Beyond Broken(14)

It had definitely been too long since he'd last had a woman. Something he intended to remedy quickly. Just not with the one in my office, he told himself sternly.

This was ridiculous. She wasn't stunningly beautiful. She didn't have the full lips or the big tits that he usually preferred. She looked more like a schoolmarm than a seductive tease, but his cock sure couldn't tell the difference.

Maddie walked over to another pile of papers and boxes she had yet to sort through. Her dark jeans stretched tight over her generous ass when she bent at the waist. Caleb clenched his jaw and forced himself to look away with a dark frown. He would've thought she was doing it on purpose, but he'd caught the look of utter focus on her features. She was completely oblivious to her appeal, to the effect she had on men, and that just made him want to lash out at her even more.

"2001? Really?" she grumbled under her breath, flipping through a folder she'd uncovered. "This place is a disaster."

Finally, something he could work with. It felt like a relief when he asked slowly, "What did you just say?"

Her head swiveled in his direction. "I said, this place is a disaster. How can you even work in here?"

"Just fine," he grated. "Maybe if you'd stop complaining, princess, you'd actually know what work meant."

"I've organized that entire side of the office already. I have more paper cuts on my hands than a-a … " she trailed off, her cheeks going an enticing pink. "Than a papermaker."



       
         
       
        

Caleb raised a brow and drawled, "A papermaker?"

She waved a hand, "Or, you know, someone who deals with paper. A lot. Nevermind, it doesn't matter. What I'm telling you is that I've been working my butt off for the past two hours and you think I'm just fooling around?"

He felt a flair of amusement, which didn't sit well with him. At all. To compensate, he snapped, "Are you always this irritating?"

With narrowed eyes, she turned to face the boxes again and refused to answer, which … disappointed him? With a barely suppressed growl, he returned to his own work, only to find his concentration even more shot than it'd been a few moments before.

Luckily, his cell phone rang, providing a welcome distraction. Glancing down, he saw it was Lucas Branford, a good friend of his.

"Luke," he said, accepting the call with a sideways glance at Maddie. He leaned back in his desk chair, watching her.

"What are you doing tonight? Kate's out of town for a book signing and I feel like a night out."

"The missus is away so you can play? And here I thought you were a 'changed man,'" Caleb mocked. Caleb knew very well that Luke was utterly and disgustingly besotted with his girlfriend, but back in the day, Luke had been an unrepentant womanizer, to the extent that his contact list was crammed full of descriptions like 'Hot Blonde #4 from Monarch' and 'Krazy Katherine from Polk.'

"Not my missus … yet."

Caleb rolled his eyes, "Thanks but no thanks. Look, I don't exactly want a night out with you texting Kate every few seconds, with Alex groping Olivia under the table, and Adam off in fucking la la land with Christie, okay?"

"Awww, is someone a wittle jealous that he's the last single man standing?" Luke cooed.

"We're obviously not friends if you believe that," Caleb said, dead serious. The last thing he ever wanted was a relationship. Been there, done that, and he'd been burned not once but twice. Or four times, depending on the definition of the word 'relationship.'

Fool me once …

"Guys night out, I promise. No girlfriends. Just alcohol and living vicariously through you, since you're the only one out of all of us that can still score with random hot chicks."

Caleb's eyes flickered to Maddie. He smirked and raised his voice a notch, "Random hot chicks? Sounds like a perfect night."

Maddie stiffened and threw him a look over her shoulder before swiveling back around. She wasn't even pretending that she wasn't listening. For some reason, Caleb found that … refreshing.

Luke paused. "All right, who are you and what have you done with my friend Caleb? You know, the one we call a woman-hater because he bares his teeth at them like a rabid animal if they get within five feet." 

"You're hilarious. Did anyone ever tell you to do stand-up?"

"Ah, I see. Maybe it's just been too long between your … sessions."

"Maybe it has," Caleb murmured, his gaze on Maddie's parted lips. She was staring down at the folder in front of her.