Page 25 of Saved By the CEO

It is, unfortunately, one of the hottest things I have ever seen in my entire life.

Once he’s done, he finally breaks eye contact and stands. I can see that he’s just as affected by this as I am. There’s a moment—brief, stupid, dangerous—where I feel the urge to reach for him. To touch him. To help him the way he helped me.

Instead, I sit up and reach for my underwear.

Once I’m dressed, we leave the room. Dr. Shaw is sitting right outside, doing some administrative work on her laptop.

“Finished?” she asks.

I nod.

Duh.

Neither of us says anything on the way to his car. I get in on the passenger side and sink into the expensive leather, more relaxed than I’ve been in years. It feels like I’ve just had every muscle in my entire body massaged.

I look over at Mr. Bennett. The same cannot be said for him. He’s gripping the steering wheel so tightly I can see his knuckles blanching.

I wonder if he’s replaying what happened.

I immediately regret thinking that, because nowI’mreplaying it. The way he looked at me. How he said my name. His touch.

Heat stirs low in my stomach.

Goddammit.When did I become such a fucking horndog?

I need to nip this in the bud right away. I can’t go around fantasizing about my boss.

I look out the window, watching rain streak down the glass. Fifteen minutes later, Mr. Bennett stops outside my building.

“See you on Monday,” I say, but it comes out sounding more like a question.

He doesn’t look at me. “Yeah.”

I get out of the car and walk up the steps to my apartment building. He waits until I’m inside before driving off. I listen to the car pull away as the door closes behind me.

SEVEN

Ihave a sweat stain under my boobs. My thighs are chafing. I can’t breathe.

“One more time, ladies! You’re killing it!” the instructor yells in a disgustingly cheery voice from the front of the room.

Oh, I’ll be killing soon.

Annie lets out an enthusiastic “woo!” from my right, and I reconsider our friendship. The last time I went with her to one of her gym classes, I swore to myself I would never,evergive in again. It doesn’t matter how good Annie looks in leggings. I don’t need an ass like hers. It’s not worth it.

Yet here I am, dying.

Forty minutes of pure fucking torture later, we’re leaving the gym.

“If I ever so much as suggest that I want to come with you again, just shoot me in the head. It would be a mercy killing,” I say, which is not overdramatic and actually very reasonable.

She smacks my arm playfully. “It wasn’t that bad.”

“You don’t get it,” I begin. “When she told us to speed up, I saw the fucking tunnel. I’m never stepping through those doors again. I swear on my mom’s life.”

Annie laughs and rolls her eyes, but her smile softens. “How’s your mom, by the way?”

Oh boy. I’m about to be the biggest bummer.