appointment with his psychologist? Surely this type of thinking meant he was teetering close to emotional instability?
‘What?’ she asked.
He looked for Brooke, but she wasn’t next to him. She’d stopped walking.
He turned back. ‘What?’
‘That’s what I asked you.’
‘Okay. Why did you ask it?’
‘You were shaking your head, but I wasn’t saying anything.’
‘You saw that?’
It was out of his mouth before he could stop it. He’d thought he was too old to blush, but apparently his skin felt differently. It wasn’t a light Oh, this is embarrassing blush either. It was an honest
to goodness, I’ve spent too much time in the sun flush.
He cleared his throat. ‘I was...thinking.’
She bit her lip, but they both knew she was resisting a smile. ‘I would love to ask you what about, but luckily for you I’ve already crossed too many lines today. I’ll let you have your secrets.’
‘Thank goodness,’ he said on an exhalation. Again, he felt his cheeks heat. His filter seemed to have broken. An annoying development considering he needed it now more than ever. ‘What I mean to say is, I don’t have any secrets.’
She was no longer resisting the smile now; those lips she’d coated in a whimsical pink were curving in amusement. Heat curved inside him, too. A dangerous heat that was much too close to his heart.
‘How about this place?’ she asked, pointing to the restaurant next to them.
‘Sure.’
‘You didn’t even look at it.’
‘I’m trying to redirect your attention, and this seemed like a good way to do it.’
She laughed. The sound shot through the air, piercing his chest, turning heat into fire.
‘Well, then, let’s hope you like it.’
The server seated them at the front of the restaurant, where the doors had been pushed back to the walls, allowing access to both see and hear the ocean. When the woman handed him a menu, he saw that the place specialised in grilled food, which was fortunate. He wasn’t sure he could handle anything fancy right now. A good old steak would probably anchor him. Turn his fanciful thoughts and feelings back into parts of himself—logical parts of himself—that he could recognise.
Brooke ordered a glass of wine, he ordered a beer, and while they waited she said, ‘Again, I’m really sorry I asked you to come to dinner.’
‘Why?’
‘Well, it’s not appropriate.’
‘Employees and employers can be friends.’
‘Can they?’ she asked softly. ‘I’m not entirely sure.’
‘Is this the first time you’ve been someone’s boss?’ he asked.
‘No. I...um... I work for a software development company. I’m a lead engineer, so I have a couple of people reporting to me.’
‘You’re in IT?’
‘Yeah.’ She tilted her head. ‘Why’s that surprising to you?’
‘It’s not.’
A smile played on her lips. ‘It very clearly is, Tyler. Is it because I’m a woman?’
‘No,’ he said quickly. ‘Of course not. I believe women can do anything. If I didn’t—which, again, I very much do—my sister and mother would have killed me.’
‘They sound like the kind of people I would like.’
His mouth lifted, thinking of it. ‘I think they’d like you, too.’
‘Yeah? Tell me about them.’
He waited until the server had set their drinks down and they’d placed their dinner orders—steak for both of them—and when she left, Tyler said, ‘My mom was a force of nature. She had a couple of jobs. She worked for a call centre during the day and cleaned hotel rooms at night.’
‘So housekeeping’s in the family?’
‘Not sure I’d say that.’ He took a moment to figure out how much he wanted to reveal. A lot, as it turned out. ‘Tia became a housekeeper after she found out she was pregnant. Things weren’t great with the father already, but then she found out he was married.’
Her lips parted, though she didn’t respond immediately. ‘No wonder you’re protective.’
‘I’m not... How did you...?’
‘Please,’ she said, ignoring his splutters. ‘You’re filling in for her when it’s obviously something outside of your area of expertise. I don’t mean that you’re not doing a good job,’ she added quickly. ‘I mean because of your actual job. Unless, of course, I’m naïve in believing that you’re not a serial killer who’s really good at covering your tracks.’
* * *
‘I’m not a serial killer.’ His voice was pained. ‘How would I cover my tracks? By creating a full profile of myself online? Establishing an entire business to support that profile?’
‘I said you were really good.’
‘Brooke, I’m not a criminal.’
‘Hmm.’
She reached for her wine and took a deep gulp. She believed him, but Dom’s doubts had trickled into her head, forcing her to make sure. Well, it wasn’t only Dom’s doubts. It was her own. What did she know about this man beyond what he’d told her? Beyond what she’d seen online?
Sure, a man with his online presence and apparent success probably didn’t need to trick her into letting him work for her. But how else could she explain the pull she felt towards him? As if they’d shared a past life together, It was giving her the oddest sense of déjà vu.
