“I do,” I said, my voice low and rough.“Especially for the sake of working together.”Which was a reminder of why I shouldn’t be entertaining such sinful thoughts about her in the first place.Business and pleasure were a bad mix.
She glanced down at her chopsticks, rolling them between her fingers before glancing back at me.I caught the conflicting emotions in her eyes, indicating she was having the same struggle to keep things between us strictly professional.
“Okay,” she finally said.“Friends it is.”
She held out her hand to seal the deal we’d just made.The last time we’d shaken hands had been in that conference room, when she’d pulled away like I’d burned her.Now she was extending the gesture as a peace offering.
I took her hand, her skin warm and soft in my palm.My fingers closed around hers, and my body betrayed me instantly, desire pooling low.I should have let go immediately.Made it a quick, impassive handshake.
I didn’t.Neither did she.I could feel her pulse fluttering at her wrist beneath my thumb.
“Friends,” I finally said, my tone huskier than I’d intended.
Morgan’s eyes darkened slightly, and I knew she felt it too.The connection we shared drew us together like gravity, no matter how sensible we tried to be about our situation.
Finally, she pulled her hand back and we resumed eating.
“So, how was babysitting last night?”Whitney asked Morgan, nudging her with her elbow to get her attention.
Morgan smiled at her friend.“It was fun.Gracie is so cute, and I can’t wait until Becca has the baby.My little nephew will be here before we know it, and Gracie is so excited she’s already talking about how she’s going to help take care of the baby.”
“Is this Parker’s daughter?”I asked, remembering that Samuel mentioned his stepson had a little girl and a baby boy on the way.
“Yes.”Morgan’s eyes sparkled with delight.“She’s three years old and a little angel.”
“I’m close with my nieces, too,” I said, sharing something we had in common—a tight family bond.“My brother Noah has a set of twins, and they are probably the coolest kids ever.”
Morgan laughed, a much more light-hearted sound that seemed to fill my chest with warmth.“Not that you’re biased or anything.”
“Maybe,” I admitted, and shrugged.“But you should meet these girls.Dylan is a girly girl.She loves dance and all things pink.And glitter.The girl is always covered in it, I swear.Every time I drive her somewhere, I’m vacuuming the stuff out of my car for days.And her sister Dakota issosmart, although she has this slightly disturbing habit of talking about death all the time.”
Morgan tilted her head to the side.“Okay, you’re going to have to explain that one.”
“Her mom, Charlie, is an archeologist.Dakota completely idolizes her and is fixated on the human remains side of her mom’s occupation.So, she’s always dropping these random facts about death.”
Morgan watched me for a moment, a smile on her lips.“Wow.Your face really lights up when you talk about them.”
It struck me how easy things suddenly felt between us.A simple truce, and the tension from earlier had slipped away, replaced by something relaxed and comfortable.The moment felt almost like…a date.
Which it wasn’t.
I reached for a plate coming toward us on the conveyor belt at the same exact moment Morgan reached for it, too.Our fingers brushed, and we both pulled away.
“You go ahead,” I said, indicating that she should take the plate.
She grabbed the dish and slid two of the four sushi rolls onto mine before glancing at me with a smile.“We’ll share.”
And that made it feel even more like a date.The urge to lean in close to her again was difficult to resist, so I shoved a sushi roll into my mouth and turned to Henry.While we finished eating, I talked to my friend about our favorite football teams—the Giants for me and the Buffalo Bills for him—while the girls chatted on my other side.
It was fully dark outside when we finished dinner and it was time to head to the club.I covered the bill for all four of us despite Morgan’s protests, leaving a large tip for the staff to split as I slid off my stool.
I was ready to put distance between Morgan and me because being near her confused me…and made me crave things I swore I’d stopped believing in years ago.I was starting to feel emotions I hadn’t allowed myself to entertain since Ivy.Like wanting to trust someone again, wanting to show the parts of myself I kept guarded.Wanting something real…and being terrified of what it would cost me if I truly opened myself up to her.
“Come on,” I said to Henry.“Let’s get going.”
But my friend didn’t pick up on the reason for my urgency.He took his time sliding off his stool and putting his jacket on, all while Morgan and Whitney were gathering their things, too.Then, he opened his big, fat mouth.
“Why don’t you girls join us at the club?”he asked.
