The music came on. Kami turned it up, then mouthed, “Good luck.”
Annie picked up the microphone and began to sing.
She had a modest voice, at best. Soft, without a lot of range. But someone had to save the party and everyone else was too afraid. So she did her best and ignored the waver in her voice and the heat burning her cheeks.
At the chorus, Jenny and Kami joined in. Then a couple of people in the crowd sang along. A few more sang the second chorus and by the third time around, most of the people in the room were nodding along.
A couple of women came up and said they wanted to sing. By the time they were done, there was a line of people waiting. She gratefully handed off the microphone.
She grabbed her wine and finished it in a single gulp. She was still shaking. The good news was people were actually talking to each other and she saw a couple filling plates with food.
Duncan joined her. “You were singing.”
“I know.”
His expression was hard to read. “Why?”
“Was it that bad?”
“No, but you were uncomfortable.”
“The party was dying. Something had to be done.”
Duncan looked around at his employees, then back at her. “This wasn’t your responsibility.”
“People should have a good time at an office party. Isn’t that the point of giving it? So they can hang out together, talk and learn about each other in a way that isn’t about work?”
He stared at her blankly.
She pointed at the people in the room. “Go talk to them. Ask questions about their lives. Pretend interest.”
“Then what?”
“Smile. It will confuse them.”
He looked at her quizzically, then did as she said. She watched him approach a group of guys who were drinking beer and tugging at their ties.
The employees weren’t the only ones who were confused, she thought, staring at Duncan. She was, as well. She was with him for a reason that had nothing to do with caring or being involved. He’d basically blackmailed her into pretend dating him so he could fool the world into thinking he was a nice guy. So why did she want to be next to him now, helping him? Why did the sight of his smile make her want to smile in return?
Complications she couldn’t afford, she reminded herself. She wanted forever and Duncan wanted to be left alone. She was staff, he was the boss. There were a thousand reasons why nothing would ever work out between them.
And not one of them could stop her from wishing for the very thing she could never have.
Six
Duncan kept his hand firmly around Annie’s elbow as he guided her toward his car in the parking lot. One of the first rules of boxing was not to fight mad. It gave your opponent an advantage. He’d learned the lesson also applied to all areas of life, so he wasn’t going to say anything until he was sure he was under control. A state hard to imagine as anger pulsed in time with his heartbeat.
He was beyond pissed. He could feel the emotions boiling up inside him. The need to lash out, to yell—something he never did—nearly overwhelmed him.
“Just say it,” Annie said calmly, when they reached the car.
He pushed the button to unlock the doors, then opened hers. “I have nothing to say.”
She rolled her eyes. “You’re practically frothing at the mouth. You need to just say it.”
“I’m fine,” he growled, waiting until she got into the car, then closing her door.
He walked around and got in on the driver’s side. She put her hand on his arm.
“Duncan, you’ll feel better.”
He angled toward her, staring into her wide blue eyes, nearly vibrating with rage. “You had no right.”
“So you are mad.”
“What the hell were you thinking.”
She sighed. “So much for the warm fuzzies.”
He narrowed his gaze. “Excuse me?”
“Before, at the party, when I brought in the karaoke machine and humiliated myself by singing and saved the day, there were warm fuzzies. But now, all because I make a simple little suggestion, you’re upset.”
“A simple suggestion? Is that what you call it? You have no right. This isn’t your business. Our bargain in no way gives you any kind of authority over me or my decisions. You don’t know what you’re talking about and because of that, I have to deal with your mess.”