Page 29 of If I See You Again

Malcolm

L eaving the hotel room was strange. It was like leaving home, and it wasn’t home. It wasn’t even David’s home. At least I didn’t have to do it by myself.

Since we both needed to go into the office, he insisted it would be easier if we went in together. It already looked suspicious, with David spending the holiday with my family and me, but I swore I also looked well fucked. Well, I was, but they didn’t need to know that.

I had to go home and change first, which meant showing him my apartment.

It wasn’t anything to be ashamed of. My place was actually nice, but I’d never once taken someone there.

You know, that whole never even making it to the first date thing.

That was how I knew David was different.

I’d let him in where I’d kept so many out.

My entire body vibrated with nerves as we got out of my car in the parking garage, not used to people intruding in my personal space.

I was feeling a little insecure about it.

David followed close behind me, and I wanted to turn around, explain things.

What the hell did I need to explain? That I wasn’t as obviously wealthy as he was.

He knew that already and didn’t seem to care.

The man didn’t come across as shallow at all.

He’d accepted me as a person from day one, no matter how hard I’d tried to push him away.

We rode the elevator to the fifth floor, and I led him down the hall, stopping in front of door 504.

The shiny gold numbers had given me such a sense of pride when I’d first rented the place.

It had been a dream to get a place there and to be able to afford it.

I had really done well for myself with my job, and I frequently needed to remind myself that I was more successful than I often believed.

The key turned in the lock, and the sound of the tumbler shifting echoed through my limbs.

A sweat broke out on my back as I opened the front door and reached for the light switch that was just inside.

Illumination filled the room, and I stood to the side, motioning for David to enter.

He gave me a soft smile as he crossed the threshold, and my nerves still wouldn’t settle.

“This is me,” I said unnecessarily as I followed him in, dropping my bags inside the doorway, much like I’d done at the hotel.

David wandered the living room, examining the black leather sofa that sat in the middle of the room. The thing was impractical, but it had screamed ‘ bachelor ’ when I’d bought it. Maybe that had been part of my issue. Live like you’re single and you’ll stay that way. It’d proven true… until now.

He sat down on the overstuffed cushions before reaching out and running his fingers along the glass coffee table that sat in front of it. “This is nice. Seems a little stiff for you, if you ask me.”

I snorted a laugh, walking deeper into the room to lean over the back of the couch. “Maybe? I don’t know. They all seemed like the right things to get at the time.”

David hummed before looking back at me. “One of the things I like the most about you is that you seem to go against the grain.”

Something warm wormed its way through my system at the compliment. Most people didn’t like different. They wanted predictable. Dependable. Boring? I at least had the dependable part down to an art, but predictable and boring? Nah. Not in a million years.

Instead of continuing to stand there and chit-chat, I needed to get ready for work, this time with minimal orgasm distraction.

At least I’d been able to shower back at the hotel.

Not that I was complaining about the orgasm part.

I had a new record for the number of times I’d been able to come within the last twenty-four hours.

It was like we’d made it our mission to try every last dirty thing we could, as if we would never get the chance again.

While I’d told David ‘ one last day ,’ that no longer rang true. He knew that, didn’t he?

I quickly pulled a fresh pressed shirt from my closet and a pair of slacks, changing before reaching for a matching tie and walking back to the living room so as not to keep David waiting.

He’d found the TV remote and had turned on the news, watching something about the morning commute.

It took me back to a few years ago when that had been my life.

I’d get up early, have a cup of coffee, and see what traffic was like before heading out for the day.

We still had a bit of time before needing to be in the office, so instead of saying anything, I detoured into the kitchen. I pulled two mugs from the cabinet before I set up the coffeepot. The carafe had just started filling when David appeared in the doorway, no doubt tired of waiting on me.

“What are you doing in here?” he asked, like it wasn’t obvious.

I reached for the fridge, pulling out my container of coffee creamer and placing it on the countertop next to the mugs. “I figured we had a little extra time. Might as well wake us up a little more.”

David hummed his approval, standing next to me at the counter and wrapping his arm around my waist. His scent instantly enveloped me.

Pine and citrus from his body wash took over my senses, almost overpowering the smell of the coffee.

All I wanted to do was turn in his embrace and bury my nose in his neck. Forget about work. Relive yesterday.

Wishful thinking.

“You’re still tired?”

I huffed a laugh at his question. “You’re not exhausted after yesterday?”

He shrugged, pulling away only to reach for the coffeepot and pour the liquid into both mugs. I poured a small amount of cream into each cup before putting it back in the fridge. Our drinks were still steaming, but I lifted my mug to my lips, blowing on it for a moment before taking a small sip.

David chuckled. “That’s fair.”

We stood there in my little kitchen, drinking our coffee until it was time to leave.

We placed our mugs in the sink, a problem for me to take care of later, before we headed back out the door.

A big part of me wanted to show David the rest of my place.

Maybe get him acquainted with the bedroom, but we had plenty of time for that. I wanted to give this a real chance.

The ride to the office was uneventful, though I checked the mirror several times before getting out of the car to make sure I didn’t have any visible love bites. It was probably something I should have done at home, but hello, David Garrison was sitting on my couch. You’d be distracted, too.

Everyone seemed to be in a good mood. The receptionist greeted us with a smile, even giving a small, flirtatious wave as we entered the building.

That had been something I’d always noticed in my time at Thomas and Braxton Advertising.

People were always cheerier after a major holiday.

It was even better after Christmas, and with the office holiday party coming up, there was bound to be even more excitement on the way.

We continued down the hall toward my office when Angela popped out of hers.

Her eyes widened seeing the two of us together, but she said nothing as she slipped back into her space.

The door clicking closed made me want to laugh a little.

There was no doubt my friend had a good idea about what I’d been up to over Thanksgiving.

What I hadn’t been expecting was to find Mr. Thomas sitting in my chair as we entered my office.

“Mr. Thomas? Good morning. Is there something I can help you with?”

He said nothing at first, only leaned forward to rest his elbows on my desk, steepling his hands under his chin.

“Mr. Fisher, care to tell me what’s happening here?”

My eyes widened as I turned to look at David, who didn’t look nearly as panicked as I felt.

Nope. He was cool as a cucumber. I’d always fold under pressure because I didn’t know how not to be suspicious.

I sucked at secrets. Never trust me with them.

Especially one as huge as sleeping with the client.

“Nothing, sir,” David answered for me, setting his briefcase in the empty chair. “This was my first holiday away from home, and I barged my way into Malcolm’s family.”

Mr. Thomas’s eyes narrowed. “I’m aware. There were pictures on social media.”

Shit. I hadn’t thought about any of that and hadn’t even checked to see what people had posted. My family knew about my relationship with David, and we’d been pretty open about things around them. My boss could have seen any number of things.

My heart slammed into my ribcage, threatening to burst free the longer Mr. Thomas sat there staring at us. It didn’t ease at all when he finally stood from the chair and walked out of the room without saying anything else.

I finally exhaled.