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“He’s not the kind of guy to abuse that, though,” Seth says to me. “He might look it up, but he won’t use it unless you tell him you’re okay with that.”
I’m not so sure about this. Not after the way he bossed me into his office today. “He’s already had a conversation with me about us seeing each other,’ I say.
“And?” Poppy asks.
“And I’ve been trying hard to tell myself no, but you’ve just stomped all over that, thank you very much.”
She smiles triumphantly. “Good.” Then, softer, she says, “I like Owen for you. I know you both and I think you’d be a good match. And I think that even if it’s just a fling, it could be what you need to help you see that not every guy is going to hurt you.”
My heart continues making herself known.
She seems to agree with Poppy.
And the more she carries on, and the more I think about it, the more I wonder if Poppy might be right.
Maybe I should run with this.
Maybe I should use Owen for sex for a year.
Maybe it’s time to figure out how to be okay with getting all hurt out a few times in life.
8
Owen
Iarrive at work later than usual on Tuesday, striding into the break room to make coffee just after 6:30 a.m. I’ve been up since four running on my treadmill while reviewing our current positions, reading overnight news, and going over new opportunities. I called Julian at five thirty and got into a lengthy discussion over our positions which caused me to be later into the office than I prefer.
The office is already alive and busy, but the break room is quiet. There’s only one employee in here, and if I thought I was fully awake already, I’m proved wrong when I realize it’s Charlize. My body wakes right the hell up at the sight of her.
She has her head in the fridge when I walk in and straightens at the sound of company. Her gaze comes to me, a smile instantly kissing her lips and fast reaching her eyes. “Owen.”
Fuck, my name on her lips is the best kind of way to start a day. “Good morning.” I briefly wonder why she’s so early, but that thought is quickly discarded with her next move.
She runs her eyes over my body before bringing them back to my face. “You wear jeans as well as you wear a suit.”
Fuck me.
She appears to have moved past her concerns over dating me.
“They’re my preference.”
She gives me a sexy look. “Mine too.”
If we keep this up, I’ll have no hope of not kissing her here in the office. After the clusterfuck that was yesterday with Jill, kissing Charlize while she works for us is the last thing I should do.
She’s got one more day of work here.
I can last one day of not touching her.
After that, we’re going all in on a date.
In an effort to shift the conversation to safer topics, I say, “Would you like a coffee?”
She moves closer to me, stopping about two feet away. Nowhere near close enough, but actually far too close while I’m effectively her boss and unable to do any of the things I want to do. Looking at me with what can only be described as trouble in her eyes, she says, “Are you offering to go and get me a coffee? Or is this the part where I becomeyourassistant and go get you coffee?”
Jesus, we should not be in the same room today. “While the idea of you being my assistant is more appealing than it should be, that’s not what I had in mind.”
“What did you have in mind?”
