Page 62 of Play for Power (Central Sparks #3)

the rug was pulled

Rosie

“ I read that manuscript and I love it! Set up a meeting and chat with the author to get an idea of what they’re after.

I have a great feeling about this one.” I beam at Jasper, who sits in the chair opposite me.

In my corner office. Because I’m the editor in chief of my very own imprint, Blush Books .

Really I thought it was hilarious to announce it to Chris, who is Mr. Blush himself.

“On it. So, how’s boss life, I feel like we don’t see you anymore.

” Jasper leans forward, his smile cheeky as he quickly types something on his phone and then turns back to me.

I flick over my calendar and emails but don’t note anything pressing, so I allow myself the few quick minutes to touch base with my friends. I do kind of miss them.

“Uh, it’s amazing.”

Halle storms through my office door, closing it behind her and skipping into the other seat opposite me. “Heard it was gossip time.” She giggles, with another strip of red licorice in her mouth. How her teeth haven’t fallen out, I will never know.

“It is not gossip time, it is precious work time.” I eye them both but then get a little ball of excitement in my belly at the prospect of spending just five minutes talking smack with these two. I check the time again and then lean back in my chair. “Okay, fine. Five minutes trash time. Go.”

“Okay, you and Mr. Thirteen?—”

“You can just call him Caleb.”

She shakes her head, ignoring me. “You guys have been banging like rabbits since the holiday weekend.” She wiggles her eyebrows.

“That is the longest break of a rule ever. Now you’ve got the promotion, you don’t need to work as hard.

Are you going back on the hunt, or are you guys, like…

dating or something?” I swear she almost snarls in disgust, but Jasper looks downright giddy.

“Can you pretty please keep him, I love watching his tight ass and pretty face walk through this office. It’s like a little afternoon snack every time he visits,” Jasper pleads.

“You two are the worst! I thought we were doing office gossip!” I’m going for annoyed, but I know I’m currently unable to wipe the smile off my face.

It’s true. I caved. Not fully, God no. But after feeling like a tightly pulled piece of dental floss one little stroke from falling off the edge two weeks ago, when I left our hotel in Chicago…I went to him. Yep. I made the move. It’s horrific.

“Oh, we can office gossip. But you’ve got to give us something about Pretty Face, or I’m going to forget about boundaries and start spying on your little midday romp sessions.” She gives me an overexaggerated wink, emphasizing her overexcited words and I can’t help the little snicker in response.

“Fine.” I give in, again. Jesus. What is wrong with me?

It’s all the goddamn orgasms. Maybe I need to put a stop to some of the sex, I think it’s melting my brain.

“For clarity, we’re not dating, it’s just sex.

It’s still a secret and we aren’t exclusive or anything.

I don’t have time to go on the hunt for anyone else, Caleb’s doing just fine, so I’ll keep him a bit longer.

” I smile at them with the mask they’re familiar with, ignoring the sour taste in my mouth with words that feel like an utter lie.

The truth is, I was so frustrated, and unable to think of anyone or anything after I got home that weekend, that I showed up at his office on the following Wednesday.

I made it two whole days because… ugh. I am so weak for that man.

Dressed in nothing but an oversized blazer and heels, my hair up, and a pair of fake glasses on. I sat on his desk and declared that his sex-retary had a message. And that’s how I caved.

I told him I needed him, told him that maybe it was something else, but that’s it.

And he could fuck me on his desk, or we ended it right there.

Thankfully, as I had anticipated, the man thinks with his dick and he didn’t press for more.

He tore the blazer and I think his whole office knew what we were up to.

Luckily, Ava’s office is on a different floor and Noah was in Chicago.

I’m just glad he hasn’t brought up that elevator talk again because, yeesh , I don’t know that I’m ready to do that.

I’m still coming to terms with the fact that it kind of did feel like I needed him, and not just sexually.

