My breath caught in my throat. Declan’s gaze locked on mine and his jaw clenched. Holy hell, he looked angry. And devastatingly sexy.
He wore a solid black suit that fit like a second skin, the only hint of color his dark burgundy tie. The whole ensemble spoke of sex and secrets.
I swallowed and stepped out of his way, watching as he strode out with two men at his side.
“Miss Thompson,” he said with a firm nod of acknowledgment.
“Mr. Dark,” I returned, my voice barely above a whisper.
He walked past me, keeping a healthy distance so he was in no danger of touching me, and didn’t even glance back.
Feeling stung, though I had no right to be, I stepped into the elevator.
My phone buzzed. I knew it was Xander. I ignored it.
My body ached like it missed something…missed his closeness. Or his touch. Or…
I groaned. What the fuck was wrong with me? I didn’t even know this guy. I’d spent maybe a total of ten hours with him the whole time I’d known him and half of those were spent in silence or with me trying to trick him.
There was nothing between us.
But there was something between us. Something that made me look for him every time I came in. That made me dream about him at night and wait for his texts in the hours before sleep.
The elevator released me to the top floor. I waved at Brittany but turned in the opposite direction to Tim’s office.
He was already inside, hard at work just like Declan.
“Hey,” I said, stopping in his doorway.
He looked up with a smile. “Hey. Glad it’s Friday?”
“You have no idea.”
“Yeah…” He scrubbed a hand on the back of his neck. “Me too.”
“Tell me you don’t have to work weekends, too.”
“Have to? No. But will I?” He peered at a stack of papers. “Actually, you’ve caught me up on so much, I might get a break.”
“I have the whole day ahead of me, so I can help with the rest.”
“Good.” He caught me up on what he was working on, giving me enough to keep me busy until at least lunchtime.
I started to leave, then angled back. “Tim?”
“Yes?” he asked without looking up from the computer.
“Is there an office I’m supposed to be working in?” His eyebrows furrowed, so I continued. “I mean, do interns usually work in—in another office somewhere? They’re not usually in with Mr. Dark all the time, right?”
He looked up with his hands poised over the keyboard. “He said it was fine for you to work in there. It has the best view.”
“Oh.” I flashed a smile. “Sure. Right. I…okay, off to work.”
He was typing away before I was even out of the room, feeling even more confused than I had on the ride up.
I walked numbly to Declan’s office, a place I’d actually grown comfortable in. It did have a good view. It was one of my favorite things about coming to work. But that didn’t mean I had to take over his office.
Was he letting me stay in there to be nice? I figured it was just because he wanted to keep an eye on me to make sure I wasn’t fucking anything up.
But he wasn’t even in there with me anymore. And again, today it was empty.
So…what the hell?
If he was simply being nice, it didn’t make sense. Less than ten minutes ago he’d basically snubbed me getting off the elevator.
I sat at the table, facing the windows like I always did. And, like it always did, time flew.
I took breaks here and there to add to the project, but mostly I just finished the work Tim needed to get done. If I wasn’t going to get any information from Declan, or about Declan, I might as well at least help Tim have a good weekend.
I worked through lunch, taking off my jacket so I could move more freely. I placed phone calls for Tim and then answered more emails.
I barely noticed when someone came in and jumped when I heard a voice.
“Still working?”
I turned around, my heart in my throat. I’d freaked out thinking it might be Declan, but it was just Tim.
“Uh… I was just finishing up,” I told him.
He pointed to the clock. “It’s five.”
I nodded. “I know.” No, I didn’t. “I wanted to make sure to get those emails done for you.”
“Samantha,” he said, exasperation and gratitude in his voice. “I can finish it.”
“No way. I’m almost done. And you can go home. You can go home, right?”
He laughed. “If my work is done, I can go home.”
“Then consider it done,” I told him. “Only a few more to go and then I’m out of here.”
Tim nodded. “Okay. I owe you one.”
“It’s not a problem. Go before you change your mind. I’ll see you on Monday.”
He thanked me again and left the office. I wasn’t sure why I said “see you on Monday” since I’d been swearing I was going to quit every day for the last four days, but I’d said it.
And dammit, I’d meant it.
“Finish your emails before you start analyzing why you’re such a weirdo,” I told myself.
So I did. I finished them, then stood and checked the clock. Almost six.
Clouds had moved in over the mountains, dimming the room and making it feel later than it was.
Making me feel alone.
I didn’t mind it the rest of the time because I turned on music, or had the view, or got funny texts from Xander. But now it just felt dark and cold.
I missed having someone else in here with me.
I sighed and stretched my arms high above my head. When I turned to get my jacket
