Total pages in book: 39
Estimated words: 36209 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 181(@200wpm)___ 145(@250wpm)___ 121(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 36209 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 181(@200wpm)___ 145(@250wpm)___ 121(@300wpm)
Oh fuck, I think as I enter. I see a woman with a high ponytail in a very nice suit skirt. That is not casual. She even has heels on. I glance back over my shoulder to see Royce’s SUV still parked out front. I could make a run for it. I’m sure he would take me back home if I asked.
“You must be Ms. Valentina.”
“Lev is good.” I walk over, offering her my hand. “I thought it was casual.”
"If that's the information you received, then I don't understand the issue." She meets my gaze with a polite smile. That helps me relax because I judged her, thinking she was going to be a stickler because she is so put together. Shame on me. I should know better.
“Your name?”
“Kate.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Kate.”
“Are you ready to see the place?”
“Yeah, I didn't get a whole lot of details.”
“I could see that. I think you’re going to be doing a lot of odds and ends. Boss man often wants to get a feel for new employees so he can better place them. We perform a variety of tasks here, and if we are unable to handle them, we will subcontract them out.”
“Boss man?”
Kate smirks. “He hates when we call him that. So I do it often.”
Is that a positive sign? Either the office is lighthearted, or she's hooking up with the boss man so she can poke fun.
“Let’s head up. He’s been impatiently waiting. He was going to come down but got pulled into a call.”
“Waiting for me?” I follow Kate past the elevator to the open stairs.
“Yeah, oh, here you go.” Kate gives me a badge after we climb the first set of stairs.
“Oh wow,” I say when we walk in. The room is a massive square with glass offices all around it. In the center are more desks. There are people standing around them working together. A few glance toward us. Others are engrossed in whatever they are working on.
“New girl,” Kate tells them. A few say hi, and I get a few chin nods. “Boss man's office is right there.” She points to what looks like an entire side of this floor. The windows are shaded out for privacy.
“Aren’t you coming with me?” I don’t know why, but I don’t want to go in alone.
“He’s asked to meet with you alone.” What the heck? First she said he was impatiently waiting for me, and now he wants to be alone with me. Something is off here. “You have nothing to worry about. Go on in. He has a no-knock policy.” I guess she can sense my hesitation. She’s right. I’m overthinking things. “I’ll catch up with you after your meeting and show you around some more.”
I watch her go, leaving me standing there. All right then. I raise my hand to knock because it feels strange not to. As I do, the door opens.
Eros snags me by the wrist, my arm still in the air ready to knock, pulling me into the office, the door closing behind us.
“What the hell?” I get out before his mouth is on mine.
8
EROS
My girl tastes as good as I remember, but I need more. Lev stiffens for a moment before her small body melts into me. I deepen the kiss, and she doesn't try to stop me. Her tongue strokes against mine.
Last night was hell. One night in bed with Lev, and she completely destroyed me. The little brat blocked me. I saw it coming, but it still pissed me off. I repeatedly reminded myself to remain calm and patient. That she’d be in my office the next day.
That’s how I’d gotten myself to leave her building because I’d be so tempted to knock on her door. The one thing that held me back was recalling how she shied away from talking about her family, which isn’t a good sign. One of the first things I did this morning was issue an order for as many details as I could get on them.
I want Lev to tell me, but I worry over her too. When her mom called, she couldn’t get out of the hotel fast enough. It was excruciating to watch her leave in the taxi, knowing that there was nothing I could do about it.
When I pull away, we are both breathing heavily. I rest my forehead against hers. Her delicate hands are on my chest. I want to pick her up, carry her over to one of the chairs, and place her in my lap. She could sit and draw all day while I fed her and took care of her needs.
My thoughts are barbaric. I’m going to blame it on my upbringing. This is absurd, yet I possess no alternative explanation.
“Eros.” My name comes out as a little growl. Lev is coming out of the daze I put her in. Not that I’ll be cocky about it.