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“We’re not?”
I want to be her friend.
Her friend, and much more.
Am I ready for that?
“Sorry. I didn’t mean it like that,” she says softly. “That came out rude. All I’m trying to say is… I work for you, Brock.”
“Yeah. That’s how we met. But now, there’s more to it.”
“Is there? I mean, I know there is, but I guess that’s still the bottom line.”
“The bottom line… meaning, the most important part. You think the most important part of what’s happening is… what? The office? My desk? Your desk? Paychecks?”
“No… not really.”
“What’s the most important part to you?”
“Um…” Her chest heaves as she gulps in air. “I can’t—sorry. I can’t say this to you. Not first. You go first.”
“You make it sound like a dare,” I tease. “Like we’re in some treehouse fort, about to sip stolen beers.”
That earns me a smile. “That’s another thing I never did. Steal beer.”
“My buddies and I did sometimes. Straight out of our parents’ refrigerators. There was a fort in an old oak tree at the park where we used to hang out. My mother caught me taking one of her wine coolers once, grounded me for a week.”
“Sounds like you earned it, Mister Wine-cooler burglar.”
“Yeah, I guess I did.”
“So, when you were about to steal your first sips from those illicit cans and bottles, you dared each other to go first?”
I nod. “Oh yeah. And I was the hero. I don’t back down, Gwen. That’s not my style.”
“Okay, good.” She stops tugging at her sweater and reaches up to tap my chest. “Then I dare you to go first.”
I love it when I break through her nervousness. Her eyes, hooded before and veiled with lashes, now open wide. She peers at me, with nothing hiding the playful glint in her eye.
There are sides to Gwen, just like with everyone. She can be shy one moment, then she’ll open up in the next.
Right now, she’s opening up.
She reaches for me. Her hand fits against my lower back muscles, just above my waistline. It’s a familiar touch, now that we’ve kissed several times. But even though it’s familiar, it’s still absolutely, totally intoxicating.
“Okay,” I say gruffly now, thanks to the desire flooding me. “I’ll go first. The bottom line. The bottom line isn’t about work, for me, with this. With us. The bottom line is that I haven’t felt like this before. I mean, ever. Being around you feels intoxicating, Gwen.”
“Like that tree house beer?”
“A hundred thousand times better.”
“Intoxicating…” she repeats. “Me?”
“You.”
“I don’t know what I did to make you feel like that.”
“You don’t have to do anything except be yourself.”
