by Kayla, Mia
Her eyes narrowed, and she leaned in, both elbows on the table. “Don’t tell me you’ve never had sex in the office.”
She knew! She had to.
Lie like your life depends on it. “No.”
“No?” Her voice turned incredulous. Then, she leaned back in her chair and examined her nails. “Everyone should try it at least once.”
“Maybe, one day,” I said, laughing, “I can be that spontaneous.” I crumpled up my napkin and stuffed it in my lunch bag. “Toodles, ladies. I’ve got computers to fix.” And underwear to look for.
Connor
I lifted my head to Charlie slamming my office door behind her. She bit her lip, rushed to my desk, and planted both palms down, leaning toward me. Her neckline dipped, and immediately, my cock stiffened. Insatiable little bastard.
Her face was filled with concern, and all I was filled with was horny thoughts.
Someone, save my soul.
“Hey, what’s the matter?” I stood and cupped her face, the desk a barrier between us.
Her cheek pressed into my palm, and I loved it.
She let out one long, shallow breath. “Someone found my underwear from over a week ago.” She leaned back and ran both hands through her hair, her eyes going wide. “I mean, we looked for that thing everywhere. She said she found it between two file cabinets. We looked there. We tore that room apart.” Her voice heightened with hysteria.
“Who found them?”
“Casey!”
Well, now, didn’t this complicate things?
I made my way around my desk and pulled her in by her forearms. “It’ll be fine,” I said because Casey knowing I was having sex with Charlie wasn’t the worst thing in the world.
“It won’t be fine. People will know. You will leave, and I want to stay here. I kinda like the people here.”
To her, this had just been a job, a means to an end, and now, she was going to stay permanently. That filled me up with all kinds of happiness.
“Hey …” I pulled her closer, wrapping my arms around her lower back. “You’re shaking.” I rubbed her back as she nestled into me. “Casey doesn’t have any proof that they’re yours, and she’s not one to gossip.”
“You don’t know Casey very well, do you?” Her words were muffled against my chest.
I bent down to kiss her hair and got a whiff of her intoxicating shampoo, and then I was a goner.
“It’s fine,” I said again, but this time, my voice was guttural.
“My underwear is still in the office closet.”
I took a fistful of hair and gently pulled her head back, so she was looking directly in my eyes. God, she was beautiful. The green in her eyes were mesmerizing. “I’ll go get them.”
My eyes flickered to her lips, and her eyes locked with mine. There was this shift in the air. I felt it every time I was around her. Her tongue darted out to wet her bottom lip, and my stomach tightened.
Someone, help me because around this woman, I can’t think clearly.
I pulled on her hair with a little more force, and she yelped.
My lips found the crook of her neck, kissing a path from her neck to her ear. “We won’t be having sex in the office closet anymore.” I moved her to my desk. “I’ve found us a new location.”
“Connor …” My name was a breathless whisper, a plea, and I was more than happy to oblige.
My tongue flicked over the seam of her mouth, and I devoured her because she was mine.
All mine. Mine. Mine.
“People might walk in.” Her hands gripped my biceps tighter against her.
I was too hungry for her to even lock the door. “No one will come in.”
The only person who would possibly come in unannounced was my brother, but I’d just talked to him, and he was on the other side of town. It would take him at least thirty minutes to get here. This had to be quick. I’d savor her for hours later tonight.
Charlie
I shifted in my desk, not wearing any underwear. Why? Because, once again, Connor had ripped them off in the throes of passion. And now, I was sure I needed to buy some more after work.
My messenger pinged on my computer.
I got the goods.
A picture of him with my underwear in his mouth appeared.
I laughed back and typed.
Nice.
What’s nice is you and me. Tonight, my place. I’m cooking dinner.
We need to finish our plans for this commercial.
Yes. My place. After dinner.
What exactly will we be doing after dinner?
Things … and then fine-tuning the final rebranding specs.
I laughed again.
Mr. Colby, dinner, final rebranding specs, and other things—in that order. Or else I’m not coming over.
There was no more direction in my life. I still needed to finalize a few more paintings for my collection.
“Charlie.”
I slammed my laptop shut and turned around to find Casey with an overly cheesy smile.
“I can’t believe you. You’ve been keeping things from me.”
I straightened in my seat and let out a nervous laugh. “What?”
“Connor?”
My smile slipped, and I gripped my armrests like I was going to fall out of my chair.
“What about Connor?”
“That he’s banging …”
“Let me explain—”
“Sienna.”
I blinked up at her.
“Sienna from accounting?”
She was in her fifties.
“Yes. So, today, I passed the office closet, and then lo and behold … Sienna walked out, following none other than Connor himself.” She placed her hands on her hips. “I would never have guessed that one. She’s twice his age and a divorcée.”
I should end this charade now and not have Sienna take the fall for the underwear and sex-in-the-closet incident. But I couldn’t. “I guess you really don’t know people’s types.” I was pure evil.
