The Play Mate (Roommates, #2)

Smith

Damn . . . that kiss, though.

My brain instantly supplied a mental replay, and I shifted my dick in my pants to make sitting behind a desk bearable.

Jesus, sometimes I wondered if I had a screw loose or something, because I couldn’t make this whole thing any harder on myself if I tried. Not to mention that my thoughtless move could have jeopardized everything good in my life-my job, my relationship with Evie, my friendship with her brother.

What if Cullen had walked in?

All of his possible reactions flitted through my mind, and I winced. At the very least, some blood would have been shed, whether it was mine, his, or both.

But for some reason, I couldn’t have stopped myself if I’d tried. Once I saw Evie there, bent over the copy machine, her bottom lip pinched between those white teeth, I was done. It was like I was on autopilot. My body moved toward hers as if controlled by some otherworldly gravitational pull.

I gritted my teeth and drummed my fingers on the desk in front of me in frustration.

This was torture. Spending time with someone I liked as much as I liked Evie, wanting her more than I’d ever wanted anything in my life and not being able to have her, it made me feel like an addict. Twitchy, needy, and sort of desperate.

Not a feeling I was accustomed to at all. And not a feeling I liked one bit.

What it we gave in? Tonight, even. What if I texted her right now and asked her to meet me at my apartment after work and put an end to our shared misery?

Then what about tomorrow when we go back to being friends?

I swallowed a bitter laugh and raked a hand over my face.

“Here are the numbers you asked for,” a male voice murmured.

Adam, my assistant and an all-around nice guy, waited near my desk with a file folder in hand. I’d been so distracted, I hadn’t even heard him come in.

“Thanks, I appreciate it.” I took the folder without further comment, and then looked up a minute later when I realized that he was still hovering.

He cleared his throat and shifted from foot to foot. “I know it’s none of my business, but are you okay? You’ve been looking sort of weird lately. Not sick, but . . . stressed. Distracted, maybe.” He perched his glasses higher on his nose and shrugged. “You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to, but I wanted to make sure you’re not working too hard or if there is something more I should be doing on my end to clear your plate.”

I closed the file folder and blew out a sigh. I’d been dividing my time between the two offices-this one that my family ran like a well-oiled machine whether I was here or not, and of course, the new office for Sophia’s headquarters.

“Yeah, sorry about that. I hope I’m not being too much of an asshole.” I weighed my options and decided on a half truth. “It’s been difficult juggling my work here with the consulting work I’m doing at Sophia’s.”

Adam crinkled his nose. “You sure that’s all it is? It’s not like you to let work bog you down.”

“Okay, the truth is work is going well, so no worries there. I’ve got a woman on the brain. I like her and she likes me, but there’s a raft of shit in the way. I gotta admit, the whole thing is getting to me a little.”All text © NôvelD(r)a'ma.Org.

A relieved smile tugged at his lips, and I realized then that my poker face wasn’t as good as I’d thought. Poor Adam had been worried that I was going to fire him or something. Totally my fault, because I probably walked around this place looking like I was about to claw the bark off trees and start roaring.

Not cool.

Plus, with my new gig, I’d been spending very little time in this office lately.

“I hear you there, boss. I’ve got a girlfriend too, and she’s bugging me about not having an engagement ring yet and all that. It can really get to a guy,” Adam said, looking a little shaken at the mention of an engagement ring. “If you ever want to meet for a beer after work and blow off some steam, let me know. I’m always down.”

I nodded and grinned at him. “I might take you up on that. Thanks.”

Adam backed out of my office and closed the door behind him, leaving me alone with my thoughts again. Sure as shit, I almost begged him to come back, because my thoughts were confounding as fuck.

There had to be a logical explanation for this. Working alongside Evie day by day had clouded my brain. Her citrusy scent that was burned into my nostrils, the sound of her laugh when she really let go, her passion for her work-all of it had left an impression that I couldn’t shake.

Shit, I even liked watching the way she contributed at work. She enjoyed pretty things, and took pride in her work making our web presence more visually appealing. I liked that when she needed inspiration, she’d flip through fabric swatches, finger squares of delicate lace, toy with pieces of buttery-soft satin, line up neat rows of tiny pearl buttons until her next wave of brilliance struck. She was young but she was savvy, and it was incredible to watch her use her God-given talents to create something good in the world.

All in all, my work with Sophia’s was certainly far more interesting than the number-crunching I did all day long for my parents’ company.