“I’ll take your word for it.” He flicked his eyes toward Marshall. “Marshall, my man. Your turn.”
We played another three rounds before Ellie reluctantly excused herself, citing an early flight tomorrow. Apparently, it was her grandmother’s eighty-fifth birthday, so she was flying home to Milwaukee for the celebration.
She eyed Josh like she wanted him to leave with her, but he merely wished her a good night and a safe flight home. Marshall, of course, offered to split an Uber with her since they had to go in the same direction.
And then there were two.
“Ellie has a crush on you,” I said after our coworkers left. I stole the last fry from the basket and popped it in my mouth. I wasn’t breaking girl code because I was one hundred percent sure Josh knew. Hell, he was so arrogant he probably thought every straight woman crushed on him even when they didn’t.
His lips curved. “I’m aware.”
“You interested?”
“You care?”
I chewed slowly and swallowed before I responded with a deliberate, “Not even a little bit.”
Animosity crackled between us, masking something else beneath the surface.
“Of course you don’t,” Josh said softly. He finished his drink without taking his eyes off me. “Nice show you put on with Marshall earlier.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Don’t play dumb. It’s unbecoming.”
“I’m not. You think I wouldn’t have kissed Marshall of my own accord, just because he doesn’t have a perfect face and six-pack abs?” I shot Josh a pointed stare. “Looks aren’t everything. At least Marshall is sweet.”
His smile took on a hard slant. “You don’t want or need sweet, Red. It would bore you to death.”
“Oh, really?” My voice dripped with poisonous honey. “Then please, pray tell, what do I want and need? Since you know me so well.”
Josh leaned forward until his mouth hovered near my ear, and it was all I could do not to pull back. My heart rumbled so loud in my chest I would’ve missed his reply had his voice not poured into me like dark silk, dangerous yet seductive.
“You want someone who can challenge you. Excite you. Keep you on your toes. And as for what you need…” His whiskey-scented breath gusted across my skin, peppering it with a thousand goosebumps. “You need someone to bend you over and fuck that attitude right out of you.”
My reaction was instantaneous.
My nipples pebbled into hard, painful points, and a rush of hot moisture soaked my panties. Every gust of air against my sensitized skin added to the need pulsing low in my belly.
“You think Marshall can do that?” Josh’s voice wrapped around me like a velvet embrace. “Fuck you the way you need?”
“And you can?” I managed. Oxygen. I needed oxygen. “Keep dreaming.”
“I wasn’t offering.” Josh’s hand grazed my knee for a millisecond, just long enough to set my body aflame. “But it’s nice to know that’s where your mind went.”
I was saved from having to formulate a witty response in my current lightheaded state when someone cut into our conversation.
“Jules?”
The unfamiliar voice had the same effect as a bucket of cold water.
I jerked back, heart pounding, while Josh took his time resettling in his seat with a dark, satisfied smile.
That fucking bastard.
After our interloper left, I would pay him back. Somehow.
In the meantime, I had someone else to deal with.
My eyes fell on the preppy, somewhat familiar-looking guy who’d interrupted us. He wore the unofficial D.C. men’s uniform of a blue-and-white gingham shirt and khakis, and he’d slicked back his hair in a way that did nothing for his features.
He fixed me with an expectant stare, which I returned with a blank one of my own until my memory pieces slotted into place and recognition dawned.
It was Todd…the guy who’d stood me up weeks ago.