His arms wrap around me. His palms go flat against my back.
His body is hard.
His breath is warm on my neck.
He smells so fucking good.
It's impossible to convince myself I can be his friend when he's this close.
But what's my other option?
Being his friend is a lot better than being his nothing.
And Kit is my friend.
A good friend.
Kit breaks the hug. He brushes past me to grab his leather jacket off his coat rack. "You eat lunch?"
I shake my head.
He chuckles. "Too queasy?"
"It's not nice to enjoy other people's pain."
"Just glad you'll learn your lesson."
"I did."
"Let me guess— you want something greasy."
I admit nothing.
He slides his arm around my waist to lead me out the door. "There are food carts down the street."
"Won't you get recognized?"
"It's just suits this time of day. They barely look up from their cell phones." He checks the door is locked then leads me to the elevator.
I press my back against the mirrored wall. My reflection confirms that I look tired. Sick even. I smooth my fit and flare dress and fix my ponytail but that only helps so much.
Kit leans against the wall, next to me. His eyes meet mine through the reflection. His hand brushes against mine.
That simple touch sets my body on fire. I'm acutely aware that we are alone in this elevator. There may only be eight seconds left in the ride, but that's eight seconds we could spend pressed together.
Kissing.
Touching.
Fucking.
The elevator ding pulls me back to reality. Only reality is Kit staring at me through our reflection, his gorgeous dark eyes filled with something I can't place.
Kit nods to the door. "This way."
This time, he leads without touching me. A few steps and we're outside. It's bright today. It's bright everyday but it's worse downtown. The sun is bouncing off the concrete.
I dig through my purse for my sunglasses. That's better. It's still bright. And loud. But I don't feel like I'm being assaulted with light.