"Uh huh," I nodded as he pointed to the various improvements that were to be made.
"And right here," he said, bending so close that his lips were inches from my ear. "Here is your new office!"
"I get a new office?" I asked turning in surprise and nearly brushing my lips across his. We stared at each other for a moment, and then he looked back at the plans.
"Yes, right here, there's going to be a big office with room for a conference table and a bathroom off to one side so that you don't have to share with the warehouse workers," he said smiling. "What do you think?"
"I think it's amazing," I said, wondering how he was going to find the money to pay for all of this. Baby Steps was a profitable company, but I knew that we didn't have the kind of money this renovation would take.
"But you're wondering how we're going to pay for all of it, right?" he asked.
"How did you do that?"
"I know you, Leah," he said leaning down so that he was speaking softly into my ear again. "I know what you're thinking, and I know what you want."
For a moment, I wanted to lose myself in the smooth sound of his seductive voice, and I almost let go. Then a nagging doubt cropped up, and I remembered the way Sloan looked standing in front of his desk up in the office. He wasn't interested in me. He was just interested in the chase.
"Yeah, sure," I said ducking away from him as I pushed my chair back and stood up. "You know that I want a bigger office and my own bathroom. Don't we all?"
Jack's face fell as he stared back at me. I could tell that he was disappointed that I hadn't fallen for his seduction routine, and that annoyed me.
"Well, I thought you'd be a little more excited than this," he admitted.
"When will it be finished?" I asked as I moved back toward my computer and punched a few keys just to distract myself from the fact that he was still standing entirely too close to me. No matter what my mind said, my body was still responding to Jack's presence.
"Did I do something to offend you?" he asked quietly.
"No, what?" I said, spinning around to find him standing right behind me.
"Did I do something to offend you, Leah?" he repeated as he looked down at me. I squirmed as I looked up at him, trapped in his gaze.
I knew I shouldn't. I knew we shouldn't, but in an instant I made a choice and stepped close enough to rest my hands on his chest and raise myself up enough to kiss his lips. Eyes open, I saw his eyes widen with surprise, but he didn't back away. Instead, he kissed me softly without touching me. Our lips became the conduit for all the things we'd been holding back since the wake, but it was soft and sweet rather than the carnal passion I'd imagined every night alone in my bed.
He stood stock-still and let his lips lead the way. Gently kissing, and then flicking his tongue across my bottom lip before taking it between his teeth and gently pulling. I moaned softly into his mouth, and still he didn't move a muscle. I could feel his heart pounding wildly beneath the palms of my hands, but I followed his lead and didn't move. He urged my lips apart with his tongue and then teased the inside of my mouth when I acquiesced. He licked, sucked, and nibbled my lips as I reciprocated, eyes wide open as neither of us moved anything but our mouths.
I'd never felt such an erotic intoxication in my life, and I didn't want it to end. The sound of a slamming door caused us to jump apart. Startled by the noise and uncertain about what we'd just done, I looked down at the construction plans.
"These look great!" I said in a voice that was a little too loud. "I can't wait to see how this turns out."
"Um, okay," Jack said, tilting his head as he gave me a confused look. "Do you want to …?”
"I really need to get these orders entered in the computer, and I've got a ton of calls to make," I said rushing to fill the space where the question I didn't know how to answer lay. "I'll check in with you later, and we'll talk about the way we're going to accommodate our orders while the construction's going on, okay? Okay!"
"Okay, Leah," he said with a confused grin spreading across his face. He nodded and then grabbed the plans off of my desk and rolled them up as he headed out the door.
"You just let me know when you want to talk," he said before he turned and walked down the hallway. I could have sworn I heard him chuckling all the way back to his office.
*
Hours later, on the train home, I could still feel the heat of the kiss. I'd wanted more than just the kiss, and in the private, little part of my brain, I'd gone to the place where that kiss had led to something far steamier and satisfying. As the train pulled into the station, I pushed aside the movie I'd created, and with reddened cheeks, looked around to see if anyone had noticed. I was safe.
At first, after Jack had left my office, I'd wondered if I was going to get fired, but then as I thought more about it, I couldn't figure out why he hadn't said more afterward. He'd held back and then just left the office rather than taking charge and sweeping me off my feet.
"Okay, get a grip, Walsh," I muttered to myself as I walked the few blocks between the train station and the house. "We're in the twenty-first century, after all. Guys don't always take control. Sometimes women have to."
I continued the self-therapy session until I opened the front door and found Mama standing over Riley shouting at her.
"You stupid, good for nothing, useless idiot!" Mama yelled. "What in the hell is wrong with you? Answer me!"