"I do love it here," I mumble, fighting not to cry.
"Then why are you leaving?"
I shrug a shoulder, reluctant to tell her that I'm head over heels in love with our boss. I've kept it to myself out of sheer self-preservation. Liberty is a sweetheart and would never say a word about it, but some things are too private, too embarrassing. I don't want her to look at me with pity in her eyes. It's such a damn cliché, falling for your older, hotter boss. I did it anyway.
"Did something happen with Dominic?" she asks, crossing her arms over her ample chest. Like me, Liberty is full-figured. She wears it well. She's as beautiful as she is smart. She's a software engineer here and is insanely good at her job. She's also intuitive and caring. Genuine concern filters through her expression. "Did he do something?"
"What? No, of course not!" I hurry to assure her. "He would never cross a line like that." Which is precisely the problem. I fell in love with someone who is too honorable to ever see an employee that way.
I see the doubt in my friend's eyes, the worry that he did something to me. The last thing I want is for anyone to think he did something wrong.
"Dominic is amazing, Liberty. He's been nothing short of incredible to me. I think it's just time for me to move on."
She cocks her head to the side, her hazel eyes scrutinizing my expression. The doubt slowly fades, understanding creeping in. "You're in love with him," she guesses, her voice soft.
I shrug again, refusing to confirm it. Which I guess is confirmation enough because she gives me a sympathetic smile.
"Does he know?"
I shake my head. "God, no. He doesn't see me that way."
She's quiet for a long moment, processing. And then she sighs. "He's an idiot."
"No, he's brilliant."
"Fine. He's a brilliant idiot and I'm mad at him."
I can't help but smile.
"Promise me you're not going to disappear out of my life?" she demands. Even though she's smiling, I see the worry in her eyes. Liberty's life hasn't been the easiest. She doesn't talk about her past much, but I don't think she has any family and it takes her a while to warm up to people.
"I would never do that," I promise, reaching out to hug her. "You're stuck with me until we're old and gray and terrorizing the nursing home together."
She laughs, hugging me hard. And then she tenses.
I don't even have to turn around to know Dominic just walked in. I can feel him like he's a living, breathing extension of me. I think, if I were ever lost in the woods, he'd be my Northern star, the constant that acts like a roadmap, guiding me to safety. All I would have to do is follow the magnetic pull to find my way back home, back to him.
I pull away from Liberty, who gives me a sympathetic grimace that lets me know he's heading in our direction. I already know that, too. The floor vibrates under his feet, protesting his sheer size as he moves.
"Morning," he says, stopping to shove his lunch into the fridge. His dark green eyes skate across me, his lips turned down into a small frown. Even then, he's hot. His tight button-up and black slacks mold to his body like a second skin. His hair is as messy as ever, like he just rolled out of the bed and didn't bother trying to tame it.
"Morning," I mumble, avoiding his gaze.
"Morning, Dom," Liberty says and then squeezes my arm. "I'll see you later."
"Okay."
Dominic waits until she leaves to speak to me again.
"Everything okay?" he asks.
"Yeah," I lie, grabbing an apple from the bowl on the counter. He smells so damn good. I don't know how my sleeping mind manages to get his scent right every time, but it does. How long is it going to take me to forget how he smells? The thought alone makes me want to cry. Instead, I slide around him, being careful that I don't brush up against him. "Everything's fine."
I don't think he believes me, but I don't stick around long enough to find out.
Chapter Two
Dominic
"Tomas, I don't care what color the damn thing is or how much it costs," I growl into the phone, pinching the bridge of my nose in an effort to keep myself from shouting at the mail clerk on the other end of the line. "Just get one that works."
"Yes, sir," he says.
"Thank you." I drop the phone into the cradle and take a deep breath. Who knew sending a mail room clerk to fetch a working coffee pot would turn into a two-hour ordeal? I certainly didn't. I should have sent my manager, Summer. She knows exactly what I like and wouldn't have called me fifteen times to ask questions. I wouldn't have minded even if she did.
I could listen to her talk all day and never grow bored. She's so damn cute when she gets fired up about something. Her baby blues light up and she flings her hands around like she's painting a picture for you. It's fascinating to watch.
But something is up with her and I didn't want to ask her to deal with the coffee pot issue on top of everything else she already does around here. Liberty Connor, one of my developers, was hugging her when I got here. Summer's been acting different all morning. Actually, she's been acting different for a while now. She seems…sad. When she speaks to me, she barely looks at me and then she scurries away like she's afraid I'm going to hurt her or something.
I would never hurt her though.
I'd tear my own heart
