“Head wounds bleed a lot because the blood vessels in the scalp are—”
“Don’t you dare start lecturing me about anatomy, pipsqueak.This was serious.Who did you tell?”
She sighs and pulls away.I drop my hands to my sides but inch closer to her.
“No one.It was an accident,” she lies.
I cup her chin—so tiny and delicate in my oversized hand—and guide her face up toward mine.
“How can a pariah be so reckless?Don’t you know how badly that could’ve ended if you had a concussion?”
She opens her mouth, but I silence her by pressing my thumb to her lips.The smooth warmth of her flesh travels straight to my balls, and I hold back a tidal wave of pleasure by sheer force of will.
“Don’t you know how precious you are?How important?If you’d died…” My mouth dries as horror beyond measure streaks through me at the thought.“You need a protector.”
Unable to resist, I brush my thumb over her lip ring and bend closer until her breath warms my face.My entire back aches from the stooped position, but I’ll happily hold it if it means tasting her sweetness.
Her glazed eyes and flushed cheeks whip my arousal to dangerous heights.
“I’ll make sure no one ever hurts you again, sweet pea,” I vow.
Yearning fills her shimmering hazel orbs.This close, flecks of gold and green stand out amidst the light brown in her irises, and I long to drown in her beauty for centuries.
I dip closer.The hard curve of her lip ring teases my bottom lip.Just as I graze her mouth with mine, she jerks back and turns her face away.
“No.”
Her lifeless tone yanks the ground out from under my feet.I stumble and catch myself with my palm on the wall above her head.
Fuck.I lost control and overstepped.Again.
With self-hatred boiling in my blood, I rise to my full height and fix my suit as I step back.
“I apologize for being inappropriate, Ms.Miles.”
I revert to professionalism like a coward.She means too much for me to ask precisely what she means when she says no.If she’s refusing my kiss, my pride will take a major hit, but if she doesn’t want my protection, I may never recover.I fill my lungs for a calming breath, but her sweet vanilla scent ruins my efforts.I clear my throat and run my fingers through my hair.
“I’ll introduce you to your coworkers as soon as you’re ready,” I announce.
She curls her hands into fists and rolls her shoulders back before nodding.
I use the jabbing motion to lock away my emotions as I press the button to open the doors.Ensuring Penelope feels safe and supported at work is more important than lusting over her.Despite her nervousness, her authentic smile as she shakes hands and repeats names—a technique I taught her when I learned she was struggling with public speaking in high school—endears her coworkers to her.
Part of me realizes I retroactively chose individuals who not only had exceptional skills, but who I thought would mesh well with Penelope—and not just her sweet personality, but also the headstrong perfectionist she becomes in front of a computer.
When Jon Zhen, the oldest employee on the software specialist team, stands from behind his desk and openly gives her a skeptical once-over before offering her his hand, I tense, but Penelope accepts his handshake with the same generosity she did everyone else.
He doesn’t release her.She doesn’t pull away.Alarm spears through me, but before I can rip him away from her, his entire countenance softens and he nods, drops her hand, and returns to his desk.
“What just happened?”I ask her.
She shrugs, but the relief shining from her eyes tells a different story.
Kole Arden, a nineteen-year-old kid who graduated high school not long ago but with the drive and gumption to apply for a job, aced his interview, and earned praise from his supervisors on the first small project he worked on, perks up.
“Mr.Zhen did that to me, too.I figured it out.He’s checking for calluses,” he says.
“Geez, kid, don’t give away trade secrets,” Mr.Zhen calls from his desk.
