Total pages in book: 63
Estimated words: 59445 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 297(@200wpm)___ 238(@250wpm)___ 198(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 59445 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 297(@200wpm)___ 238(@250wpm)___ 198(@300wpm)
“Fine,” Savannah said. “That was a little intense, but I swear he’s the nicest guy to me.”
That was Ethan through and through—a dick to his players or anyone who crossed him, but a freaking charmer to women. Guy had a skewed sense of manners, but it worked for him. Not that he’d ever use the charm to actually lock down a relationship. I don’t think I’d ever seen him with the same woman twice—which I’m sure had more to do with his past than his present—but doubted anyone would put up with his antics for longer than a week.
We were the same in that regard, though our reasoning for wanting to stay single was drastically different.
“Hope to see you soon, Weston,” Savannah said, heading out of frame. “And say hi to Brynn for me!” she called as she walked away, Hendrix’s eyes locked on her off screen.
I could practically see the happiness radiating off of him, and while I was pumped for my friend to be living that couple-life bliss, it was also just this side of nauseating.
“I can see I’ve lost you,” I said, laughing as Hendrix finally looked back at the camera.
“Sorry, man,” he said. “I’m here. Tell me more about—”
“Nah,” I cut him off. “I wouldn’t pay attention to me either if I was that in love. Go have fun. I’ll talk to you next month.”
“Alright, brother,” he said. “Try not to let Brynn overwork you now that she’s your boss.”
“She’s not my boss—”
“Sure she is,” he said, then smiled at me before ending the call.
I laughed, pocketing my phone. I missed that cocky bastard.
Shutting down my computer and flicking off the lights, I headed toward Brynn’s office.
The sun had fully set, leaving the skyline outside the floor-to-ceiling windows in Brynn’s office a glittering mix of light and midnight. I leaned against her opened doorway, allowing myself a few secluded seconds to just watch her.
Fuck, she was gorgeous, all delicate curves and graceful movements as she leaned over an array of art boards strewn across her desk. Her strawberry blonde hair was up in that knot thing again that showed off her neck, a few stray pieces having come lose, practically begging to be brushed off her smooth skin.
Her brow was pinched as she looked over the team’s most recent sketches for the Nike campaign, and she shifted, rubbing the back of her neck with one hand. I imagined she had quite the knot forming back there, especially if she’d been bent over her desk like she was for more than an hour.
My fingers itched to rub it for her, to work out the knots and kinks until she was loose and pliant and—
Stop, man. Just fucking stop.
Right.
I gently knocked on her opened door, wanting to announce myself without startling her like I’d done when she’d first started working here.
“Hi, Wes,” she said without looking up from her work, her voice gentle but exhausted.
“Do you know how late it is?” I asked, stepping into her office and crossing the distance between us. I stayed on the other side of her desk, using it as a barrier to stop myself from giving into the idea of helping her with the tension in her shoulders.
The urge wasn’t new, but the strength had intensified recently, like whatever damper I’d kept my need for her under for years had corroded until it was barely working anymore. Which wasn’t fucking acceptable. It didn’t matter how I craved Brynn on a damn near molecular level. I couldn’t live without her, and you never fucked with what you couldn’t live without. I’d spouted that advice to my friends on more than one occasion, but here I was wanting to ignore it all.
“Hmm?” she asked, finally looking up from her work. She blinked a few times, like it took an effort to tear herself away from the zone she was in, then glanced over her shoulder. “Oh,” she said, a little surprise in her tone as she turned back around to face me. “When did it get dark outside?”
I smiled at her, glancing down at my watch. “About three hours ago.”
She laughed, then rubbed her palms over her face. “I didn’t even notice.”
“I assumed,” I said, my eyes trailing down the length of her body. She was barefoot, her pumps off to the side. “You’re allowed to take a break, you know?”
“I know,” she said, sighing. “I just want to nail this.”
“Brynn,” I said, coming around the desk when I noted the worry in her green eyes, the exhaustion showing around the edges. “You are nailing it. There is no one better for this role than you. You have to cut yourself some slack.”
She looked up at me, her smile real and soft and fuck me, her lips were so damn kissable.
All I needed to do was lean down—