“Love you.”
“Love you more.”
A grin splits my face that he said those words.
I feel light as I make my way into the building, pausing at the door to wave at him, and he doesn’t ride off until I’m inside. He never does. I reach my desk with a minute to spare, breathless and hot—and not because I power walked all the way here.
I can still feel Casey’s touch on me like fingerprints under my skin.
I hum to myself as I boot up my PC and grab my to-do list for today. I’m just getting settled when a shadow falls over my desk. I glance up and, leaning against my cubicle wall is James.
Tailored suit, perfect hair and clean shaven, he’s worlds apart from Casey and the men I’m used to being around. Any member of the club would have him crying into his spreadsheets before he could blink.
He also hates me with an unhealthy obsession. In the six months since he became my line manager, he’s made my life a fucking misery, but the last month he’s gotten worse.
He couldn’t let me get my jacket off before he started this shit?
My insides twist into a giant fucking pretzel-shaped knot as I will my face to do anything other than grimace.
He gives me one of his patented thin-lipped smiles, but it doesn’t reach his eyes.
“The end of quarter report is due today,” he says like he’s doing me a favor telling me.
I grit my teeth. “It’s ready to be submitted as soon as I have the figures from production.”
He makes a ‘hmm’ sound in the back of his throat, his gaze roaming over me like he’s trying to pull the report out of my brain.
“Right,” he draws out the word.Prick. “Before eleven, Alexis. Teamwork makes the dream work. Don’t be the weak link.”
I’m smiling while committing homicide in my head. I fucking hate being full named and he knows it. No one calls me Alexis. Not even my mother and she picked it.
James gives me a look that lingers just a fraction too long, then he walks away.
I breathe.
Tasha appears over the top of my cubicle wall. “That man needs to choke on his own tie,” she mutters.
I don’t disagree. “He’s always a jerk around reporting deadlines, but I swear he’s been up my ass this whole week.”
My glow from this morning is rapidly dimming. Casey’s possessive touches are a distant memory. Now, all I have is ugly anger burning through my veins and a sour knot burning in my throat.
“He does know that you’ve been doing this job two years longer than he has, right?”
I click the mouse a little too hard. “Honestly, there are days when I think I should listen to Casey and just quit. Stay home all day and watch bad TV.”
“You’d be bored in an hour.”
She’s not wrong.Annoyingly. “At least I’d stay out of prison,” I mutter darkly. “We’re in agreement, right? We hate that asshole.”
“Oh, yeah. He’s a dick.”
By midmorning, I’ve convinced myself I’ll look good in orange. His snarky, passive aggressive comments are grating on every one of my nerves.
CASEY
Been thinking about your pretty pussy all morning
I stare at the message, my cheeks flaming. Even after two years of marriage, he still can make me blush like I’m fifteen.
