Page 84 of Not In The Contract

I nodded. It was the orange block in our shared schedules that had eaten up more time than anything else.

“Two of the investors requested a new date because they couldn’t make it,” Katya explained. “And do you know what Alex did?”

“Sent them their mother’s severed hands in boxes?” I joked.

Katya looked downright appalled. “No!” she hissed. “She changed the date.Andshe let them pick a time and date!”

“When did this even happen?” I asked, dumbfounded that Alex had not only allowed her schedule to be changed, but allowed someone else to dictate the change itself.

“This morning during your first class.”

“No fucking way,” I murmured.

“Yes, effing way.” Katya nodded. She took Alex’s coffee from me and gave me a knowing look. “I’ll take this to Alex, you seem like you need some more time with your thoughts.”

I did, and however she’d figured it out, I was grateful to her. Katya had become an unintentional friend. Someone I was glad to have around. Especially because she knew Alex far better than I probably ever would.

Like clockwork, my mind turned back to the kiss and how much I wished it could have been something more. My phone buzzed inside my pocket and I wiped my hands on my jeans before answering.

“If you’re calling to ask about Katya, I’ll find you and bite you,” I said, and Tamera’s answering giggle immediately put me at ease.

“Kinky, I like it,” she purred. “But no, honey. Alas, I’m calling to find out if my wonderful best friend would deign to join me for lunch.”

“Like you even have to ask,” I scoffed. I slipped out of the kitchen, glancing down the hall toward the conference room. “Do you want me to meet you somewhere?”

“Pff, I’m parked downstairs,” she jeered. “Get your sexy butt down here!”

I’d thought as much. With a smile, I hung up and grabbed my things before hopping into the elevator.

Somehow, Tamera knew when I was having trouble. Whether it was with school or something else, she’d always called at precisely the right moment. She called it theforce, and I told her to keep her nerdism to herself. I’d watched Star Wars. Four times. I still didn’t get the hype.

“Damn, is it just me,” Tamera cheered as I got into the passenger seat, “or do you get hotter every day?”

“It’s just you.” I chuckled.

“Nah, I think it’s Alex.” She winked before joining traffic. “You seem so much more confident. Like you finally see what everybody else has been seeing.”

The sound of her name set my thoughts spiraling again, and I wondered how the hell I was going to explain what had happened.

“I do feel a little more comfortable,” I admitted. “Like I’m not trying to pretend to be someone I’m not.”

“Thank God, because Devon is awesome and you should respect that.”

I laughed, my gut twisting.

There really was only one way to say it… I took a deep breath. “We kissed.”

“As you should, because you’re a stunning bit- wait,what?”

Tamera turned her head toward me, her eyes trained on the road and if I wasn’t freaking out, it might have been a funny sight.

“We kissed,” I said a little louder that time.

“Uh, when did this happen?” she demanded. “I was not informed, and Alex certainly didn’t clear it with me first.”

“It was a couple of days ago,” I told her. “We were watching a movie and she started playing with my hair and, you know, one thing led to another. She even asked if I was okay with it.”

“Did you sleep with her?” Tamera demanded, her eyes bright with excitement.