"Is that so?"
"Yes." And then, fearful he'd take it the wrong way, I added, "And just so we're clear, I don't mean sexually."
"Good to know."
Was it?From the look in his eyes, I couldn’t be sure.
I tried again. "I mean, I'm not playing hard-to-get, if that's what you think."
"I don't," he said. "So tell me what's on your mind."
There were so many things on my mind, I hardly knew where to begin. But in the end, it all boiled down to one thing. "Remember in the pantry, when you called it bad idea?"
From the look on his face, he wasn't happy with the reminder. "Yeah?"
"Well, you were probably right."
He studied my face. "Probablyright?"
Dang it."Definitely right. Which is why we were smart to keep it a one-time thing."
He looked at me for a long, silent moment before saying, "Is that right?"
"Definitely. I mean, everyone knows it's a terrible idea to donk your boss –oryour employee, for that matter."
His eyebrows lifted. "Donk."
"Yeah. It's a non-swearword for…"Gosh, how to put this?
"Incident?"
I shook my head. "What?"
"You mean sex."
"Uh, yeah. Right."
His gaze locked on mine. "So you're regretting it."
Funny, he hadn't phrased it as a question. And now I felt slightly ridiculous. After all, I'd been more than willing. And he'd given me every chance to change my mind.
Did I have regrets?
Yes.
And no.
"If you mean the sex," I said, "I'm not saying I regret it. I'm just saying I'm not gonna do it again, that's all."
He gave me another look, this one longer than the last. "With me? Or with anyone?"
Now, it was my turn to frown. "So…Wasthata joke?"
"Call it teasing," he said with a pale imitation of a smile. "Unless you can dish it out, but not take it."
"Oh, I can't take it, alright," I said. "AndobviouslyIamgoing to have sex again."
"But not with me."