His company, it makes me feel calm, like I’m not losing control of my life, like it’s not heading to a pointy end where everything I know and love will just cease to exist. He makes me forget about my family and everything that comes with them.

We eat cereal, fuck, laugh, talk, he cooks, too, which…

what the fuck? And then we bang like unhinged rabbits and it’s the most at home I’ve felt in my apartment since Casey left.

It’s the most settled I have felt in my life, and maybe that’s the promotion? But…sometimes it feels like him.

If you think I’m about to say any of that out loud to myself, let alone Halle, Jasper, or even Caleb, you’re on freaking crack. I am just getting cozy with the thoughts.

“Okay.” Halle breathes, falling into her seat. “Because I don’t know if I’m ready to lose my wingwoman, you know? Like how do we go out and tease silly men and then take them home if you’ve gone steady on me.”

I sputter at her words. “You have nothing to worry about.” I laugh at her, and then promptly bury the nasty feeling of betrayal toward Caleb. “Enough about me, you’ve got two minutes to fill me in about the office.”

Jasper dives into a Daniel spiel, he’s been a bit surly since I moved into the new office, but he’s also been quieter and not getting himself into as much shit. Which should be good, but it’s suspicious. I’ve been keeping an eye on him. Glad for Steph, though.

It’s not until Jasper taps the desk in front of me that I realize I have been checking the time and then checking my phone. It’s lunchtime, and Caleb isn’t here yet.

“Hello, Earth to Garcia!” Jasper clicks in front of my face. “Girl, you good, what has gotten into you?”

“All that lunchtime dick, you counting down or what?” Halle dramatically points at her watch-less wrist as they both snicker.

I give them a bored look, but…I am counting down.

And it isn’t even for the dicking…it is for the kiss.

Honestly, I need a sage-ing or something, there is obviously a spirit possessing me.

But…Caleb’s kisses? In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, they are panty-melting.

Even more so since the sex-retary moment.

He comes, brings me lunch, and then he kisses me hello.

We sit and we eat, we rarely fool around in my office, more because I have people dropping by often and my schedule is packed, so I don’t have enough time.

I don’t correct Halle, though, because I’m not going to tell her that I look forward to spending lunch with Caleb, chatting, teasing, laughing, eating, and then when he leaves, getting that kiss goodbye.

Fuck. He eats me up with his eyes and then his lips sear across my skin.

They’re soft and teasing and there is always a promise of what’s to come that night before he pulls back, always with a last kiss on my cheek.

Then he’s gone. And I am a fucking sucker for it every time. No way am I about to tell them that.

“Okay, speaking of, you two need to head out, I have an inbox full of shit and some edits I need to go over. Gossip time is done.” They groan, heaving their way out of the office, leaving the door open on their way out, which I don’t mind.

I open a tour schedule I need to approve for an author and then see Jessie’s email in my inbox. I flick through the last round of suggestions he’s gone through, going over all his changes, and I smile.

It’s perfect. His writing is truly an art form, I don’t know how he hadn’t done this sooner. I flick off my responses but keep the doc open to read through again, and as I’m starting the mundane part of clearing my inbox, my thoughts wander…again.

To tall, filthy, and flirty.

My mind is consumed by him, and normally this would freak me out, but it’s starting to sit okay in my head.

Sometimes, after a good day of talking and laughing with him, maybe even a night out with our usual games in a bar and then fantastic sex, I consider the nonexclusive situation he asked for.

I tell myself that maybe I actually do want that.

I nearly demanded it one night when I saw some leggy blonde put her hand on his arm and gave him the fuck-me eyes.

I’ve never wanted to claw a bitch’s eyes out over a guy before, so that was an alarming emotion to have course through me.

Thankfully, Caleb had just dismissed her casually, without causing a scene so I didn’t have to embarrass myself in front of our friends by making some hasty decision.

Though Caleb seemed to have really enjoyed the look on my face.

I tied him to my chair again that night, just to shut up his smugness.