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I peek around me and see that he’s standing with the door wide open. His expression isn’t that arrogant yet chipper one he wears everywhere. In fact, it’s full of concern. “Shut the damn door!” I shout, and he quickly kicks the clothes that blocked the door from closing out of the way before shutting it.
What the hell? That’s twice he’s seen my ass in the worst possible way. I take a deep breath as the water washes the burning liquid away from my raw and swollen butt, and I try to stay calm.
This is probably the most embarrassing moment I’ve ever had as an adult. Well, other than the whole elevator disaster. How does one man who happens to be my boss witness my two most embarrassing moments?
There’s only one answer. I’m cursed.
Chapter 9
Emery
The door to Madison’s bathroom digs into my shoulder as I lean on it. This is not what I expected to happen when I was planning to apologize for being so snappy today. I’d meant to bridge that gap that’s been there since day one, and now it’s even wider. I’ve also seen her ass for the second time, and she’s embarrassed all over again. How can one woman have quite so many extremely awkward moments around me?
I don’t think I’ve ever seen a woman’s ass quite so red and swollen. And what the hell was on it? Did she shit her pants?
“Are you okay?” I call through the door.
There’s silence as the water runs on the other side of it. Then she says, “I think I’m allergic to that tanning lotion.”
Oh. That actually makes sense and isn’t nearly as horrific as the previous conclusion I’d come to. Then I remember the time that someone at the office accidentally ate some peanut butter flavored icing on a birthday cake and had to be rushed to a hospital.
“Are you having trouble breathing? If you are, then I need to get you to a hospital ASAP.”
“No, I’m fine! Other than my pride and dignity.”
I bet she’s humiliated, though nothing really beats sitting through an interview in her underwear. Especiallythose.
“If it’s an allergic reaction, you should take some antihistamines and put some calamine lotion on it.”
“Lucky for me, I don’t have either of those.” There’s so much sass in her voice. Most women I know would be crying or silent, and I can’t help but be drawn to her even when she’s being sarcastic.
I push off from the door and say, “That’s okay. I saw a little drugstore just down the road. Keep running water over it until I get back.”
I don’t wait for a reply, even though I know it’ll be her arguing with me. Somehow, it’s like she’s talking to her neighbor or friend rather than her boss. There’s no air of respect separating us, and I can’t think of anyone other than Dante and Noah that have talked to me like this in the past ten years.
It’s interesting, and it makes me want to spend more time with her.
When I get out of her apartment and into the cool night air, I take a deep breath. The whole time that I was inside, I was focused on Madison.
Now that I’m outside, I can feel the lightness inside me. How is a twenty-two year old intern making it feel like I can breathe again? Is it really that she doesn’t treat me like I’m someone special? Or is it something more than that?
I open the door to my Lambo and slide across the leather seat. Maybe treating her like I’m not just her boss will bridge that gap that’s been at the forefront of our work relationship.
I put the car into gear and drive down to the twenty-four hour drugstore down the road. As I’m getting out, I feel my phone buzz in my pocket.
Dante Poole:Where are you?
Under the text, there’s a picture of three women in bikinis. All of them look like porn stars with double D’s and tiny waists. Exactly the type of women that Dante falls head over dick for.
Emery Brooks:Something came up. I might not make it.
Dante Poole:Your loss. Guess I don’t have to share.
I click the phone screen off and go inside the drugstore. Strangely, I’m not all that upset about letting him have all three. Even though my talk with Madison has been anything but comfortable or simple, it’s refreshing to not have to be so charming. To not have to be Emery Brooks for once.
The clerk at the counter is chewing on a piece of beef jerky as I pay for the medicine. He doesn’t say a word. Just rings me up silently, and it’s like I’ve entered a different world. He doesn’t know me, so he just chews his jerky and gives me the absolute minimum amount of attention.
I don’t have to talk to him either. Neither of us intruding in the other’s peace. It’s so drastically different from the pool party that I almost struggle to believe anyone lives in a world like this. But then I remember that this was how life was before we started Aspire. When I was a kid, I didn’t have that constant weight on my shoulders to be someone.
