I should’ve bathed. I knew that. I should’ve scrubbed myself clean of all evidence of her and let the hot water wash away the scent of her pheromones. But I couldn’t. I simply didn’t want to.
Instead, I wanted to wallow in it and remind myself that the last couple of nights hadn’t merely been a fever dream.
When the clock ticked nine on the dot, I strode from my car and made my way through the Distillery, feeling the chill of the employees’ gazes follow me through the cavernous space. No one wanted to be here today. The day after the solstice was usually spent with family, but with the way our processing times had slowed due to demand, I couldn’t afford to give them an additional day off. Not without delaying processing times even further.
I passed Dessi’s desk.
“Good morning, Ms. Burns,” she said, exactly like she did every single morning. I replied with my customary nod, striding past her and sequestering myself in the office.
When the double doors shut behind me, I felt the conversation pick up outside. A low hum—nothing more. I wouldn’t tolerate anything louder than that.
A sweeping glance around my desk assured me that everything was in place. My morning brew waited in its assigned coaster, papers were stacked neatly on my desk according to the order that I’d need them, and a small red light flashed on the holo link, letting me know that I had several unread messages.
None of that mattered right now as my finger jabbed the button on the intercom.
Dessi glanced up from her desk, eyes wide.
“Yes, Ms. Burns?” she said into the speaker.
“My office.”
She hesitated for the briefest second before picking up a notepad and a pen. Her heels were sharp on the tiles as she entered and let the doorswhooshshut behind her.
“You needed me?”
Terrible choice of words,I thought, sitting back in my chair.
She hovered by the door, refusing to take a single step closer. Was she worried about what might happen if she dared to breach the distance?
There was something about the way she looked today. Her cheeks held a distinct glow and her hair was freshly washed and styled. Neat as a pin, I thought. Dessi always looked well put together.
Why did it irk me that there was no evidence of our rendezvous on her skin? Even the slight indents I’d left on her mating gland had faded.
“Um.” She gripped her notepad tighter. “Did you need something?”
Yes,I needed everything from her. Her touch, her closeness, her burst of laughter ringing in my ear.
I’d jabbed the intercom buzzer on a whim. Hell, I hadn’t even taken the time to come up with a proper excuse to lure her in. That was truly pathetic.
“You look nice,” I ended up saying, hating the words as soon as they left my lips.
“Oh.” She glanced down at herself. “Thank you. I thought it would be appropriate, you know, for the solstice.”
A sheer gloss coated her lips, shimmering in the light. The image of her on her knees with her sweet little lips parted around my cock flashed through my mind.
“Ms. Burns.” Her voice dropped several decibels. “Stop looking at me like that.”
“Like what?” I asked, even though I knew exactly how I was staring at her. Lascivious would be a mild way of putting it.
She made an annoyed little noise. “If you’re not more careful, you’re going to give yourself away. No, scratch that. You’re going to givebothof us away!”
“Would that be so bad?”
As soon as the words left my lips, I knew exactly what I wanted from her—what I’d wanted from her all along.
“Yousaid you wanted to keep work and whatever-this-is separate,” she said.
That was what my lips had articulated, but certainly not what thudded through my heart. I never pushed forward with soft feelings, did I? It was a foolish move. I knew it would be wise to base forecasts on facts and numbers, rather than intangiblefeelings.
