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“Can’t you just, for once, be an asshole?”
“Nope, it’s not in my nature.” But he wasn’t pleased. The hard set of his jaw and the cold narrow of his gaze matched Sophie’s own feelings. “Any reason you want that?”
“Because I shouldn’tcare,” she huffed. “I feel bad that I can’t kiss you, and that’s so fucking annoying. If you were an asshole about it, I could be glad, but I’m not. Because you’re always so understanding. It’s pissing me off.”
The frustration slowly eased from his face, softening his features, until the hint of a smile appeared.
Sophie looked away. This was ridiculous. She shouldn’t want to smile right now. Hadn’t he heard her? She was annoyed.
He was annoying.
She didn’t even have to look at him to know he was sporting that goofy grin.
And all she wanted to do was kiss it off, but shecouldn’t.
She needed to get out of here. Get home and forget about this. But as she packed up and headed for the door, Mitch followed, and the question tumbled out before she could stop it. “Why are you still here, Mitch? What’s your game?”
* * *
MITCH
What in the peanut butter fuck was going on?
“Game? Sophie, hold on. Stop.” He turned her around. “If that’s what you think this is, I’ve massively fucked up. This has never been about sex.” At Sophie’s raised brow, he corrected himself. “Okay, it’s been a little bit about sex, but have you looked in a mirror lately? You can’t blame me. Even the way you glare is sexy.” He shook his head. It was fucking true. Every expression, every move she made, turned him on. “But even if we never had sex again, I’d still be interested inyou.Come on, tell me what’s really going on here.”
“Oh, think you know me that well, huh?”
Now he was getting somewhere.
“You’ve only scratched the surface.”
He would bet everything he owned that wasn’t the truth. “Then show me. Come on. You’re so sure that showing me the real you will scare me off? Go ahead. Show me. Watch me stick around. Maybe then you’ll finally believe it.”
She huffed. Tipped her head back. Rolled her shoulders.
Man, she was really gearing up for a fight.
But he wasn’t as fragile as most people assumed he was, and he damn well knew her better than she assumed he did.
Mitch was no genius, but he knew what he wanted. And he wasn’t going anywhere. No matter how hard she pushed him.
Sophie shook her head. “I don’t understand you. Are you seriously telling me that if this never became more, you’d be okay with that? I’m not fucking heartless. I want you to be happy, and you deserve someone who is willing to give you more than just crumbs.”
“Then be that person. Because I don’t want anyone else.”
“Mitch…” And in true Sophie fashion, she ducked her head and turned away.
He wasn’t concerned.
Sophie knew. Or maybe she was choosing to ignore how she continually went out of her way to touch him, always sitting closer than she needed to, brushing her hand along any part of him within reach each time she walked by.
She’d even started filling in the silences between them — a far cry from her “stay far away from me” attitude of his first week.Andshe’d agreed that they made a good team.With her actual words.
It was practically a miracle.
Theywerea great team. Mitch fielded the chatty Cathys and more rage-inducing requests, and Sophie took on the really tricky stuff. He wasn’t sure how, but she had the kind of detective skill that allowed a person to find a paint spot in a windowless, pitch-black room. And she wasn’t shy about sharing her knowledge, which was a rare trait.
He wanted Sophie any and every way he could have her. And nothing looked sexier on her than competence, so he was pretty much rocking a mental hard-on for her nine hours a day, five days a week.
