Sugar Rush (Friend-Zoned #3)(28)
Author: Belle Aurora

It was uncomfortable to watch. Really, it was. What was frightening was the thought of James and Kerr together rolling around in the sack turned me on. A lot. Embarrassingly so. So when James caught me looking like I was about to swallow my tongue from my impure thoughts and narrowed his brows at me, asking cautiously, “You okay?” I all but yelled a panicked, “Nothing!”

So there you have it. Kerr likes sausage, and I like man-on-man fantasies.

Who knew?

Felicity is tall, blonde, and has fantastic perky boobs that match her ass. And, of course, me being me, I assumed she’d be a complete ditz. Felicity…is not. She is smart, and funny, and super sweet. I like her. The first thing she said to me was, “You look like a garden nymph.” That was it. So random. I was sold.

The third member of our team is shy, quiet Willa. She is tall and willowy, graceful, and extremely pretty. But shy. Painfully shy. She has gorgeous hazel eyes, light brown hair, and a smatter of freckles across her nose. She is, for lack of a better term, geek chic. Oh, and she loves James.

So there you have it. Two team members want James ‘Whit’ Whittaker. No wonder he told me he doesn’t date employees. They all want to tear off a piece of him. I don’t blame them. He’s a special type of fine, but I wasn’t lying when I told James I don’t date.

I’ve worked too damn long, too damn hard, to date then fall in love with a guy who’ll likely resent me for working my dream job. Call me selfish, but I’m doing me right now. When I’m at a good point in my career, I’ll consider dating again.

The last date I went on was my first year of college. I cancelled…five minutes after the date had commenced. Brad, or Bob, or Brett, or whatever the heck his name was told me I couldn’t cancel after the date had already begun. I simply said, “Watch me,” then handed him back his cheap bouquet of carnations and walked back to my dorm room.

You would not be wrong if you guessed dating scares me. I’m just so worried about meeting a guy who becomes my everything, only to have to sacrifice my career for him. I mean, why must I sacrifice anything? Why can’t I have the whole enchilada? Alas, it doesn’t work that way most of the time. My job is demanding, but the fruits of the labor are rewarding. So rewarding, I don’t think given an ultimatum I would make love my choice.

I haven’t noticed James has finished his paperwork until he coughs. My face snaps to his. A small smile spreads across his face. “Where’d you go?”

Shaking my head, I sigh. “I don’t even know. I checked out. Sorry.”

He shrugs. “It’s cool. Today’s a slow day anyways. I wish I could show you more, but I need clients to do that. Sorry it’s been a boring day. I wish it were more entertaining.” He grins. “Maybe I could twerk on a table for you or something.”

I snort. “That I would pay to see, sir.”

He winces. “Aw man. You seriously just sir’d me? I feel so old.”

I chuckle. He’s adorable. “You’re not old. If you’re old, then I’m old, and if you call me old, you might just catch a shoe to the head, because I am not old.”

His small grin intensifies. “I like a woman who’s willing to throw a shoe every now and again.”

I nod regally. “It’s so uncommon these days. Such a shame.” He smiles at me. And smiles. And smiles some more. I’m suddenly nervous. My eyes widen. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

After a moment, his smile loses some of its strength and he utters, “I like you.”

A look of surprise crosses my face. It’s quickly replaced by a blush. I mutter quietly, “I like you too.”

A knock at the door snags my attention. Max pops his head in and spots me sitting behind James’s desk. He throws a thumb behind him and states, “I can come back.”

I quickly stand. “No. We were just talking. You sit.”

I move to leave, but James stops me by lifting a palm. “Actually, Max, I completely understand if you say no, given your families are intertwined, but I need to ask. Would you mind if Helena sat in today? She’s going to be shadowing me for a little while, just until she gets the hang of how we run things around here.”

Max doesn’t hesitate. “I don’t mind.”

Ahhh, Max. Understanding, thoughtful Max. Annoyingly perfect Max.

Shooting me a small smile, he moves to sit beside me and winks. “How you doing, cupcake?”

My brows about hit my hairline. I lean forward and whisper, “You can’t call me that here. I mean, I told you to stop calling me that. You can’t call me that.”

He whispers back, “Sure I can.”

My nose bunches. I whisper back heatedly, “I’m not a cupcake.”

Leaning closer, our noses almost touch. His warm eyes look directly into mine. “But you smell like one.”

James’ eyes dart back and forth between us. “Maybe this isn’t such a good idea.”

But Max waves a hand at him. “It’s fine. I’m totally cool with it. She needs to learn, and she knows Ceecee, so let’s do it.”

James looks uncertain. “Well, if you’re sure…” He looks over at me.

I concede with a nod. “Yeah, everything’s fine.”

James smiles. “Okay then. What did you need to see me about, Max?”

Max gets right to the point. “I need help with Ceecee. She’s not exercising, not stretching. She keeps getting cramps and spasms, and she tries to hide them from me. I mean, I’m not stupid, ya know? I know what pain looks like. I don’t know what to do anymore, Whit.” He bites the inside of his lip in a childlike gesture. His tone makes my chest pang. “She’s breakin’ my heart, man.”

James’ face immediately shows concern. “She’s not doing her stretches?”

Max shakes his head slowly. “Last time I saw her initiate any form of exercise was about four weeks ago, so I’ve been trying to get involved, ya know? Like, I try to make it daddy/daughter time, something we can do together, but ninety percent of the time, she ends up angry with me. She’ll leave in a huff. She barely talks to me anymore.”

James takes a moment to process this, then nods. “Okay. We need to get her moving again or she’s just going to keep cramping, and that kind of discomfort is bound to make anyone cranky. How about we get her back here twice a week until I see some improvement?”

Max lifts his arms to rest them on top of his head. His eyes close in relief. “Yes. Yes, please. She’s driving me nuts. She knows what she needs to do, I just…” Surprisingly, he looks over to me. “I just don’t know what to do anymore. She’s shutting me out.”