He shrugged, finishing his blood bottle. “A little, but I wanted to come swimming with you.”
My hurt twinged at his words, but I tried not to take them to mean anything other than he wanted to hang out outside of work to get to know me better.
“Forgive me for asking—it’s unbearably rude—but are you and Rhys…?”
I sputtered and sprayed my sip of water on my familiar’s head. He wuffed at me, woken from a dead sleep. “I’m so sorry!” I used my towel to clean his head off. He licked my hand, blinked a long, slow blink, and went back to sleep. “No!” I said to Draven. “We’re friends. He’s like a brother to me.”
Draven nodded, dropping the subject. From his chair, he tossed his bottle into a huge, black trash can, and the bottle clinked loudly as it hit the bottom.
I put my hands up in the air like a dork and shouted, “Score!”
Draven smirked.
“Speaking of Rhys, I’ve been trying to get him to go to the new tea shop in town, The Tea Hobbit, but he’s apparently terrified of pixies.”
“Understandable.”
“Don’t take his side! I really want to go!”
“What if I go with and I give him business advice while we’re there? You were just asking me about that the other day. Something that will take his mind off the pixies.”
“You don’t think my sparkling wit will keep him occupied?”
He bit his lip and a dimple popped out.
Oh, heavens! Seriously, just stop getting cuter!
“I’m old enough not to walk into that one,” he said with a laugh, then he looked down at his shorts. “Well, looks like I’m dry.” His eyes found mine. “Ready for lunch?”
I got up, gathered my stuff, and shoved it in my beach bag. “I’m starving!”
I turned around and gasped. Draven had moved behind me without a sound. And he moved very, very fast.
“Can I carry that for you?” he asked, holding out a hand, being a gentleman.
I was dumfounded for a minute. Had anyone ever asked to carry my bag for me? The fact that it was very light and I could easily carry it wasn’t even on my radar.
“You have old world values that I appreciate very much,” I said to him, completely serious.
Somehow, he’d moved closer, and I was now getting a close-up view of his beautiful eyes and long, full eyelashes.
I tried not to breathe him in, because I knew his scent was kind of my kryptonite. He smelled like pine trees, rain, and limes. Three things that you wouldn’t think to put together, but on him, it hit me like a gut punch.
He smelledsogood.
He didn’t move, just stood there and gazed down at me. I tried to reach out empathically and get a sense of what he was feeling, but he was locked down tight, and there were only questions simmering in his eyes.
The air got heavy, and it felt sultry. Like the thick air before a lightning storm or a tornado. I wanted so badly to lean into him and just adore his mouth with mine, or maybe nibble on his chin, but I held myself back.
My heart was racing, and I knew he could hear it. His eyes grew very intense. My breath grew heavy.
Seriously, someone, throw me a life raft!
Intervention needed!
I can’t fall for my boss!
My tiger nudged between us and nosed Draven a step back from me. I swayed. Maybe I had heatstroke? I felt my warm face. I’d read about this online. I think I needed ice, and maybe ice cream? I needed something. And I really needed my heart to slow down.
