“You need to stop.” This boy was my poison.
“Why? Teasing you is still so much fun,” he chuckled. I felt that laugh in my sex.
I raised my perfectly tweezed brows. “If you can’t take direction from me, I can’t help you.”
Another stare off ensued, and I felt frazzled. “Look, maybe you should go? Come back another time.”
“I don’t think so, we’re not done.” His tone became firm. It was a blatant reminder of his assertive side. Reed Prescott could be a bossy fucker when he wanted to be.
“What if I want you to go?”
He shook his head. “I would say you’re lying, and I could easily prove that to you.”
Clamping my thighs together, my throat became dry. “You’re delusional,” I husked.
Reed tilted his head to the side and watched me with a knowing expression. “No, I’m a realist. We both know what will happen if I touch you, Teacup.” I could feel that dark energy of his reaching across the table.
Slamming the laptop closed, I barked. “Stop, Reed, I mean it.”
He held up his hands. “Yes, ma’am. Don’t get your panties in a twist. Look, I apologize, OK.”
“Thank you.”
“See, I can take direction.”
My legs were shaking beneath the desk as I stated. “I won’t accept you as a client if you’re going to act… inappropriately.”
“It depends on what you define as inappropriate: am I at least allowed to ask what you’re wearing under that shirt?” Reed was the master of the wind-up, and I knew he was joking to lighten the mood.
“I would certainly define that as inappropriate, and I know you’re just doing it to get a rise out of me.”
“Is it working?” he asked with a squint.
“No. The days of falling for the Prescott charm are over, as is this meeting. I have some papers for you to read. Some of them will need your signature.” I tugged the manila folder on the corner of the desk towards me and leafed through it.
Reed glanced down at the table. “Do I need to run them by my lawyer?”
“No. They’re standard documents that will permit me to access your medical history. If I’m going to be your counselor, I will need to know more about your background.”
Reed washed an uneasy hand down his face. “Oh, you don’t want to know about that. It’s rather grim.”
“I can’t imagine it’s worse than some of the stuff I’ve read.”
“You’d be surprised, Doc.”
“Well, I’ll need to see it anyway. It will help me be more effective in suggesting suitable treatments. You do realize that I am to produce a report each week on your progress to your coach.”
Reed’s neck became corded, and I could see he was annoyed, though he tried to hide it. “So, you’re going to spy on me?
“No, I will assess you and share my professional opinion.” The logical side of my brain started to work again, thank fuck, but Reed wasn’t having it. “Something recent must have happened for your behaviour to change so radically. If you don’t know what that is, I’m here to help you find out. You used to be guarded about parts of your past. Without realizing it, maybe you have experienced a trigger recently; something which has unleashed this angry part of yourself?”
I took note that he looked shocked as he took a deep swallow, but he hid his reaction to my words quickly. “You really are Miss Serious now. So professional.”
“Where my career is concerned, yes, I am.”
“When’s the last time you smiled?” he asked, his gaze digging into the side of my face.
“I smile all the time, thank you,” I replied, smoothing down my skirt over my knees, feeling agitated.
