Chapter Ten
Anticipation was killing her.
Allison twirled in her chair, biting her lip as she tried to fill some rare down time. Her calls were made, files approved, and crises handled. With most of the wedding details taken care of, there wasn’t much left to fill her dull Thursday.
Which left far too much time to think about tonight when Darian came over.
Sex, sex, sex. All it had taken was a few days with Darian and that part of herself had come roaring back to life. When she’d been alone, sex had been one of those things she’d think of rather mournfully from time to time, but her work had always taken precedence. Now, it was all she could think of. She counted down the hours until she could spend time with Darian again. And right now the hours left till the evening were far too many.
“I should have just gone back to his place last night,” she said to herself. Then she wouldn’t feel so wound up. She’d be able to focus.
The chair whirled back to its original position. She could go bug Gillian, but her friend had her own work to do.
Reaching toward her computer, she pulled up Darian’s schedule. He was free for the rest of the day.
Allison rested her cheek in her palm. Was there any reason she had to go see him? She’d already delivered her reports this morning. Nothing new had come in.
With a sigh, she closed her eyes. This was what she’d been reduced to. Trying to fabricate excuses to see her boyfriend.
Not boyfriend, her mind scolded. Not ever.
Lover, then. Either way, he was someone she wanted to see. Working with Darian had always fulfilled her, but now her heart raced when she stepped into a room with him. Her palms were damp and heat spiraled through her body. Though they’d promised their friends with benefits relationship wouldn’t change anything at work, she knew it had.
I’m just feeling amped up, she thought, straightening. That was all there was to it.
Still didn’t change the fact that she was bored.
“Screw it,” she said, pushing to her feet. She grabbed the catering quote from Sam and headed for the door. Darian didn’t need it. She had full autonomy over negotiating deals, but it was at least an excuse to get through the door.
“Come in,” he called when she knocked.
Allison stepped into the room, closing the door behind her.
His head was tipped back against his chair as he stared at the ceiling.
“Am I interrupting?”
Her voice brought his attention to her, and the smile she received had her heart fluttering again.
“Not at all. I was just thinking.”
“Slow day?”
“Haven’t had one of those in a while, eh?” He tapped a file on his desk. “I was going to call Bill about these figures when I remembered he’s on vacation till next week.”
“Then you’ve got some time.” She moved to the side of his desk.
“Something like that.” His eyes dropped to the page in her hand. “What can I do for you?”
So many things. She cleared her throat and pushed the thought back. They were at the office. Innocent thoughts only.
“I thought I should check Sam’s quote with you.”
His brows rose in surprise as he reached for the paper. “You know I trust you with these details.”
She leaned a hip against his desk as he skimmed over the figures.
“You did well. Sounds like an excellent deal to me.” He held the paper back out to her.
“Oh, good.”
When she didn’t reach for the paper, a smile tugged at his lips. “Or was there something else you wanted?”
“I’m having a slow day, too.”
The smile deepened. “And?”
“And…” She huffed out a breath. “I don’t know. I wanted to see you. Is that against the rules?”
He studied her for a long moment before tipping his head. “Yes.”
Pain stabbed into her chest. This had been a silly mistake. She knew very well what boundaries he’d set.
“Sorry, I’ll—”
He held up his hand to silence her. Gesturing for her to stay where she was, he walked to his door and turned the lock.
“It’s against the rules,” he said as he sauntered back toward her. “At work we need to focus on business. Outside the office we can play.”
“I get that. I just…”
He stopped in front of her. “Just what?”
She shrugged. “Missed you.”
“Dammit.”
Before she could say another word he hauled her into his arms.
Yes, her mind cried. This was exactly what she wanted. Wrapping her arms around him, she kissed him back. His touch was like water in a drought. Her boredom and caged energy fell away, leaving her happy in his arms.
Of course, satisfying her desire for his company only helped raise yet another hunger.