She glared at him.
“Sorry.” He gave her his best puppy dog eyes and sweetest smile. “I did mention I’m an asshole, right?”
Her expression softened as he stood and gave her some space.
“How come you aren’t freaked out?”
“My whole childhood was planned for me. The instant I had any say in what I did, I let chaos reign. I go with the flow. Plans have a way of unravelling, anyway, and I like not knowing what comes next. As your knight in shining armor who specializes in chaos, what can I do to help?”
“Get me out?” Her gaze darted to the door.
“Sure, I’ll try, but no one else is due in for a few minutes.” Ryan knocked on the door. “Hey, anyone out there?”
He tried twice more, but nobody came to investigate. Looking at Elissa, with her wild eyes and too-pale face, he knew they couldn’t just wait patiently. He kneeled in front of her again and took her hand. She let him.
“How about a distraction instead? You can help me find these files. We’ll try again after.”
He glanced at his watch. Seven thirty-two. In ten to twenty minutes, several people would arrive, including his aunt, who was usually in by seven forty-five. Nearly everyone else would be in by eight.
“Okay.”
“You need the list?” he asked.
“No, I have it memorized. Show me where to look.”
He set her in front of the first filing cabinet while he worked next to her, pulling some documents for a small apartment complex near the air force base. Ryan kept glancing over at her. Her color was returning to normal, and the panic had left her eyes, but she still looked shaky. Maybe something else to distract her.
“Are we still on for Thursday night?”
“Yes, absolutely.” She said it so forcefully, it was as if she was trying to convince herself as well as him.
“Need anything from me?”
“Whatever you have so far. See where you are and then we can plan.”
“Plans are for pussies.”
“Well, it’s a good thing I have one of those.”
He snapped to attention, whipping his head around to find her pretending to ignore his reaction. But a tiny crease in her lips gave her away. At least her anxiety had lessened.
“For someone who doesn’t swear, you have quite the mouth on you, Elissa Wright.” He pulled the last file on his list.
“You have no idea.”
“Care to show me?”
Ryan was teasing. Mostly teasing, trying to distract her. He’d swear on a stack of bibles he’d meant nothing by it. But before he could blink, Elissa Wright had grabbed his tie and pulled him down until her lips were a hairsbreadth from his.
“Yes.”
Elissa closed the minuscule distance between them and pressed her lips to his. Dropping the file, he placed a hand lightly on her waist and drew her body closer as the heat of the kiss flooded his system.
thirty-one
at least there was cake
She was kissing Ryan DeMarco. She was kissing Ryan DeMarco.
