Page 50 of In Love and Revenge

‘Is that the fire alarm? Everything okay?’ Concern instantly fills Sterling’s voice.

‘The panel broke, that’s all. There’s no fire,’ I reassure him.

‘What broke it?’ Sullivan asks.

I glare at him, the alarm piercing my ears with an incessant hammering to my eardrums.

‘Sorry, can’t hear you,’ I lie. ‘We’ll get this sorted. Speak soon.’

I swear the bastard’s smirking as I cut the video feed.

‘Is it the whole building? Can we reset it?’ Aurora shouts, already on her feet and looking out into the hallway, where we’re attracting attention from the staff.

‘It’s only my office. It’s zoned. If I reset it in time it won’t spread to the rest of the floor. Go and wait outside, where it’s quieter.’

‘I’m fine,’ she calls over the noise. ‘Let me help.’

A click above is the only warning we get before the sprinkler system kicks in and water sprays out over us both.

‘Bloody hell! Grab my laptop!’

I stride over to the control panel as Aurora fetches my laptop from the table and rushes into the hallway. Then she runs back inside.

‘What are you doing?’ I snap.

‘Everything’s getting wet!’ she cries, running over to me. ‘Give me your jacket.’

I shrug it off and hand it to her, and she rushes to drape it over my desktop computer and keyboard.

Water runs down my face as I turn my attention to the fire alarm controls and type in the override code.

Nothing happens.

‘Come on,’ I urge, fighting the desire to drive my fist through the blasted thing.

I try again, and there’s a delay before the siren stops, followed by the sprinklers shutting off.

‘Oh my God!’ Aurora gasps.

She’s standing in the middle of my office, staring at me. Her hair is plastered to her head, and her blue shirt has glued itself against her skin, showcasing the pattern of her lace bra underneath it.

‘Oh my God,’ she says again. ‘That was ...’ She looks down at her drenched clothes, then back at me. ‘You’re soaked. We’re both soaked.’

Her gaze is locked on to my white shirt. It’s stuck to my skin, showing my short, dark chest hair beneath it. Even my goddamn nipples think it’s a party they’re invited to.

Aurora clasps a hand over her mouth, her shoulders trembling. I step towards her, concern etching itself into my bones. Perhaps she’s in shock, or cold or—

She bursts into laughter.

‘You think this is ... funny?’ I stare at her.

She tries to stop, but she can’t. Her face is lit up, her eyes glowing as she snorts out another laugh that has her clutching her stomach like she’s in pain.

‘Kind of,’ she pants.

‘Kind of?’ I echo, placing my hands on my hips.

‘I mean, no ... Sorry.’ She bites her lower lip and looks at me.