“You don’t want to have to lie to the people in your life about me.”
“Right.”
“And I don’t want to have to do the same.” I sigh and shake my head. “You see how complicated this all is?”
“I get it.”
“I won’t apologize for my reaction at the job site. But I will show you that you’re not just some girl I’m ashamed of.”
She groans. “Why do you do this?”
“What do you mean?”
“Make me want to get over it.”
I grin at her, cocking my head slightly. “You can’t help yourself.”
“I think I can.”
“No, you can’t. You’re utterly charmed by me.”
She makes a face. “Yeah, hardly. You’re the worst boss I’ve ever had, you know that, right?”
“I know,” I say, almost a whisper. “But I think you like that I’m hard on you, little Paige.”
I can’t help but look at her like I want to rip her clothes off. Truth is, that’s exactly what I want. She’s gorgeous, even this early in the morning, and I can tell she’s starting to come around to me again.
Just like I knew she would, my little Paige. My princess.
“You must not know me very well.”
I arch an eyebrow. “Oh, I think I do.”
“Yeah? I’m not so sure.”
I gesture at the waitress as she passes nearby. She comes over and I ask for the check. Paige watches me as I put money down on the table plus a generous tip.
“Come on,” I say, standing up. “I have one more surprise for you.”
She hesitates just a fraction of a second before following me up. We head through the dining hall again, not holding hands, although she does walk close. Instead of leading her back out through the lobby, I take her back to the elevators.
We get inside together and ride up.
This part is tricky, I know. This part could easily be misconstrued….
Or accurately understood, depending.
The elevator reaches one of the highest floors in the building and we get out. I lead her down a short, carpeted hallway, our steps muffled in the calming orange light, and I stop outside of the last door. I unlock it with a key and let her step inside ahead of me.
It’s a large suite, one of the nicest in the hotel. I rent it out from time to time at cost. I have a little deal with the owner of this place, if he lets me rent this one out, I let him have one of mine. It’s very discreet.
Paige steps inside and looks around. “Really nice,” she says, sounding impressed.
“I think so.” I let the door shut behind me. We’re in the sitting room, a moderately sized space with couches, chairs, a television above a fake fireplace, a bar in the back corner. There’s another short hall that leads to two bedrooms, one master with a full bath, and one guest room. There’s a full bath at the very end.
“What are we doing here?”
“This is yours today,” I say simply.
She arches an eyebrow. “I don’t need a place to stay.”
“I know that.” I place the key down on a side table. “But here it is anyway. Room service, movies, spa treatments downstairs, whatever you want. Put it on the room’s tab.”
She laughs softly. “So breakfast wasn’t the bribe, huh?”
“Breakfast was just getting you in a good mood before the bribe.” I grin at her and she laughs again.
“Okay, maybe you do know me. Pancakes usually work.”
“I thought so.”
She walks around the room, running her hand over the fabric on the couch. “This is really nice. What’s the catch? Don’t you need me to sort endless files today?”
“Nope,” I say. “I don’t. I can survive a day without you.”
“A day off in a nice hotel room.” She bites her lip, cocks her head. “Sounds awful lonely.”
That makes my heart beat fast. I step into the room, moving closer to her. She looks into my eyes and I know what she’s thinking.
“You don’t have to be alone,” I say gently. “If you want company, you can have it.”
“I don’t know what I want,” she answers.
I smirk and stop inches in front of her. She looks up into my eyes and maybe she’s right, maybe she doesn’t know.
But I can read passion there. It’s clear as day, clear as anything I’ve ever seen. She might not know what she wants, but I do.
“You want what I’ve been promising,” I say softly, my voice nearly a whisper. She tilts her head up closer to hear and I move down, lips brushing against her neck and ear. “You want what I’ve been hinting at.”
“What?”
“You want to feel good.”
I slide my lips along her cheek then kiss her.
The sharp intake of breath, her tongue against my tongue, god, I love it. I love this moment so much.
The first kiss before you go further, before you push her, before you give her what she needs. She’s dripping now in anticipation, thinking about the ways I can touch her…