“I thought you said we wouldn’t have sex in my office again?”
“We aren’t having sex; we’re just making out.Heavilymaking out.”
I resume my amorous enterprise, but he isn’t having it, remarkably reasonable for once. “Andrea, it’s the middle of the day,” he manages to say despite the enthusiastic perseverance of my lips.
“They’re all downstairs, eating their lunch.”
“Anyone could come in.”
“They’ll knock, and you’ll tell them to go to hell,” I propose, nibbling at his earlobe.
“I thought you wanted to be discreet.”
Lex’s gestures grow soothing as he tries to quench the lustful hunger I have fallen victim to. My feverishness slowly fades away, and I give him one last, thorough kiss before moving back to look at him.
His fingers graze down my neck and my chest, brushing my hardened nipple as they pass it. His large palm then settles against my ribs, just under my breast, where he can surely feel the steadfast beats of my heart.
It’s his. Entirely. The heart under his hand, my soul, my body, my mind, my thoughts… I’m his. All of me.
Now’s the right time to tell him. Finally. He must know my heart belongs to him, so he’ll be sure not to break it.
“Lex, I—”
Two quick knocks on the door interrupt me. Before I can react, it opens.
“Sorry, I just saw your—”
Oliver stops dead in his tracks as I rip myself away from Lex, struggling to get on my feet. Pure dread invades me as I stare at Oli’s shocked expression.
My eyes move from Lex, still sprawled on the armchair, to Oli, stiffly standing in the doorway. Helpless, I witness how my friend’s face sinks into a wounded and troubled expression, and my heart drops low into my stomach.
Fuck, no! Not like this.
Chapter 39
Oliver tries to process what he just witnessed, his mouth parted in a silent accusation.
I remain unmoving as Lex slowly rises from the armchair. He stands next to me, ready to face whatever is coming. The traces of the intense kiss we exchanged are still on his flushed face and messy hair, and I’m sure they are also on me.
In Oliver’s eyes, I can perceive heartbreak and betrayal. Fuck, why did this have to happen like this? When I was so close to telling him?
“Oli, I—” I start, but a rush of humiliation clogs my throat, in the back of which I can almost taste bile. I never wanted to hurt him.
I need to explain, to make sense of this situation, but guilt paralyzes me. Before I can come up with something to say, Oli steps back into the hallway and closes the door behind him, leaving me with Lex.
When I look up at Lex to find some comfort, all I see is remorse. Why does he look so guilty? It doesn’t make any sense. Without him being so reasonable, Oli would have found us in an even more compromising position.
“Andrea, I’m sorry. I didn’t want this to—” He hesitates, struggling to find the words.
Regret. There’s undeniable regret in his voice.
An insidious, unwelcome thought claws its way into my head. But it’s too manipulative and cunning, and Lex isn’t like that. We discussed this; he knows how scared I am about my colleagues knowing the truth. He knows I wanted to preserve Oli’s feelings.
Lex wouldn’t do this to me.
Right?
“Tell me you didn’t know he was coming,” I beg.
