I forced a smile that I hoped didn’t read as brittle. “Absolutely. Take all the time you need.”
This was my third time meeting with them. How much more time could he want? Ethan agreed; I’d perfected the pitch. It addressed all of Halston’s concerns from last time, and even preempted ones he hadn’t thought of yet. There was no reason to stall again. Except…
I saw them out, helping the men dodge the kids as we moved toward the elevator. And even though the kids called out to me as soon as they’d left, I looked straight ahead as I made my way back to my office. The gnawing tightness in my ribs grew sharper, and I wasted no time in soothing it with a neat shot of whiskey.
“How did it go?”
I grimaced as the amber liquid burned my throat, and turned slowly to face Maren standing in the door. Her apology was written all over her face. But her face wasn’t all I noticed.
“How do you think it went?” I stalked over to my desk for something to do. Something that would require me to stop staring at the way she filled out those goddamn jeans.
She glanced over her shoulder to where the kids were still playing, then slipped inside and shut the door behind her. “Sorry. They’re always a little—”
“A little what? Out of control?” I didn’t know why I was this upset, but found myself getting more and more agitated. “Correct me if I’m wrong, but aren’t you here to keep that in check?”
“Miles—”
“You had one job, Maren.” My hands flexed at my sides, tension coiling tighter with every breath. “We’ve been trying to land this client for years. All you had to do was handle those three for long enough so I could close the deal.”
Her posture shifted, defensive but controlled. I tried to ignore the way her t-shirt tightened over her breasts when she pushed out her chest.
“I handled them fine.”
“No,” I said, stepping closer, letting my shoulder press just slightly against hers as I leaned in. The subtle contact was deliberate, but contained. My pulse thumped hard. “You’re… too soft. They run wild and you—” I stopped, swallowed, caught myself before I said (or did) something I couldn’t take back.
A flurry of emotions sped across her face as she studied me. Up close, the burst of freckles on her nose and cheeks softened herfeatures even more. They drove home that girl-next-door thing she had going, and fuck me if I didn’t like a good girl.
“Too soft? Miles, they’re kids,” she said, unaware of the battle waging inside me. Or maybe not, given the way she didn’t remove herself from my orbit. Maybe she knew exactly what she was doing.
The idea sent a rush of desire coursing through my veins. Now the tug of war between us took on a different spin, and I leaned into it, my agitation morphing into something else entirely.
“They’re kids, and you’re the adult.”
Her gaze flicked to my mouth and back up again, her lips slightly parted with a hard breath she couldn’t help. A second to compose herself, and then, “They just got home from school. They’re tired, excited to be here, done with being cooped up and having to behave for their teachers all day. You want me to discipline them like we’re running a boot camp?”
“A professional would know there’s a middle ground,” I said. “I want to be able to get through a pitch without having the world fall down around me.”
Every fiber of my being fought the urge to throw her onto my desk and peel those jeans off her. I released a measured exhale, aware she was standing a breath away, warm, teasing something I couldn’t name, and all my control fraying in the midst of it. I was usually the one holding the cards in situations like this. The one making the play, and watching them fall into it.
But this was different.
Shewas different.
“You want them to fit into your version of perfect,” she said, soft but firm. And then harder, “But that’s not realistic, and it’s not fair. I’m sorry it ruined your meeting, but you’re the reason they were here in the first place. I couldn’t exactly leave themhome alone in the middle of the day while I brought you the folder that you forgot.”
The words hit, and I swayed on the spot before closing the last of the space between us. My chest pressed against hers, the air electric. I could feel her breath, warm against my neck. My hands twitched. I wanted to take her by the wrists and pin her against the door. To hell with the kids playing on the other side of it.
“Do you think that’s soft?” she whispered, tilting her head so she caught my gaze head-on. “To have their best interest at heart?”
I froze under the heat of that fiery green glare that burrowed under my skin, nearly setting me alight. Not allowed, on Ethan’s orders, but I closed my eyes to savor it. A whisper of what could happen. If I let it. My hands found her upper arms, fingers curling just enough to ground myself in the moment without crossing the line I couldn’t breach.
Her breathing deepened, and she looked at me with a look that fell somewhere between a question and a dare. The pull, the current in it, made everything else disappear. I could taste the sweet edge of her perfume, feel the heat radiating from her. I was so close.
Too close.
“Miles…” Her palms came up to my chest with barely any pressure, but it was enough to break the hazy spell I was under.
I swallowed, heart hammering. And then, just as my fingers itched to snake around the back of her neck and bring her mouth to mine… I let go. Stepped back. My hands dropped to my sides. I exhaled, choking back a disappointed groan.
