Back at my desk, I shut down my computer, grab my phone and purse and head out for the weekend. It’s been a long week of missing Royce, and I’m excited to see him tonight. However, first, I’m having dinner with the girls. Sam’s doctor cleared her for light outings as long as she’s not on her feet. It took some creative convincing for Jase—her words not mine—but he finally agreed if he was the one to drive her to the restaurant and drive her home. Originally, we were going to do it at their place, but Sam needed out of the house.
“Why do you keep checking your watch?” Hadley asks me. She’s sitting next to me in a booth, while Sam and her future sister-in-law, Logan, sit across from us.
“No reason,” I say.
“Nope, not buying what you’re selling, girlfriend. Spill it,” she says, taking a drink of sweet tea.
“Fine.” I roll my eyes dramatically. “I’m meeting up with Royce after this.”
“Oh.” Sam leans in, placing her elbows on the table. “This is a new development. Tell me more.”
I can feel the flush creeping up my neck. “We’re… getting to know each other. He called and said he missed me this week. I missed him too.”
“And?”
“And he wanted me to cancel tonight and I told him no. When he realized I wasn’t willing to change my plans, he asked me to come to his place after.”
“I knew it!” Sam smacks her hands against the table. “I knew it when I saw the way he looked at you. That man has it bad.”
“It’s complicated with me working for him.” I don’t tell them that I confessed to Royce that I was willing to find another job.
“Careful, Sawyer,” Sam says, her eyes sparkling with humor. “I think it might be in the water.” She rubs at her round baby bump.
“She’s right,” Logan chimes in. “Although, I don’t think it’s the water. When you have men that look like ours, it’s not a hardship to have their babies.”
“There are always kids at your place,” Sam comments.
“Yeah, between Kacen and the rest of the band, we have our own little posse.” Logan chuckles.
Our food arrives and we all dig in. I enjoy getting to know Sam better, and Logan. Hadley fits in with them, and by the time our waiter is bringing our checks, it feels as though the four of us have been best friends for years.Chapter 16RoyceMy phone is clutched in my hand like a lifeline. And although I know she can’t reach me while we’re in the air, I’ve checked the damn thing no less than twenty times, hell, maybe more. I’ve lost count.
“You know you’re not going to miss any calls while we’re in the air, right?” Grant smirks.
“Fuck off,” I grumble. There is no heat behind my words.
“Didn’t you just talk to her?” he asks.
I give him a look that tells him to back off, but he just laughs. “You’re different with her.”
“I’m not anything with her,” I say, shoving my phone into my pocket. It’s a bald-faced lie, and we both know it. The problem is that I want to be everything with her. I don’t give a fuck that she’s my employee, or that I barely know her. I want her—more than I’ve ever wanted anyone. I’ve never felt this intense connection I seem to have with her. Not even with my ex, and that fucks with my head. I thought I knew Jennifer. I thought I loved her, and I was wrong. What if I’m wrong about Sawyer too?
“Let me ask you this. How often do you think about her? Why were you so insistent that you talk to her before we took off? Why have you checked your phone a hundred times in the last hour knowing damn well nothing is going to come through while we’re in the air?”
I don’t even have to think about my answers, but I don’t give them to him. Not that I need to. I’m sure he can see it written all over my face. “I’m not the best judge when it comes to women,” I say, surprising him if the look on his face is any indication.
“Jennifer deceived you, Royce. She had us all fooled.”
“I should have known better. She hated everything I loved. Hell, she never once went out on the boat with us, or even just with me. Sawyer, she’s all in, and it’s fucking with my head.”
“I don’t think it’s your head that’s the problem.”
I glare at him. “Leave my cock out of this.”
“I meant your heart, but now that you mentioned it, I’m sure Royce junior is just as affected as the old ticker. Sawyer’s beautiful.”
“Grant,” I growl, and he chuckles. It’s a low and deep sound, much like my own, but in this moment, it’s grating on my nerves.