Tequila, Tequila

“Hey. Are you ready for lunch?”

I jolted at the sound of Jade’s voice. She was hovering at the top of the stairs and could see me since I was level with the doorway of Cameron’s office.

“Hey,” I said, smiling. “Give me a minute. I need to finish up here then get my phone sorted.”

“You’re good,” Cameron said, tossing the towel into the trash bag. “We’re done. It’s all cleaned up, and I can always answer the phone.”

“Are you sure?”

“Clean up? What did you do?” Jade was already hiding a laugh, and she tucked a wisp of her violet hair behind her ear as she walked toward me.

“I…spilled some coffee,” I said slowly.

“Some?” Cameron chuckled, shaking his head. “Try a whole mug.”

“A whole mug? Holy shit, Mal—what did you do? Miss the coaster?” Jade asked, coming to the doorway.

“I—yeah.” I sighed.

Cameron laughed again and held a hand out toward Jade. “You must be the best friend. Are you as much of a klutz as she is?”

My cheeks flooded with embarrassment as Jade all but froze on the spot. She looked Cameron up and down, very obviously, and grinned.

“Nobody is as much of a klutz as Mallory, and I’ve seen her great-aunt drunk. Jade.” She smiled as she shook his hand.

“Cameron.” He took his hand from hers and turned back to me. “Go take your lunch. It’s all good.”

I hesitated.

He gently pushed me in the shoulder. “Go. Oh, can you get some printer ink when you’re out? I don’t know what it is, but…”

I half-smiled. “I’ll call Casey and find out what it is. She gave me her number for this reason.”

“Yeah, and so she can gloat at me for weeks.” He sighed. “Go on, go, before I change my mind about you calling her.”

“Are you sure? I can do the phone, or help you finish up here, or—”

“What’s that?” He pointed to the glass of water on the desk.

“It’s a glass of water.”

He stared at me.

“Right. Got it.” I grimaced and waved the notebook. “I’ll just put this on my desk. Don’t touch it.”

“You’ll probably lose it on the way.”

I gasped. “I’m a klutz, not a forgetful toddler.”

Jade grinned. “Well…”

“You shut up.” I pointed at her and stalked toward my desk. I set the notebook down next to the keyboard and checked the screen. There was some weird program full of colors and graphs and stuff that I didn’t understand. After a brief frown, I grabbed my phone and my purse and turned to Jade. “Let’s go.”

“All right.” She tugged her purse strap onto her shoulder and bounced toward the door. “Let’s go!”

I pulled my purse straps up to my elbow and poked my head in the door to Cameron’s office. “Do you want me to get you anything when I’m gone?”

“Nope, I’m good.” He smiled, his bright eyes shining. “Have fun.”

I smiled back and turned, walking to Jade and urging her down the stairs. We’d barely taken a step when she leaned into me, grabbing my shirt, and said in a low voice, “Damn girl, he is fine with a capital ‘F.’”

A huge laugh came from inside Cameron’s office, and my jaw dropped at the knowledge he’d heard what she’d said.

Even Jade’s eyes went wide. “Let’s get lunch.”

“Mhmm.”

***

“Holy shit, he’s hot.”

I rolled my eyes. It was the third time she’d said that since we’d sat down in the diner and ordered.

She’d said it twice before we’d ordered, and three more times on the way.

“I know,” I said simply, reaching for my milkshake. “I have to look at him on a regular basis.”

She slumped forward and rested her chin in her hands. “He’s so beautiful. Like a sculpture in an art museum. Totally beautiful. Like someone picked all the best parts of a man and put them all together.”

She finished it off with a sigh.

A long, dreamy sigh that wouldn’t be out of place in a Disney princess movie.

“He’s also my boss,” I said slowly. “Doesn’t matter how hot he is. You can’t drool over him like he’s a pizza on cheat day.”

“Can I use him for masturbation material?”

“No!” I pinched the bridge of my nose. “Jade…”

She pursed her lips. “All right, all right. But I do not promise anything.”

I rolled my eyes and sipped my milkshake. “I told you he was hot. But he’s still my boss, so that’s the end of that.”

“Not for me.”

“Yes, for you. No great love stories start with screwing your best friend’s boss.”

Jade paused. “There are plenty that start with screwing your boss, though.”

“I am not going to sleep with my boss. Cut that out. And I wouldn’t say there are any great love stories that begin with anyone having sex with their boss.”

“That’s how my mom met my dad.”

“All right, so your parents are an exception to the rule.” I sighed as our food was brought over and deposited in front of us, the waitress pausing to see if we needed anything else. When we said we didn’t, she left us with a smile.