“Yep. Anyway, I thought you’d like to know. Alyssa didn’t believe me. She said she knew Connor was having an affair but wouldn’t tell me with who. She thinks my conclusion is preposterous. As if.” She shrugged. “I knew you’d believe me. Anywhooo, back to the world of no candy-tasting but testing.” With a wave of her hand, she was off.
My shoulders relaxed, and I let out a long, audible sigh when she was out of my vicinity.
Wait till Connor heard this one.
* * *
Connor had cooked chicken potpie, and I was impressed.
I pushed my fork through the pastry, picking up bits of chicken and peas along the way, and stuffed it in my mouth. It was delicious. “There’s a rumor going around,” I said mid-chew.
“What would that be?”
“That you and Sienna are having an affair.”
He choked, coughing, and hit his chest with his fist before full-blown laughter escaped him. “She was in the closet first when I walked in. She was looking for folder tabs, and I helped her find some. When she walked out, I followed, and a few seconds later, Casey greeted me at the exit.” He shook his head, smiling. “I should have known she would jump to that conclusion. Now that I think about it, you should have seen her face. Anyway, Sienna is dating someone.”
I laughed. “Well, now, Casey thinks that someone is you.”
I finished off the rest of my fantabulous meal, stuffing my last bite in my mouth. The flakiness of the crust was divine.
The corner of his mouth tipped upward. “Did you not like it?”
I laughed because he was being sarcastic. “It was delicious-mondo. Is there anything you can’t do?”
His smile fell. “Ask me in a few months.”
He was nervous about the rebranding.
“We’ve got this in the bag. No doubt.” I stood and placed his plate on top of mine before making my way to the sink.
He followed right behind me “Charlie, just leave it.”
“Nope. You cooked. I’m cleaning. This is how domestic relationships work.”
I placed the plates on the counter and turned on the sink, but he flipped it off and turned me to face him.
“Is that what we’re in now? A domestic relationship?”
I should have caught my words earlier, but it’d slipped out so naturally. I swallowed. “I mean … I mean, temporary domestic relationship.” I smiled, but it didn’t seem genuine because there was a direct disconnect between what was happening in my head and heart.
He was leaving, and that left an intense ache in my chest.
I pushed his hands off of me and turned the sink back on, sudsing up the sponge and cleaning the dishes. “I mean, that’s all this can be, right?”
There was silence between us—an awkward silence. It was so silent that I wondered if he could hear my heartbeat thrashing in my chest.
Why couldn’t I just accept what this was and not want more? There had been an agreement before we started this arrangement, and I was breaking all my rules now by feeling.
His arms wrapped around my waist, and he rested his chin on my shoulder. “Did you get my present today in the break room?”
I turned to face him, and there was this sly, secretive smirk on his face.
“Present?”
“The chips and cookies on the table. We’re going to start offering them to our employees too.”
I scrunched my face, confused.
“I told our café managers that I’m getting rid of our vending machines.”
I blinked, still beyond confused. “Thank you?”
“I remembered what you said before …” His voice trailed off. “About not liking chocolate because it reminds you of when your dad was sick. Getting chocolate from the vending machines.”
My heart seized as he brought back the memories.
“And I know I can’t help the chocolate part because that’s what this company is made of … but I don’t want anything else bringing up unhappy memories … even when I’m not around anymore.”
My voice was as soft as a whisper. “So, you got rid of the vending machines?”
He nodded, and tears welled up behind my eyes. Full-blown emotions hit me in the chest.
And in that moment, that tiny moment, staring into his liquid chocolate-brown eyes, I knew in my heart that I could fall for this man, if I wasn’t there already.
“When we’re together, we’re happy, okay? Because we don’t have an endless amount of time left.”
I nodded and let out a long sigh, and when I did, he turned off the sink, flipped me around, dried off my hands, and threaded both of his hands through my hair, bringing me closer.
“If we keep dwelling on the fact that I’m leaving, we’ll both feel miserable and waste time, feeling miserable. When I’m here, I’m dead set on making the most of our time together, making you happy.”
Our eyes locked, and in the first time in forever … I felt an utter desolation of the future because I was going to miss him terribly. Though we hadn’t known each other long, I knew I’d never—before Connor—felt like this toward another human being. This intense connection. I’d had love before but not passion like this.
I peered up at him, and the only consolation I got was the hope that he was feeling the same. “You said we.”
His eyebrows wrinkled.
“You said, ‘We’ll both feel miserable.’ ”
He smiled then, but it was a sad smile. “It’s not just you, Charlie. I wish I could slow down time. I wish things were different, but my life”—he exhaled—“it’s in New York. My apartment. My job. My friends.”
A little voice in my head said, But I’m here.
“And, yes, we. I’m going to be miserable leaving … because I’m going to be leaving Nana and Kyle but, most of all … you.” He rested his forehead on mine. “That’s why”—he nipped at my lips—“we need to make every second count.” Another nip at my lips. “And the marketing stuff can wait because we’re doing things in order of importance. Food.” Another nip. “And now, it’s time for dessert.”
He lifted me in his arms, and my legs automatically wrapped around his waist. As he took us back to his room, I wondered if we would even get to finalizing the marketing plans tonight.
Probably not.
