Page 79 of Not In The Contract

I didn’t move from my spot, too aware of her presence now that I’d sealed off my only escape. Was the room hotter?

“And I’m giving her a chance to talk to Tam before we leave for lunch,” I explained, my hand welded to the door handle.

“I didn’t know you liked to play matchmaker.” She grinned, turning away from her computer to look at me. She rested her chin on her laced fingers, her keen eyes pinning me to the spot.

The room was definitely hotter.

“I don’t usually,” I said with a shrug. “Just whenever I see a potential couple who need a little harmless intervention.”

“You sound just like my friends.” She chuckled and the butterflies that had taken up residence in my gut fluttered pleasantly.

“I do?” I giggled breathlessly. “Another compliment.”

I should have kept my mouth shut.

Because Alex’s gaze dropped to my lips, lingered there for too long, before her grin widened.

My heart beat erratically as I stumbled through all the things I could say to salvage the simmering tension between us, but she saved me the hassle.

“I think Tamera is waiting for you,” she said, nodding at the glass door.

Just beyond it, I could see Tamera flirting with a very flustered Katya.

Oh. Alex was giving me a way out. Had she noticed my change in attitude? Did she mistake it for discomfort? I looked back at Alex but she’d gone back to the work on her computer, leaving me free to stay or go.

I wondered at the part of me that begged me to stay.

“You are the greatest, most wonderful friend, you know that?”

I rolled my eyes for what felt like the tenth time since we’d left the office. “Yeah, yeah, buy me lunch.”

We walked arm in arm down the bustling sidewalk, squeezing between the throng of people that waded around us.

“I can’t believe I got her number!”

I frowned at her pointedly. “Were you somehow under the impression that you wouldn’t get her number?” I scoffed. “Did you forget to look in the mirror today? Or any day, really.”

“Climb down from your throne of lies,” she teased. “Enough about me. How are things at Casa del Dictator.”

“I have free time now.” I chuckled a little disbelievingly. “I feel like I’m getting work done so much faster than usual and I napped yesterday. Inapped!”

Tamera frowned, clearly impressed. “I thought we’d forsaken naps until we entered the halls of the ninety plus age group.”

I shook my head, laughing freely. “I might have become a little dependent on it,” I said. “But I can’t remember the last time I felt like this… like I was in control.”

Tamera hummed softly, her smirk devilish. “Do I detect that crush has perhaps upgraded?” she whispered. “Has the Self-Proclaimed Singleton thrown in the towel?”

“I don’t know what it is,” I said, my cheeks unbearably hot. “But there’s something there, and the longer we spend time together, the wilder it gets. I swear, there are days when I see her and the first thought through my head isrip her clothes off. It’s driving me crazy.”

“So she’s taught you the benefits of time management and you still want to bone her.” Tamera smirked. “Sounds like a win-win situation to me.”

Maybe it could be,I thought.

26. The Next Step

Alex

Subtletyhadneverbeenmy strong suit. I thrived on being straightforward and honest. It was how I conducted business, and it was how I maintained my most cherished friendships. What I hadn’t bargained on was how painfully obvious it made me when I tried to flirt. Ifflirtwas even the right term to use for whatever it was I was trying to do. The bottom line was that whatever I’d felt for Devon had grown, and I didn’t care to hide it anymore. I just hoped she felt the same way.