“Stop it,” Jude said hoarsely, his smile fading. “Don’t look at me like that.”
“Like what?”
Jude stepped into his office and shut the door behind him. “Like you want me to fuck you right now.”
Mason’s chair hit the wall when he rose. “I do. The moment you walked in here, I wanted you.”
“I can’t do this. Not here.” Jude’s agonized voice ripped out of him in a whisper, but Mason watched desire rise in his velvety eyes. It was enough to hold him. For now.
“I know we can’t. But later? Tonight?” He walked as he talked and reached Jude at the door. Their chests touched, and feeling the heat pouring from Jude, Mason wanted to sink into him. “Can I come over?” Mason rubbed his nose alongside Jude’s and felt a full-body shudder ripple through him. God, he loved how responsive Jude was. Part of the pleasure of unwrapping the mystery of a man like Jude was watching him come undone.
“I-I have work to catch up on.” But Jude didn’t move, and Mason pressed his advantage by touching his lips to Jude’s, something he’d been dying to do since their last kiss that morning. His tongue slipped into Jude’s mouth, and denied all day, they shared hungry kisses, each starved for the other’s touch. Exhaustion that only minutes earlier had weighed so heavily on his shoulders melted away, replaced by a driving need to be with Jude. Hold him. Not let him go.
He knew it would take some convincing, and he was more than willing to push the limits. “So do I. We could do our work together. And then after…” He trailed soft kisses down Jude’s neck.
“After?” Jude sighed, tilting his head, and Mason smiled against the rapidly beating pulse under his lips.
“After, yeah. Because all work and no play makes Jude a grumpy son of a bitch. And I like the Jude from last night much better. So what do you say?”
“I am not grumpy.”
Mason snickered. “Are you owning up to being an SOB, then? Either way I win as long as I get you.”
Jude rested his hands on Mason’s arms. “Are we really doing this?”
“Depends on what you think ‘this’ is.”
Red spots flared on Jude’s cheeks, and he dipped his head. “I dunno. I guess, uh, are we dating?”
Something sweet and painful twisted in his chest, and his heart squeezed. He brushed his fingers along the strong plane of Jude’s jaw and tipped his chin up to meet his gaze. This Jude wasn’t the hard, arrogant man he used to loathe. Those eyes, once scathing and judgmental, now glowed with unexpected softness and a touch of confusion. The smile Mason had always seen as mocking now held a tender, almost shy quality in the tilt of his lips.
This Jude was dangerous to his heart, and Mason was powerless to resist.
“I’d like that. What about you?”
“I think you need to go home and get a change of clothes. I’ll see you later.”
Mason laughed, and after Jude left the office, he whistled as he put his laptop in the bag and picked up his phone to check if he’d gotten any texts. Doug and Ilana had remained off-line, and Mason could sympathize with Jude. He wished they’d keep in contact with even a simple hello, but realistically—if he and Jude were alone, in a romantic place, would he be thinking about posting on social media or texting the family? Hell to the no.
“What’s got you in such a good mood? Got a hot date?”
He jumped, and his phone flew in the air, crash-landing on his desk. “Jesus. What the hell?”
Pryce stood in his doorway, laughter brimming in his eyes. “Sorry. I didn’t think you were so deep in thought. Obviously you have something, orsomeone, on your mind.”
“Damn. You’re lucky it didn’t crack.” He slid the phone into his jacket pocket. “Yeah, I mean no. I don’t have a hot date. I was thinking about Doug and Ilana and how I wished I heard from them, but I would be the same way if I were on my honeymoon. I’d tune out the world.”
“For sure. So…if you don’t have a date, how about grabbing some dinner?”
A prickle of unease crept through him, and Mason wondered why he still didn’t trust Pryce fully. But he wanted to keep it on a friendly note since they would be working together.
“I do have plans, sorry. Besides, I don’t think it’s a great idea for coworkers to date. It makes things messy if it ends badly. Don’t you think?”
Pryce rubbed his chin. “And yet you went out with Russell your first day here.” At his surprised expression, Pryce gave a thin smile. “We might’ve hooked up and broken things off, but we still talk, so I guess it’s not always true that it ends badly.”
Mason leaned against the desk. “Look. I’m not saying we can’t hang out and go for drinks, but anything further could be problematic. It doesn’t mean I don’t want to be friends. I’m really glad we’re working so well together.”
“Maybe you’re right. I guess I wouldn’t like it if I saw someone I once cared about being all into another relationship right in my face every day. Okay. I’ll take a rain check on the hanging out.”
