“Oh god.” Pink flooded her cheeks as she scrambled to gather the papers that had scattered when she moved. “I’m so sorry. Idon’t know what happened. I just closed my eyes for a second and?—”
“It’s fine,” I said, cutting her off. “You’re exhausted.”
She shook her head, eyes darting to the clock on the wall. “I can’t believe I fell asleep. We still have so much to do.” Her hands moved frantically, trying to reorganize the files in front of her.
“We’re done for tonight.” I began gathering the papers nearest to me, closing folders and stacking them neatly.
She rubbed at her eyes, trying to banish the sleepiness that still clung to her. “No, I need to revise the training module outline?—”
“Mia.” I said her name firmly, catching her gaze. “You’re dead on your feet. The work will still be here tomorrow.”
“I’m fine.” She tried to stifle a yawn and failed miserably. “Really.”
“You’re not fine.” I continued packing up, my tone making it clear this wasn’t a negotiation. “We’re calling it a night. I’m taking you home.”
She opened her mouth to protest again, then seemed to think better of it. Instead, she nodded and began helping me gather the remaining documents, though I noticed her movements were slow, almost clumsy with fatigue.
As she bent to retrieve her purse from under the table, I saw her sway slightly. My hand shot out instinctively to steady her elbow. She froze at the contact, her eyes meeting mine.
“Easy there.” My voice was much softer than I intended, meaning I had to lighten the moment, stat. “If you pass out, there’s a mountain of paperwork I’d have to fill out. Workplace incident reports are a nightmare.”
Her lips twitched, fighting a smile. “We wouldn’t want that.”
“Absolutely not. I hate paperwork almost as much as I hate inefficiency.” I kept my hand on her elbow, steadying her. “Which is saying something.”
This time she did smile, a genuine one that reached her tired eyes and transformed her face. Something squeezed in my chest, a feeling both painful and exhilarating. Christ, she was beautiful. The urge to kiss her was almost overwhelming, so I released her arm, clearing my throat. “Car’s in the usual spot.” I picked up her laptop bag along with my own. “I’ve got this. You just worry about not falling over before we get there.”
MIA
“Ireally would have been okay to work tonight.”
“Given that you fell asleep on the table last night, I highly doubt that.”
Yeah, okay, he had a point.
Jack’s Audi purred to a stop in front of my house, the headlights illuminating the row of cars already parked in the driveway and along the curb. I stared at them in confusion before remembering. Friday was girls’ night. Shit. How had that completely slipped my mind?
“Popular place,” Jack commented, his deep voice breaking through my mental fog.
“Girls’ night,” I explained with a tired smile. “I completely forgot.”
Before I could reach for the door handle, Jack was already out of the car, walking around to my side. As he pulled open the passenger door, I caught a flicker of movement at the living room window. Great. My friends had definitely spotted us.
“Thank you for the ride.” I go out, trying to ignore the way my heart rate picked up when his hand briefly steadied my elbow.
“Of course.” His voice was low, almost intimate in the soft wash of light from the porch. The light caught the angles of his face, making him look even more handsome, if that was possible. “Have a good weekend, Mia.”
The way he said my name, with that slight roughness around the edges, made my stomach flip. I needed to get a grip. He was my boss, for fuck’s sake.
“You too, Jack.” I clutched my bag closer, like it was a life line. “See you Monday.”
He nodded, his eyes holding mine for a beat longer than strictly necessary before he stepped back. I turned and made my way up the driveway, feeling his gaze on my back the entire time.
My key was barely out of my purse when the door swung open, revealing Emily with a shit-eating grin that could only mean trouble.
“Well, well, well,” she drawled. “What are you doing home so early? I thought you were working late with Mr. Broody again.”
I pushed past her into the house, kicking off my heels with a sigh of relief. “Jack wouldn’t let me work tonight.”
