Page 14 of Most Likely to Deny Love (Yearbook #2)

MIA

“ I really would have been okay to work tonight.”

“Given that you fell asleep on the table last night, I highly doubt that.”

Yeah, okay, he had a point.

Jack’s Audi purred to a stop in front of my house, the headlights illuminating the row of cars already parked in the driveway and along the curb. I stared at them in confusion before remembering. Friday was girls’ night. Shit. How had that completely slipped my mind?

“Popular place,” Jack commented, his deep voice breaking through my mental fog.

“Girls’ night,” I explained with a tired smile. “I completely forgot.”

Before I could reach for the door handle, Jack was already out of the car, walking around to my side. As he pulled open the passenger door, I caught a flicker of movement at the living room window. Great. My friends had definitely spotted us.

“Thank you for the ride.” I go out, trying to ignore the way my heart rate picked up when his hand briefly steadied my elbow.

“Of course.” His voice was low, almost intimate in the soft wash of light from the porch. The light caught the angles of his face, making him look even more handsome, if that was possible. “Have a good weekend, Mia.”

The way he said my name, with that slight roughness around the edges, made my stomach flip. I needed to get a grip. He was my boss, for fuck’s sake.

“You too, Jack.” I clutched my bag closer, like it was a life line. “See you Monday.”

He nodded, his eyes holding mine for a beat longer than strictly necessary before he stepped back. I turned and made my way up the driveway, feeling his gaze on my back the entire time.

My key was barely out of my purse when the door swung open, revealing Emily with a shit-eating grin that could only mean trouble.

“Well, well, well,” she drawled. “What are you doing home so early? I thought you were working late with Mr. Broody again.”

I pushed past her into the house, kicking off my heels with a sigh of relief. “Jack wouldn’t let me work tonight.”

“Huh? How come?” Emily’s expression shifted as she took a closer look at my face. “Never mind. You look like shit. In you get.”

Behind me, I heard the soft purr of Jack’s car pulling away from the curb as Emily closed the door.

“Ladies,” she announced as we moved toward the living room. “Mia’s home early, and she’s had it, so we’re implementing an emergency Unfuck Your Day.”

I stepped into the living room to find it packed with the most important people in my life.

Poppy was perched on the arm of the sofa, her pink hair piled high in a messy bun.

Maya lounged in the armchair, while twins Samara and Annie sat cross-legged on the floor, surrounded by wine bottles and takeout containers.

Sisters Hannah and Cassidy were on the couch.

We’d all been tight since high school and I know I couldn’t have got by without them.

Now, they all turned toward me with identical expressions that shifted from excitement to concern.

On any other night, I might have been up for the chaos, but right now even keeping my eyes open felt like a challenge.

“You. Sit.” Maya pointed to the spot on couch Hannah had just vacated. The moment I sat, Cassidy covered me in a soft throw.

“You okay?” Cassidy as the oldest of us, always took that motherly tone.

“I’m fine,” I said weakly, even as I melted into the cushions. “Just a little tired.”

“Wine,” Poppy declared, already pouring. “And food. You look like you haven’t eaten in days.”

Within moments, I had a plate balanced on my lap, merlot in hand, and the comforting weight of the blanket tucked around me.

Emily settled into the armchair opposite me with a gleam in her eye. “Now tell us why Mr. Broody had to personally drive you home.”

“Yeah, spill,” Maya added. “Emily said you’ve been getting in after ten every night. What exactly have you been doing on all these late night sessions?”

Lusting was the honest answer, but I wasn’t about to say that out loud. “It’s just a work project that can’t be done in hours. That’s all.”

“That’s all?” Hannah snorted. “Men who are ‘just bosses’ don’t personally chauffeur their employees home every night for a week.”

“Or let them drive themselves,” Cassidy added, tucking a strand of blonde hair behind her ear. “It’s highly unusual professional behavior.”

“There’s nothing unusual about it,” I protested. “I was tired. He was just being nice.”

“Was he just being nice when he practically had his arm around you getting out of the car?” Hannah put air quotes around the words.

“I gotta say, he’s pretty damn hot,” Samara put in.

“You should have seen him at the gym earlier this week,” Emily announced. “I’m talking muscles for days. The way that t-shirt stretched across his chest? Criminal.”

“You were at the gym with Hot Boss?” Poppy gasped.

“We weren’t with him,” I clarified quickly. “He happened to be there at the same time.”

“A delicious coincidence,” Emily waggled her eyebrows. “He was benching what looked like a small car, and Mia practically walked into a wall when she spotted him.”

“I did not!” Heat flooded my face as everyone burst into laughter.