Surely that was a clue to his ability to manipulate? Manipulation was an important tool for criminals. Never mind that there hadn’t been one moment when she’d actually felt manipulated.
Apart from that annoying pull, of course.
‘Look,’ he said after a while. ‘I know you have no reason to trust me, but I’m not lying to you. Yes, I am protective of my sister. She’s a single mother, and currently her kid is sick with the chicken pox. I can’t look after him, which had been our Plan A, because I’ve only just got the vaccine and—’
‘What? Why only now?’ she demanded, outraged.
His lips twitched. ‘Long story, but I have it now.’ He got serious again. ‘The point is, Tia has no more leave and she can’t afford to lose her job with the agency. She won’t let me help her financially,’ he said, frustration deepening his voice, ‘so this is the only way I could help.’
Brooke didn’t reply. What could she say? I believe you, but I need to make sure because I’m attracted to you and I thought I’d lost that part of myself after my husband died.
It would be selfish. And he obviously was not. The passion when he’d spoken about his family made that clear. He would do anything for them—even step in to do a job with a boss who wouldn’t stop interrogating him.
‘Would you like to call my sister and check with her?’ he asked.
‘Yes,’ she said, before she could stop herself.
She should have stopped herself.
She didn’t want to speak with his sister because she wanted verification, but because she wanted to know more about their relationship. Still, she held out her hand.
‘I’d like to speak with her.’
He winced. ‘She’s going to kill me for this. She’ll think I’m risking her job.’
Her hand didn’t budge. ‘I’ll assure her you’re doing the opposite. And if that doesn’t do it, I’ll go to your funeral and pay my respects.’
With an exaggerated sigh—as if he hadn’t been the one to suggest it—he tapped his phone screen before handing it to her. Since there weren’t many people around them, she put the call on speaker.
‘Ty? Where are you? I’ve been messaging you for ever.’
‘Hi, Tia. This is Brooke Jansen. I believe you’re supposed to be working for me this month?’
‘Ms Jansen?’ Tia squeaked. ‘Are you...? Hold on...’ Tia said, suspicion creeping into her voice. ‘Did my brother hire you to trick me?’
‘Why would I do that, T?’ Tyler inserted.
‘Oh, you’re there? Lovely,’ Tia said, in a tone that indicated she did not find it lovely at all. ‘Ms Jansen, I know you have a million reasons to report this to the agency, but I assure you I had no choice. I absolutely wouldn’t have done this if Nyle had had anything but the chicken pox.’
‘Tia,’ Brooke said slowly, ‘your brother has explained the situation to me. I... I understand.’ She caught Tyler’s look of relief, but refused to respond to it. ‘I’m just calling to make sure he’s not a criminal. Can you verify?’
‘Oh. Well, yeah. He’s a dork who runs an online edu
cation company.’ There was a short pause. ‘Wait—you do really believe us? I mean, we could have coordinated this. I work for the agency, send my brother in as a replacement, he establishes some form of trust and if you begin to suspect something, he has you call me to verify his story.’
‘Tia,’ Tyler moaned, rubbing a hand on his forehead. ‘What is wrong with you?’
‘Hey, I’m just looking out for her. She seems like a nice lady.’
‘Thank you,’ Brooke said, suppressing a laugh. ‘I do believe you. And, while I think going behind the agency’s back has some moral problems, you’ve both dealt with this as ethically as you could. Besides,’ she added wryly, ‘I’m pretty sure that if you two were a criminal duo, one of you would have ratted the other out by now. Or you’d both be in prison.’
‘Definitely a possibility,’ Tia said.
At the same time Tyler said, ‘Probably.’
‘Not to mention that my brother is a police officer,’ Brooke continued conversationally. ‘So if this is a ruse, you’ll soon be ending your reign of terror.’
A nervous laugh came through the speaker.
Brooke grinned as she met Tyler’s eyes. But he didn’t smile back. Just gazed at her with a sincerity and gratitude that made his brown eyes look deeper, more soulful. She hadn’t spent much time looking into his eyes—she had some sense of self-preservation—but she wouldn’t have said that it was possible. There was enough soul and depth there without any emotion strengthening it. And when emotion did strengthen it...
She exhaled. ‘Thank you, Tia. I hope your child feels better soon.’
‘Thank you, Ms Jansen—’
‘Brooke, please.’
‘Thank you, Brooke. I... I appreciate this more than you know.’
After she ended the call, there was a long silence. It wasn’t an easy silence either. In fact, she was fairly certain it was filled with cement and steel and everything hard and unyielding. And it sat at the empty seat at their table as if it had been invited to dinner.
Eventually, Tyler cleared his throat. ‘Thank you.’
Awakened by the CEO's Kiss Page 4