The invitation was in the letter Dale handwrote me. He thanked me for spending time with him and offered to pay for my flight to his hometown so we could “explore the attraction.”
I responded the day after I opened the letter, telling him that I wasn’t sure if I could get away from New York. It was meant to be a soft letdown. Dale’s persistence is admirable. He’s texted me almost on the daily asking if I could steal away for a weekend.
“You haven’t said no to him yet,” Barrett goes on, his gaze searching my face. “That means you’re still considering it.”
I study him trying to grasp what he’s thinking, but it’s impossible, so I ask a question that I have no right to ask my boss. “Why does it matter to you if I go?”
His hand slides up my arm. Slow grazes of his fingertips over my skin send a shiver through me. I almost let out an audible moan when his hand reaches the back of my neck.
“It matters, Bella.”
I rest a hand on his chest. The unmistakable beat of his heart falls in rhythm with mine. “How?”
He leans forward, his breath grazing over my cheek. “You know how. You feel this.”
“This?” I question on a sigh.
“This,” he repeats before he takes my mouth in a kiss that leaves me breathless in a way I’ve never felt before.
***
My fingers are tangled in his hair when I part my lips to deepen the kiss. He moans a second before I do. Our smiles touch in the heated moment. It’s a brief break from the intensity before his hand slides down to cup my ass.
He whispers something against my lips, and then again. The second time I make out the words. “You’re fired.”
Recoiling, I slap a hand over his hard chest. Stumbling back, I bark out the only word I can manage. “What?”
His hands are on me again, cupping the back of my neck, pressing against the small of my back. “I can’t fuck you if you work for me.”
That word, the rawness of hi
s need, makes my knees weak. I stumble into him. “Barrett.”
“I’ll rehire you in the morning.” His lips feather kisses over the skin on the side of my neck. “Tonight, I need you. Jesus, I want you so bad.”
I feel the same. Running a finger over his chin, I look up into his eyes. “I want you too. I won’t tell anyone. Ivan won’t know.”
He catches my hand in his. Nipping on my index finger, he growls. “He can’t know.”
The burst of pain clenches my core. I’m wound so tightly. I’ll come as soon as he touches me there, anywhere. “It’s our secret.”
He kisses me again. This time it’s softer. Tenderness lingers between us when he cups my face in his hands. “My bed, Bella. Now.”
I won’t argue with him. I can’t. I want this man more than I’ve wanted anything in my life.
Wrapping an arm around my waist, he takes a step forward. I do too. A faint knock at the door halts my second step.
No. Please, no. Don’t let anything interrupt this perfect moment.
Glancing at me, his brows rise. “Who the fuck is that?”
I let out a soft laugh. “You tell me. You’re the one who lives here.”
Another knock lures his gaze to the door. “Goddammit. The security guard at the front desk is about to lose his job.”
I don’t know if he’s joking or not. Sighing, I state the obvious. “You should answer it. Maybe it’s important.”
Wrapping his arms around me, he kisses my neck. “Unless the building is on fire, it’s not important.”