Then his mouth opened on hers. His hot, wet tongue slid along the seam of her lips before pushing through to her teeth. It startled her. It excited her.
Okay, so her handful of kisses had been back in the fifth grade, when a half-second peck on the lips during spin the bottle was a major deal.
This was a major deal!
No, Marley, kissing an employee is a major deal.
She jerked her head away and pushed against his chest with both hands. He let go, allowing her to take a quick step back to put some space between them. She had no idea what to say and while trying to come up with something, she raised a hand to her lips. They felt as if they’d been shot with a jolt of electricity.
Realizing he watched her, she dropped her hand to rest on the back of the desk chair.
Buck up, Marley. You didn’t get this far by acting like a woman.
“I think it’s time you get back to work.”
Justin paused at her cool, collected tone. The adrenaline coursing through his veins was similar to the rush he got when he used to rock climb with his brother. Back when he didn’t know the true meaning of accidents and what they could do to your life.
He wanted to stay, wanted to pull her against him for another taste to wipe away everything else.
But she was right. He needed to leave. Before he did something even more idiotic than the boss kissing his employee. She might not know about that, but he did. At least she’d had the sense to stop it. He strode across the trailer and reached for the doorknob.
“My father was killed the day he put in the lumber order for the rafters.”
His fingers tightened on the metal in his palm.
“I’m not trying to make excuses,” she continued. “I should’ve remembered to call in the new measurements. I just want you to know, under normal circumstances I’d never have made such a rookie mistake.”
Rookie mistake. His exact thought from earlier. Unnerved, he faced her and instantly wished he hadn’t. Moisture brightened her eyes again, only this time she contained the tears.
“It’s an honest mistake, Marley, anyone could’ve made it. Don’t beat yourself up.” He cringed inside. He’d been ready to fire her for it—still might have to.
She shook her head. “Except now it’s going to drain more money out of my already strained budget.”
The moment the words were out, Justin saw she hadn’t meant to reveal so much. Her mouth thinned with annoyance.
“I just wanted to, well, I guess I’d like you to know that I—”
A knock at the door cut her off, and Justin swung it open at her silent indication. Chuck pulled up short when he saw Justin. “Wondered where you’d gotten to.” He glanced at Marley. “Am I interrupting?”
“We’re finished.”
Justin gave a curt nod and stepped outside.
“Justin.”
He caught the doorjamb and leaned back in. “Yeah?”
“Thank you. For earlier and for, um, everything.”
His gaze locked with hers. He recognized the thank you was for the rafter—and the rest? Well, the rest was for something else. The color in her cheeks told him that.
He smiled briefly. “Anytime,” he said, telling himself he only referred to saving her life.
****
Justin hit the speed dial for Jordan’s cell phone as he shifted his Jeep into second and continued the winding drive down the mountain roads into Boulder.
Jordan answered on the third ring. “Yeah, what’s up?”