“You, Kai. Whenever I am talking, it is always about you,” she told him, teasing, but not unkind as she led us inward.
“If only that were true,” Kai declared, holding onto his heart. “If only you fell as madly in love with me as I am with you, I could die a happy man!”
“Aren’t you dating that sweet girl who delivers the pastries?”
“Dating is too strong a word,” Kai said, grin a little wicked.
“Whore,” Jules shot at him, giving him fake small eyes.
“I would gladly be your whore, Jules. Only yours.”
There was a hint of sincerity under the joking, jovial tone, making me wonder if maybe Kai wasn’t just playing around with his coworker, if he genuinely had feelings for Jules. It wouldn’t be too hard to believe. She was beautiful. She seemed sweet. And if she had men like Quinton and Finn who did things when she asked at times, she must have been a good employee, and therefore, have a good head on her shoulders.
“I’ll keep that in mind,” Jules said, her tone a little cautious suddenly. “Kai, this is Aven. Quin just took on her case. Aven, this is Kai. He’s a puppy dog,” she explained, though that seemed self-evident.
“Aven, from the reject pile?” he asked, then sent me an apologetic look. “Sorry. But Smith didn’t sign off on you.”
“I signed off on her,” Jules cut in, her chin raising like she was daring him to comment on that, though he didn’t seem the type at all.
“Well then! If Jules signed off on you, then you must be pretty awesome. See, I know this,” he told me, moving closer until our shoulders almost brushed, turning his head like he was telling me some big secret, “because I know that Jules is pretty awesome herself.”
I felt my lips curving up despite my shitty day. How could you help it with someone as charming as him?
“Kai, do you maybe want to show her to Quin’s? This damn phone won’t stop today,” she said as it started ringing.
It was the first time since walking in that I was aware that I was actually in an office building.
A nice one at that.
Things were decorated in a way that made it clear that the place was – for the most part – occupied by men. Meaning everything was streamlined to the point of almost OCD-neatness, and dark.
The floors were hardwood, gleaming, but almost black they were stained so deep. The couches and armchairs to either side of the front door were navy, as were the walls. Jules’s desk was sitting in the center of the room, long, dark wood that matched the floor. Behind her on the wall was silver letting declaring Quinton Baird and Associates.
“Oh,” she said suddenly as Kai held out an arm to me. Her hand was covering the receiver, and her eyes were apologetic. “I promised her coffee.”
“I can get her coffee,” he assured her, making her shoulders relax as though she had genuinely been worried about that. “This way, Aven,” he said, leading me toward the hall he had walked out of as we came in. There were doors on the sides with names, but no job titles. I saw Finn. Smith. Kai. Miller. Lincoln. Ranger. Gunner. At the very end of the hall, there was a coffee station complete with a drip pot, a single-serve machine, an electric tea kettle, and a glass front fridge full of creamers beside a shelf with various coffee and tea and even hot chocolate selections.
Prepared, these guys were.
For anything from corpse clean-up to sudden hot chocolate craving.
“Pick your poison,” Kai invited, letting me select a pod, but then taking over from there, brewing it into a paper to-go container. “How do you take it?”
“Cream, three sugars,” I admitted, cringing a little at my sweet preference, but knowing I wouldn’t be able to drink it without all three of them.
“Sweets for the sweet,” was all the comment he made as he prepared it. “No no,” he said, gently swatting my hand away when I automatically reached for it after he clamped a top on it. “Can’t have you burning your hands,” he told me as he slipped a coffee collar around it, then held it out to me.
“Thank you. You’re really sweet,” I told him, meaning it.
“Thanks. Can you put in a good word with Jules for me?” he asked, teasing, but there was an earnestness to him as well.
“Every chance I get,” I agreed as he led me to the door to my side, the one with Quinton’s name on it, knocking gently.
“Thanks, you’re a peach,” he declared as he pushed the door open. “Don’t worry. He’s not as scary as he looks at that big, intimidating desk of his,” Kai assured me as I moved in.
The door closed behind me, and we were alone again.