Page 14 of My Grumpy Boss
I nod.
“You should see your face every time you see one.” She makes a dreamy, love-struck face.
“I’ve never looked like that in my life,” I argue.
She laughs. “No, but you barely ever show any emotion, so when you do, it’s huge.” She nods at my glass as I take a sip of my water. “You hate soda. You hate all carbonated drinks.”
“I do… but wait, if you know that, why do you insist on bringing me a Coke every Friday?”
“Just to see what you’ll do. I laugh every time I watch you force yourself to take a sip. Oh, and you hate peppermint anything.”
“I knew that you knew that!” I shout, pointing a finger at her. “And yet every time you’re pissed at me, my whole office smells like freaking peppermints.”
“Gotta get my fun somehow,” she says sweetly.
I bite back a grin.
The atmosphere shifts, growing more comfortable as we talk about everything and nothing. Hazel tells me about growing up in Maple Creek, and I tell her about Carter and the stupid things he’s said. She relaxes, her shoulders loosening, her smile coming easier, and every time she looks at me, I catch that same heat from earlier, reminding me that she’s into me too. That she feels this, too.
When dinner’s over, I walk her back to the car, my hand brushing hers until she finally slides her fingers between mine like it’s the most natural thing in the world.
I don’t let go.
The drive to her place is quiet, but not in a bad way. When I pull up outside her building, neither of us moves right away.
Then she turns to me. “Um, thank you,” she says softly.
I can almost see her retreating inside herself again.
I shake my head. “Don’t thank me yet.”
Her eyebrows knit together. “Why?”
“Because I’m not done.”
Before she can respond, I reach for her, my hand cupping her jaw as I lean in. This kiss is different from the one in the elevator. Slower, deeper, intentional.
She melts into it, her hand sliding up to my wrist where I’m cupping her face.
I take my time, memorizing the feel of her, the way she responds to me, her soft sigh when I pull back to breathe before going back in for another taste.
When I finally break the kiss, we’re both a little wrecked.
“Tomorrow,” I say, my thumb brushing over her cheek. “Go out with me again.”
She doesn’t hesitate this time. “Okay.”
Something in me settles, and I grin, unable to stop it.
“Good,” I murmur, pressing one last, softer kiss to her lips. “Because I wasn’t going to take no for an answer.”
She laughs, breathless. Then she’s climbing out of the car.
I watch her walk to her building, waiting until she’s inside before I finally lean back in my seat.
I can’t believe it’s finally happening. I’m finally getting my girl.
My girl.