“You absolutely did,” Emily insisted. “And then you couldn’t stop staring.”

“What’s he like as a boss?” Annie asked softly, redirecting the conversation in her gentle way. “Is he as intense as Emily says?”

I hesitated, thinking of Jack’s focused expression when he worked, the way his eyes lit up when he caught onto a good idea, how he’d insisted I eat during our late-night sessions.

“He’s... complicated,” I admitted. “Driven, yes. Intense, definitely. But also unexpectedly thoughtful.” The memory of waking up with him gently calling my name made my cheeks warm again.

“Oooh, thoughtful,” Poppy cooed, refilling my glass. “Do tell.”

“Nothing to tell,” I insisted, pulling the blanket higher. “He’s my boss. End of story.”

“Your boss who wears cologne that probably costs more than my monthly rent,” Emily added. “Seriously, girls, he smells like money and sin.”

“Money and sin?” Maya repeated with a laugh. “Is that Bath & Body Works’ new fall collection?”

Everyone cracked up. Hannah raised her glass. “To Mia’s hot boss. May he continue to be professionally inappropriate in all the right ways.”

“I hate all of you,” I groaned, but couldn’t help smiling as I clinked my glass against theirs.

By the time we settled in to watch a movie, I was three bites of food and half a glass of wine away from unconsciousness. The last thing I remembered was Annie gently tucking the blanket more securely around my shoulders before I surrendered completely to sleep.

The sound of the front door opening woke me. I blinked in confusion, realizing the movie had ended and the room was dimly lit. Most of my friends were gathering their things, speaking in hushed voices.

“Hey there, sleepyhead,” Emily whispered. “You’ve been out for almost two hours.”

“Sorry,” I mumbled, trying to sit up.

“Shh, you needed it.” She patted my hand. “Harle’s just here to get Cassidy.”

“Oh.” I glanced toward the entrance way. Harle Robson stood there, looking sinfully gorgeous with his dirty-blond hair tied in a knot and his beard neatly trimmed. When Hannah had told us Cassidy’s new guy looked like a Viking god, we’d thought she was exaggerating. She wasn’t.

“Evening, ladies.”

Every single woman in the room gazed at him with starry eyed adoration. And no wonder. He’d taken our beautiful, broken fearful friend and given her so much love that she’d had no choice but to love him right back.

Harle’s gaze swept the room, landing on me bundled under my blanket. Concern immediately crossed his features. “You feeling poorly?”

“Just tired,” I assured him. “Long week.”

He nodded, understanding in his deep blue eyes. “Nothing a good night’s sleep won’t fix, I reckon.”

“Yeah, you’re probably right.”

Cassidy came through from the kitchen and the minute Harle’s eyes landed on her, his whole face softened with a tenderness that made my chest ache. “Ready to go, darlin’?”

Cassidy’s composed demeanor melted as she crossed to him, slipping into his arms and brushing a light kiss against his lips. “Sure thing.”

I watched as he helped her into her coat. The way he looked at her, like she was the most precious thing in his world, made something twist inside me.

As the door closed behind them, Poppy darted to the window. “Just gotta check if they’re doing their thing?”

“The whole ‘ I can’t get in my truck without kissing you senseless first ’ routine?” Maya asked knowingly.

Poppy squealed softly. “They are! God, he’s wrapped around her like a blanket.”

“Remember how skittish she used to be about PDA?” Hannah joined her at the window. “Now look at her.”

“We love that for her,” Samara sighed, gathering empty plates.

“We sure do,” I agreed.

The rest of the girls stayed a little longer, helping Emily tidy up as I remained on the couch under strict instructions not to move. I slumped back against the cushions, that same ache returning to my chest. I couldn’t imagine anyone looking at me the way Harle looked at Cassidy.

Once the girls had all said quiet good nights, Emily appeared beside me. “How’re you doing?”

“Good. Just thinking.”

“About a certain tall, broody executive?” she teased, though her eyes were kind.

I pulled the blanket back over my legs. “No,” I lied. “Just thinking about how nice it is to have friends who let you pass out during girls’ night without making fun of you.”

“Oh, we’ll definitely make fun of you,” Emily assured me with a grin. “Just not tonight.”

I smiled and closed my eyes, trying not to think about hazel eyes and gentle hands, or the imagined feel of fingers brushing against my cheek. Trying not to wonder what it might feel like to be kissed the way Harle kissed Cassidy, like something precious and irreplaceable.

Just for tonight, I’d allow myself to be taken care of. Tomorrow was soon enough to remember all the reasons why Jack Sullivan was absolutely, completely off-limits.