I watch her walk out, the sway of her hips betraying more than she intends. Silence lingers in the room until Chase mutters, “This is going to be interesting.”
He doesn’t bother to hide the smirk as he scrolls his phone. He’s not wrong. The road to Rochester isn’t just six hours of business. It’s six hours trapped together. No doors, no office walls, no distractions. Just her and me.
And after what already happened between us…
there’s no telling how far we’ll go once the sun goes down.
8
ELIZABETH
“Okay. Breathe.” I brace both palms against the sink, staring myself down in the bathroom mirror. “It’s just an overnight trip. Alone. With the man you can’t keep your damn hands off. No big deal, right?”
My cheeks are flushed, my pulse a drumbeat in my throat. I splash cold water over my face, but it only makes the skin tighter, hotter.
Professional. I’m supposed to be professional.
But my body doesn’t care about boundaries, it only cares about what his mouth feels like on mine, how his hands grip like he owns me.
A knock rattles the door. “You almost ready? We leave in a few,” Jon calls, voice dark and smooth, carrying through the wood like it belongs inside me.
I grip the porcelain until my knuckles ache.Get it together, Lizzy.I whisper, “Strong. Whatever happens—just be strong.” But when I unlock the door, there he is, leaning against theframe, smile curling slow and dangerous. My stomach drops straight through me.
“Ready?” he asks, like he already knows the answer.
I nod too fast, snatch up my bag and coat, and trail after him. Sherry’s glare cuts across the office, sharp as broken glass, but I barely feel it. How could I, when Jon’s stride is long and confident and I have to rush to keep up?
Outside, snowflakes cling to my lashes. He opens the passenger door, that old-world gentleman act that shouldn’t make my thighs squeeze together, but it does.
I slide into the leather seat, shivering, and he takes the wheel. His big hands rub together, warming themselves before gripping the steering column, veins taut under his skin. Heat trickles low in my belly as the car purrs to life.
The cabin fills with warmth as we pull onto the road. My phone buzzes in my bag—I thumb a quick text to Dani,alive, heading to Rochester, will explain later,—then shove it away.
Six hours. Just him and me. Trapped in this little bubble with no one else to cut the tension.
I try to break it first. “So… what’s the plan once we get there?”
His eyes stay on the road, but the corner of his mouth tilts. “Chase booked us two rooms at a hotel. We’ll check in, grab dinner, and tomorrow we sit down with Goldman. Simple.”
Two rooms. My body hears it as one.
I press my thighs tighter together and force a smile. Simple, he says— and I can’t blame him because I was the one who asked for the distance. Nothing about this is going to be simple.“Sounds like a nice vacation,” I say jokingly. “The only thing missing is the warm weather and sand beneath my feet.”
My attempt to lighten the mood seems to work as we spend the next few hours talking about anything and everything. It feels nice to have a conversation with him that doesn’t revolve around clients or attraction.
We are about an hour outside of Rochester when the snow starts to fall more frequently, and it becomes harder to see in front of us. My worry is that we will get snowed in and stuck in Rochester far longer than needed, or worse.
Every few feet, he hits a small slick area of the road, and my heart jumps every time. “Don’t you think we should pull over or turn around? The weather is getting pretty scary.”
I look at Jon, who is focusing on the road, and his mouth opens to speak, but before he can, a large truck traveling in the other lane splashes slush onto our windshield, causing Jon to brake and begin to slide out of control.
I close my eyes tightly and grip the seat belt that is strapped over me, praying that we make it out of this alive.
There’s a loud thud, and then everything stops moving. Although I’m scared, I peek through half-closed eyelids and see that we have slid right into a ditch.
“Oh, man. That was scary. Are you alright?” Jon asks, turning toward me.
I pat my hands down my body. “Yeah, I’m okay. Are you?” He nods and opens his car door, stepping out into the snow. I follow, not wanting to be in this death trap for another second.Looking around, we are surrounded by trees, with no other civilization in sight.
