“Jealous?” Her eyes sparkle with amusement for the first time since she walked in.
I glare at her, which only makes her laugh.
Truth is, I don’t care if she laughs at me so long as she keeps looking lighter like this.
“How the mighty have fallen,” she teases with a dramatic tsk.
“Yes,” I admit shamelessly. “I’m jealous. And now I’m gonna make you pay for making me feel this way for the first time in my life.”
Before she can react, I hook an arm beneath her legs and throw her over my shoulder.
“Miles MacAllister,” she shrieks between laughs. “I’m your fucking boss. Put me down.”
“This is what happens when the boss doesn’t behave,” I tell her as soon as we make it to the parking lot.
After glancing around and finding nobody nearby, I give her ass a quick smack.
“Miles,” she yelps between laughs as she swats at me over her shoulder. “Stop that.”
“No, sugar. I’m past the point of playing nice.” The words come out rougher than I intended, every possessive thought I’ve been fighting all afternoon still simmering beneath my skin.
“Then punish me in the most delicious way possible,” she says as we reach her office.
“Happy to oblige.”
I shut the door behind us with my boot before slowly lowering her back onto her feet.
“Do you know the kind of hell I was in while you were off with Richie Rich?” I ask while pulling off my belt and tossing it onto the nearby chair.
“Hmm.” She shrugs out of her coat slowly, pure mischief dancing in her eyes. “No clue.”
“It took every ounce of self-control I had not to call Granny and activate the town gossip vine.”
A laugh threatens to break free, but I manage to hold it back.
Her eyes go ridiculously wide. “Oh wow. So I’m really in deep shit then. Because the local grape vine is serious business.”
“You have no idea, sugar.” I step closer until my hands settle on her waist. “You’re in deep, deep trouble.”
Her arms relax, dropping at her sides.
My thumbs drift beneath the hem of her sweater, brushing lightly against warm skin.
Her head tips back automatically, exposing her throat to me.
“All I could think about was him making you laugh,” I murmur before pressing a kiss beneath her jaw.
Another kiss.
“Him feeding you.”
Another kiss.
“Him taking care of you.”
Another.
“It damn near killed me thinking he might make you feel even a fraction of what I do.”