Chapter 22
Connor
It was the beginning of the longest day of my life. Filming day. We’d prepped and practiced and dressed, and now, filming was a go.
We were at Ellie’s house, one of Wyatt’s friends. All we needed was a suburban home with a nice porch because this was where I would be picking up Charlie on our first date.
I’d changed into a suit, and I had flowers and Colby Chocolates with the new packaging in my hand behind my back.
For the third time tonight, I rang the doorbell to do the scene yet again.
Charlie opened the door in a white skirt and light-blue flowery silk shirt that Susan had helped her pick out. Her hair was no longer down but swept up in a ponytail.
And even though it was the third time we’d done it, each and every time she opened the door, she took my breath away.
Her makeup was light, the pink in her cheeks and on her lips only highlighting her beauty.
“Smile bigger, Charlie. More natural!” Wyatt yelled out.
They wouldn’t hear the outtakes on the commercial, as it would be set to music that evoked emotion.
I stepped into the house and swung the flowers to the front and then the chocolates.
Charlie fake beamed, which had me smiling in response.
“Tip your chin to the side, Charlie. Bigger. Smile!” Wyatt yelled out as two cameras were focused on her face. “He’s picking you up for a date for the first time, and he’s just given you flowers and chocolate. Show that excitement, that nervousness.”
“Tanner, focus on the chocolate, get a closer shot. Yeah. There. Ah, fuck. Charlie, you can’t look directly at the camera. Cut.”
My whole body tensed. “Wyatt, chill out,” I snapped, not liking how he was talking to her.
He raised both hands, strolled toward Charlie, and reached for her arm. “Sorry. I was just really in the moment. You’re doing great, Charlie, really.” He addressed his production crew, “Everyone, let’s take ten.”
After he stepped away, she rubbed at her brow, visibly frustrated.
I pulled the bouquet of flowers in her hand toward me, essentially crushing the dozen between us. Tipping up her chin, I noticed her frown. “Hey …” I whispered. “You’re doing an amazing job. We have one more scene after this, and we should be done for the night.”
“I suck. Remind me to never, ever go into acting.”
I pinched her chin and leaned in. “Stop. You’re doing amazing. Wyatt even said so. I think everyone’s just tired right now.” I placed the chocolate and roses on the side table by the door, wrapped my arms around her, and pulled her into me. “Plus, the most important thing about being on camera is being cute. And you have that down. You’ve mastered the cuteness. More than any other woman I’ve ever met.”
“Nice,” she drawled out.
“Let’s just get this over with. We’ll get the next scene done and go home.”
Home. That last word had fallen out naturally, effortlessly.
I pushed any deep thoughts about it to the side as she groaned and fell into me.
“Charlie, it’s just like how we discussed, how you pictured it. A young male—let’s call him Connor—he’s nervous. He’s picking up this girl and taking her out on their date for the very first time. He wants everything to be perfect because this girl—let’s call her Charlie—he wants to impress her, wine and dine her, treat her like the queen she is.
“So, he’s staring at the house, anxious. He turns off the ignition of his car, wipes his hands on his jeans, and grabs the chocolate and flowers he bought for her.” I pulled back, and she met my smile. “And then … he’s walking toward the front door. His mouth goes dry, and
he swears he’s never felt like throwing up before, but he’s this close because he’s so worried about impressing her. All he wants is to see her, take her out.”
Charlie wrinkled her nose, and I continued, “He rings the doorbell, and everything around him heightens—the pounding of his heart, the loud breaths from his mouth. But when she opens the door …” I paused, waiting for her to finish my thought because these were her ideas, not mine.
“Everything quiets to a hush, and all of his worry and anxiety disappears because when he hands her the chocolate and flowers, she smiles. It’s a smile that tells him that everything is going to be okay, that their night is going to be okay, that they are going to be okay.”
Wyatt storms to the front and circles around, motioning to the crew and telling them what to do, interrupting us. “Let’s go, go, go. I’m picking up some doughnuts, on me, if we get this in one shot.”
He clapped his hands together, and I gave Charlie a wink before grabbing the chocolates and flowers, turning toward the door again.
Lights shone on me, and a camera was fixed on my face as I positioned myself and rang the doorbell.
A moment later, the door opened, and I stepped into the house. When Charlie smiled, it was genuine this time, and just like she’d said, everything disappeared, and it was just the two of us in the room.
The overhead light caught the green in her eyes, and my stomach tightened. I had an urge to kiss her, right here, right now, but then I remembered where I was.
Shit.
“Connor? What the hell, dude? You missed your cue.”
Well, damn.
Charlie laughed, crossed her eyes, and touched her nose with her tongue.
And just then, she smiled, and I knew everything would turn out all right.
Charlie
This evening was humid, but now, a light breeze brushed against my bare arms. My flowy green dress that Connor had purchased hugged my waist, billowing out to right above my knees. I wrapped my arms around myself to get warmth inside of me.
What I should have done was stayed in the car.
This was what living in the Midwest entailed—a drop in forty degrees in one day. At times, it felt as though we experienced all four seasons within a span of a week.