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“No, it’s okay, thank you.” I smiled at her. “My… friend is waiting for me outside.”
“No worries. Another time.” She opened the door. “Oh, text me your email address so I can send over your contract. See you later, Beryl.”
Must remember to ask Greid to help me set up an email address.
“Okay, will do. Bye.” I grinned at her and waved at Gavin and Ron as I slipped through the crowd to the doors.
The cold air outside prickled my cheeks after the humidity in the bar, but I was instantly distracted when I saw Greid leaning against the wall of the closed bakery next door, his dark face illuminated as he stared down at his phone.
He glanced over, and when he saw it was me, his face lit up as he straightened from the wall and pocketed his phone. He was wearing a long woollen coat over jeans and a sweater that looked soft and worn. He looked so handsome. And familiar. And safe. All I wanted to do was bury myself against him and breathe him in.
But when we met on the sidewalk, and I tipped my head back to grin up at him, I realised—no. That wasn’t all I wanted to do.
I wanted to kiss him. So bad.
“How did it go?” he asked, and my eyes locked onto his mouth before I forced myself to look away.
“I got the job,” I told him, beaming so wide my cheeks hurt.
Greid’s yellow eyes flared in the streetlights before he wrapped his arms around me and yanked me into his chest, squeezing me tight.
A second later, I felt him stiffen against me. “Uh, sorry, is this oka—”
“Yes,” I interrupted, squishing my cheek against his warm sweater.
“I’m so happy for you, Beryl,” he said hoarsely, then stepped back but kept his hands on my shoulders. “I hope you’re proud of yourself.”
“I am.” I realised my fingers were curled into his sweater, so I reluctantly let go. “I start officially on Monday.”
Shoving my hand into my coat pocket, I pulled out the envelope. “And look! I got paid. I can buy us dinner tonight.”
He grinned and shook his head as we started heading down the street. “No way. I’m getting it to congratulate you. Do you want to try the champagne tonight? To celebrate?”
“Yes.” What I really wanted to do was hold his hand, but they were stuffed in the pockets of his coat as we walked side by side. “Does that mean you’re not gonna smoke tonight? If you’re drinking?”
“Nah, I won’t smoke.” He was silent for a moment. “Well, maybe.”
I laughed, swaying into him to nudge his arm with my shoulder. When he grinned down at me, the artificial light from the streetlights sliding over his hair and making his yellow eyes gleam, my insides throbbed with dizzying warmth and excitement.
In that moment, it had nothing to do with how proud and happy I was over what I’d achieved tonight. How everything felt like it was finally clicking into place, and I was actually forging a new life for myself.
It had everything to do with him.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Greid
“How’s it looking?” I asked, trying to keep my head perfectly still as I watched the TV.
I was sitting on the floor in front of the couch and Beryl was behind me, perched on the edge as she messed with my hair. She’d told me she wanted to put it into space buns. Obviously, I couldn’t say no to her.
Getting to feel her small fingers running through my hair was just a bonus. My face spikes flexed in a gentle, continuous wave from the pleasure. Her warm thighs were bracketing my sides, and I had my arms hooked over them so she wouldn’t have to spread her legs stupidly wide for me to fit between them.
I didn’t want to move, ever. This was heaven.
She grunted, trying to secure one of the buns. “Your hair is really slippery.”
I chuckled. “Slippery?”
