Page 39 of Help Wanted

She looked at the time on her phone and frowned.

“I’d better not. I have to get up really early tomorrow.”

Zane fought a smile and failed.

“I won’t tell your boss,” he said, making her laugh.

“I have an early flight. I’ll get a soda,” she compromised and followed him to the bar. “So are you checking up on me?”

“No. I wanted to make sure everything went okay with the transport.”

“So you’re checking up on Brady?” She lifted her brow, calling him on the lie. He winced and fessed up.

“Okay. I wanted to double-check the paperwork before we left to make sure there wasn’t an issue later.” This was only partly true, but that meant it was only partly a lie. An improvement from a few weeks ago.

She laughed and nodded.

“You wanted to make sure I did everything right. Are you a control freak?”

“No. Maybe. It’s your first purchase. What kind of boss would I be if I just threw you to the wolves without checking to make sure you were okay?”

“I appreciate your concern.” She rolled her eyes as the waitress brought her soda and his beer.

“By the way, I talked to one of Mrs. Oliver’s sons, and he told me you handled the situation perfectly.”

She shrugged and gave him a smile. “This job is really important to me. I don’t want to disappoint you.”

“That’s not going to happen.” She was actually worried about that possibility? As if she was capable of disappointing him. She was the best employee he’d ever had. She cared about his business. And maybe even about him. “I have complete faith in you. You wouldn’t be here if I didn’t,” he told her honestly. If he’d had any lingering doubts, they were long gone after today.

“You wouldn’t be here if you trusted me.” She tilted her head.

“Maybe I wanted to see your shining moment. Why should I miss out?” This was more truth than he’d planned to share.

“Really?” she asked, unsure.

“I know it wasn’t easy working with me in the beginning. I was pretty much an ass. I wasn’t really on board with hiring you, but I have to say, it’s the best decision I’ve ever made.” He hadn’t really been involved in the decision at all. Bullied would be the better word. Still, the end result was that she worked for him, which at times—like right now—was a major inconvenience.

He couldn’t date an employee. It was too risky. Especially if it meant something could go wrong and she’d leave him. She was too important to his business.

She smiled at his confession, and her cheeks turned a beautiful pink. Could it be the sexy cheerleader was a bit shy too? He couldn’t let himself think of her as the sexy cheerleader. She was important to keeping his business running smoothly. That was it.

“I should get to bed. I don’t want to miss my flight. I have a lot to do before our trip next week.”

He stood as she did and walked with her to the elevator.

She pushed the three and he pushed the five as an awkward silence fell over them. The elevator was too fast for him to figure out what she could be thinking. He needed more time.

He stepped off on her floor and she looked up at him in surprise. What was he doing? Before he could change his mind, the lightning-fast elevator doors closed.

He watched as she swallowed and stared up at him. God, she was the most beautiful woman in the world. Maybe even more beautiful than Courtney.

Not sure what to do, he reached out to push the button to call the elevator back. But in that second her tongue darted out to wet her bottom lip. Christ.

One moment he was reaching for the button, and the next he was reaching for her. His body moved on its own, pulling her against him. His lips crashed down on hers, causing a little moan from her throat. Her breasts smashed up against his chest as his hand moved down her back. When her lips opened slightly, he pounced on the opportunity, sweeping his tongue inside.

He swallowed down her second moan as his erection throbbed painfully in his jeans. It was only then he registered her hands on his back, fisting his shirt.

A second later, he had her pinned against the wall, deepening the kiss. He couldn’t believe this was happening. How many times had he fantasized about this since she’d walked into his office? Pretty much every hour of every day. And now it was real. He was kissing Kenley.