“So,” I begin, “What do you think of Zellers so far?”
He temples his fingers, something that I notice he does when he is restless.
“Zellers is a great company,” he tells me. “It’s full of talented and energetic people. Honestly, I’m impressed by everyone that I’ve met so far. And your department is the most impressive of all. You certainly know what you’re doing.”
The compliment turns my cheeks pink.
It’s true. I am successful and good at my job. And to have someone like him, someone who is also successful and good at his job, notice… well, it just feels good.
“Thank you,” I murmur. “I try.”
“You do more than try,” he answers, taking another drink. “Head-hunters from miles away have noticed you. Can you give me your word that you won’t consider leaving until you’ve talked to me about it?”
I’m surprised now.
“None have approached me,” I tell him honestly. “And I love Zellers. It will take an unbelievably good package to entice me to leave.”
He smiles at me. “Great. That’s exactly what I wanted to hear.”
We continue chatting all through our meal and then we share a piece of chocolate cake for dessert. After he wipes his mouth and tosses his napkin onto his plate, Alex looks at me.
“I haven’t eaten that much in a long time. Would you like to take a walk on the beach? I’d like to get some air.”
“Of course,” I tell him, pushing back my chair. And within a minute, I find myself under the full moon, walking with this gorgeous man beside the crashing ocean.
Not the smartest thing to do, Alli, I reprimand myself. I should be avoiding these types of situations, not creating more of them.
But it feels so good to have my arm looped through his, to talk about intelligent topics that we both understand because we’re both in the same industry. It feels amazing to be with someone who understands me for exactly who I am… a woman who is just trying to make a new life and get ahead at work.
He understands because he is exactly the same… my perfect male counter-part.
I gulp. And then gulp harder.
I could be walking with my perfect match.
As he guides me around a big piece of driftwood, I have to acknowledge that my idea of telling him about my infatuation wasn’t that effective after all. In fact, things have only gotten worse. Knowing that he feels the same way about me makes the temptation that much harder to resist.
“Is this as hard for you as it is for me?” Alex asks softly, as though he can read my freaking mind. I nod silently. He stops walking and stares at me. The light from the moon shines onto him and I swear to all that is holy, he looks like a freaking GQ model.
“Yes,” I tell him. “It definitely is. And were you ever, at any time, a GQ model perchance?”
He stares down at me and I can’t help but notice his rock hard chest, his flat abs, his chiseled features. How could Mother Nature have done this to me? She put my perfect match in my life, but made him my boss? Is she a masochist?
Alex smiles and then tucks a tuft of my hair behind my ear.
“No, I wasn’t,” he answers with a grin. “But I’ll take it as a compliment that you think I could have been.”
“It might not have been a compliment,” I announce. “Models are, by nature, over-confident and cocky.”
Alex studies me, then grins.
“I don’t know about that,” he says. “I’ve heard that they are sometimes secretly insecure and just need approval. And that sometimes, they get intimidated by people who are better-put-together than they are.”
I’m not sure, but I think that last part was in reference to me. I swallow hard.
“It was a compliment,” I admit. “You’re gorgeous. And sexy as hell. And I’m struggling a little bit.”
“I am too. But we can do this,” he says quietly. “We can work together and be completely professional. I have faith in us.”
Us.
I want to leap into his arms and kiss him with tongue. No lie.
His mouth is just so tantalizing. And there is something about a powerful and important man that turns me on. BB is practically salivating, but I ignore her silent pleadings.
“Yes,” I agree. “We can. I’m sure this infatuation will pass.”
He looks as unsure as I feel. But we continue on our walk and to my intense pride, I don’t invite myself back to his room when we get back to the hotel. I return to my own like a responsible adult.
We get up the next morning and totally rock our meeting.
It goes as smoothly as any business meeting has ever gone. Plus, I managed to avoid doing anything embarrassing for once. That’s a miracle in itself.
As we fly home, we chit-chat about non-important things and I am able to utterly ignore the way I want to drape myself across his lap and stick my tongue in his mouth. My tongue is still a hussy, apparently.
When I reach my house, I find that nothing is amiss. Sara has had an uneventful evening with Sophie and in fact, even left a basket of fresh fruit on my counter.
And, last but certainly not least, I have a date with Shade tonight. If he can’t distract me from my thoughts about Alex, nothing will.
********
As I’m getting ready, I text Shade.
I need a good distraction. Think of something kinky to do tonight.
My fingers are almost shaking as I put my phone down, but I ignore it. I’ve got to try new things. That’s the point of all of this, right? And it’s going to take something new to drive Alex from my mind.
How kinky? Shade texts back.
Kinky, I answer. I’m so insane. I know that.
Don’t worry, then. I’ve got a plan, Shade replies.
And now my fingers shake. A plan? Good lord. But he’s a good kid and I trust him. And so I find myself looking forward to tonight as I finish getting dressed. Little black dress, black heels and my hair pulled into a sleek low-pony.
When I walk into the room at Utopia later, though, and Shade takes off the blindfold and I see an extra man standing there, I can’t help but get a little nervous.
I turn to Shade.
“What exactly is your plan?”
My fingers are shaking with abandon now and my legs are twitching. I almost want to spin on my high-heels and take off at a dead sprint for my car.