Page 25 of Falling for Raine
“Good. Will you let Julia know, or should I write a formal letter or just walk out the door? I don’t know how this stuff works in England. Which is funny…I’m pretty good at it back home.”
“Good at what?”
“Sayinghasta la vista,” he quipped with a wan laugh.
“You’re resigning?”
“Well…yeah. We had sex,” he stage-whispered. “I can’t have sex with my boss. It’s wrong, and unethical, and I’ve learned my lesson. I will never ever, ever, ever?—”
“Understood,” I intercepted, biting my cheek to curb my smile. “That’s an admirable policy.”
“Cool. So how do you terminate employment in England with as little fanfare as possible?” Raine licked his lips and raked his teeth over them nervously. “I get it. I’m fired and I’m going…noworries. Actually, I have a lot of worries—employment and rent are top tier at the moment, but I’ll figure it out. If I can just avoid a security escort on my way out, that would be great. I know a few of the guards now and…well, that might get awkward. But hey, you’re the big cheese. You tell me.”
I crossed my arms and regarded Raine thoughtfully. This whirling dervish of a man radiated enough energy to send a jolt the equivalent of five cups of coffee through my system. I was suddenly wide awake, my veins thrumming with heat and the kind of inappropriate awareness that had led us here in the first place.
I was puzzled by my attraction to him. Raine was peculiar and quirky. In the light of day, he was impishly cute—not sexy, mysterious, or darkly handsome. In short, he wasn’t my type at all. I liked order. I liked cleanliness. I didn’t like messes of any sort, which should have made cutting ties extraordinarily easy.
Raine was vertically challenged, rumpled, untidy, and that shirt was definitely stained.
He was right. He had to go.
I opened my mouth to tell him so when my cell buzzed in my pocket. I glanced at the text marked urgent and made a series of questionable decisions I’d never be able to explain if my life depended on it.
“I’m not firing you.”
Raine’s jaw dropped. “You’re not?”
“Not yet, anyway. I’m sure there’s a story behind how you were hired, but I don’t have the time to hear it just now,” I said, striding toward the door.
“Got it. What about…us?”
I stopped short and glowered. “There is no us, Raine.”
“Oh, I know, I know. I meant should we talk about procedure or protocol or maybe just…forget it happened,” he suggested in a rush.
“If only it were that simple,” I mumbled to myself.
“What was your name, again?” He struck a quizzical pose and rubbed his temple.
The gesture pulled at the fabric of his suit coat. I ignored his quip and pointed at the splotchy mark next to his pocket. “Whatisthat on your shirt?”
“Uh…nothing. I, um…”
“Show me.”
He blew out his breath in a theatric rush and unbuttoned his suit coat, revealing the perfect print of an iron. “Appliances are kinda tricky here. No one warned me about English irons. American irons don’t do this.”
For the first time in weeks, I threw my head back and laughed aloud.
I moved to the door as my phone buzzed. “Right. I must go.”
“Yeah, of course.” His forehead creased adorably. “I’ll just…wait to hear from you?”
I regarded him for a beat. “Come to my office at the end of the day. Today or tomorrow is fine.”
Raine cleared his throat and nodded. “Got it. I don’t know where your office is, though, and something tells me I need to cross a bridge, feed a troll, and climb a castle wall for access. Or a secret code.”
I snorted. “I’m sure you’ll find your way, but I suggest not referring to Bernadette as a troll. You’ll regret it. But she may let you pass if you tell her you have the new file for Mint and Cooperton I requested.”