But this week, lunch was special.It was Meghan’s birthday.
“Ready?”
I looked over my shoulder.Emmett—wearing his signature dark jeans and a fitted sweater that hugged his biceps—stood outside my cubicle with his hands in his pockets.
“Give me one minute?”
He nodded and rolled his lips together.I didn’t know what to make of the gesture.
I finished an email and hit send before grabbing my purse, coat, hat, scarf, and gloves.It was a particularly cold January day.Emmett snickered at me as I began bundling up.
“Laugh it up, buddy.We’ll see who’s laughing when you and your flimsy sweater get frostbite.”I brushed past him and started down the hallway, feeling his presence behind me.The energy between us crackled like static electricity.I couldn’t put my finger on it, but there was an undeniable tension that made my heart race.
Standing beside him in the elevator, I stole a glance out of the corner of my eye, taking in the strong line of his jaw, the way his sweater stretched taut across his broad shoulders.He caught me looking and our eyes met.We held each other’s stare for a beat too long before I quickly averted my gaze.
When we arrived at the lobby, Emmett nudged me along with a hand on the small of my back.I barely felt the pressure.
Stupid winter coat.
Off to one side of the lobby, there was a man scrolling on his phone.
“Hey,” Emmett said.
The man’s head whipped up.I had to crane my neck to meet his eyes—he towered over both of us.Close-cropped dark hair framed a chiseled jawline, and impressively muscular arms strained against the sleeves of his dress shirt.He smiled broadly as he pulled Emmett into a hug, pounding his back affectionately.
“Hey, brother.”
Emmett then turned to me.
“Callie, this is Wick.We’ve been friends since we were kids.He works up on twenty-nine, in finance.”
“Hello, Callie.”His voice dripped with sex.He gave me an appraising look.“You about to make a trek up the North Mountain?”
“Nice to meet you.Did you just make aFrozenreference?”
“Indeed, I did.”
Emmett chuckled and shook his head.“Wick’s interests are extensive and surprising.”
“Can’t say I see a monster of a man like you curling up on a Sunday to watch Disney movies.”
“Actually, ‘monster’ is what the ladies call my c?—”
“Alright, that’s enough small talk.”Emmett clapped his friend on the shoulder, fixing him with a glare.
My lips twitched.
When Wick’s phone rang from his pocket, he nodded toward the doors.“Go ahead.I’m right behind you.”
We exited the lobby with Wick a few paces behind.I shivered, pulling my coat tighter around me as we stepped outside.Emmett looked over at me, amused.
“Cold?”he asked.His breath puffed out in clouds, but he seemed impervious to the arctic temperature.
“Freezing,” I said, my teeth chattering.“But at least I’ll still have all my extremities intact by the end of lunch.”
The rumble of his laugh reverberated low in my belly.We walked in comfortable silence for a few blocks until he spoke up again.
“So,” he started.I slowed my pace, noticing I had left him behind in my hurry to get out of the cold.The crunch of our footsteps in the snow was the only sound between us.
