“You’re beautiful,” he said barely audibly, creating flutters in my stomach. The softness in his gaze melted something in me, gluing me to the ground. I wasn’t able to speak. “There is something irresistible about you.”
I could barely breathe, my chest inflating with emotions. I tried to turn this into a joke because I didn’t have it in me to deal with what I was experiencing right now. It was unexpected and intense. “I bet you say this to every woman.”
He didn’t smile. No, he remained serious, cupping my cheek with his warm hand. I was leaning into it before I was even aware of what I was doing.
“Actually, you’re the first who I’ve said that to. I’ll be honest with you. Usually, I fuck girls and that’s it. I don’t have the need to tell them these things. Hell, they don’t even make me feel anything.”
“But I do?”
His lips curled into a half-smile, his unblinking gaze taking my breath away. “If you only knew… I can’t even put it into words, but I enjoy this more than I’ve thought.”
“This?”
“Being with you. You.” He ran a hand through his hair. “I don’t know what this is, but it feels good, right even.”
I didn’t know what to say. Did I feel the same way? I got dressed quickly and left the closet before he could say anything else. This was new territory to me too. I couldn’t fall for a playboy like him.
I returned to work right before the lunch time finished, hot and bothered from the hot scene in the closet. I sat down at my desk and willed my mind to think of anything else but Merritt, however, it was impossible.
I covered my face with my hands and sighed, reminded of the look in his eyes as he told me those words… He had been honest. I could feel it. He wasn’t just sweet-talking me. Even the kiss that he gave me in the closet before we parted ways had felt different. It felt meaningful.
“Camilla? Did you hear me?” I winced and dropped my hands, meeting the gaze of my coworker. If my memory served me right, her name was Megan.
“Yes?”
“I said that the Congressman had asked for you. He has some important guests and needs you to serve them coffee.”
“Sure. I’m right on it.” I jumped to my feet, telling myself to focus and stop daydreaming. I was working now, and I couldn’t afford to mess this opportunity up because of Merritt. I was better than that.
“Are you okay?” Megan asked me, her head tilted to the side, observing me.
I stopped in my tracks. “Yeah. Why?”
“You look flustered.” I almost pressed my hands against my cheeks, which felt scalding hot. I didn’t need her to become suspicious about me and sniff out what happened just a few minutes ago.
If she only knew I had just been banged, right near our office…
And then it hit me. I was being an idiot. I was playing with my career here for… What? A few quickies? And then what? I would be without a job and back to square one. What if my boss had seen us? What if someone else had seen us and started the rumors? What if Carter found out?
Letting Merritt take me to that coat closet was a mistake.
I choked back my annoyance with myself, making sure my neutral mask was on. I had to play my cards right.
“It’s just that it’s a bit too hot in here.” I fanned myself with my hand.
Megan glanced over her shoulder at the AC that wasn’t functioning currently. “Yeah, they should fix that AC by the end of this week. We’re all dying in here from the heat.”
“You can say that again.”
She returned to her computer to work on some document, and I went to the coffee maker, relieved that I managed to convince her with that excuse. That faulty AC was a lucky coincidence.
I expected to see Merritt by the end of my day, but it didn’t happen. Later, I heard from Megan that he was one of the most respected and liked people around here. Almost everybody had something nice to say about him, emphasizing the fact that he was an honest and hard-working politician with a vision.
He was dedicated and wanted to make our country a better place, which was praise-worthy. This was one of the things that made me more at
tracted to him because we were the same. We wanted to change the world for better.
I was so tired by the time I came home, and I wanted to hit the sack early, but I had promised my mom I would Skype her as soon as I finished with my job. So I showered, made myself a sandwich, and turned on Skype.