Fall Into You (Morally Gray, #2)(32)

How I told him he wasn’t a villain as he described himself, he was a hero, because only a hero would break his own heart to save someone else’s.

Now I feel like an asshole.

A prideful, impatient asshole who should have taken a deep breath and maybe cut the guy some slack when he overreacted at seeing me standing in his office doorway.

Me, the girl he fucked to within an inch of her life a month before.

Me, the girl he ordered dinner and breakfast for because he wanted to make sure I didn’t go hungry.

Me, the girl he spent who knows how much money on a couture blouse to replace the one he ruined.

Me. Shay Sanders. The girl who walked out of that hotel the morning after our night together feeling happier than I had in years.

Because of him.

The man who not even five minutes ago I compared to an owl.

Good God, I told the poor man he had no neck, and I’m sitting here feeling sorry for myself? He should’ve fired me on the spot for insolence.

Dismayed, I look at Simone. “I think I owe him an apology for how I acted just now.”

“No, you don’t.”

“But you weren’t here. You didn’t hear how I spoke to him. How rude I was.”

“Trust me, Shay, it’s good for him. If you were really out of line, you wouldn’t still be sitting behind that desk. But if I may give you a word of advice? Don’t disrespect him in front of other employees. He can’t bear to be belittled with an audience. But he can take as good as he gives one-on-one. And he needs strong people around him who aren’t intimidated by his overbearing persona.”

I notice she said persona instead of personality, indicating Cole’s bearishness is a calculated choice. One meant to keep people at arm’s length.

Then I remember I told him that his heart wasn’t cold, it was warm, he just kept it on ice so it didn’t get hurt, and I feel like an asshole all over again.

How could I see him so clearly in that hotel room but not in this office?

Maybe it has something to do with his magical dick. I haven’t had it in weeks, and my vision got clouded.

I want to bang my head against the desk.

“Thank you for the advice, Simone. I won’t forget it.”

“Good. Now let’s get to work.”

For the next few hours as she introduces me to all the work my new job entails, I do my best to focus, but Cole simmers on the back burner of my mind, his angry eyes haunting me like ghosts.





Cole





I spend the rest of the day locked in my office strategizing the Shay Avoidance Plan.

It works like this: move to Alaska.

Because no matter how I might try to convince myself that I’ll only communicate with her via email, won’t attend meetings where she’ll be present, and turn the other way if we happen to cross paths in the building, the fact remains that I’ll know she’s nearby every day, and I’ll want to go see her.

I can still smell her perfume.

Kill me.

We’ve established that she’s not going to quit, nor will I fire her. So now, I’ve only got one path forward.

Pretend she doesn’t exist.

Which will prove extremely fucking difficult considering she’s my goddamn assistant.

Frustrated, I pull up her resume on my computer and glare at it until my vision blurs. Then, at a loss, I pick up the phone and call my sister-in-law.

“Lit Happens, how may I help you?”

“What do you know about Shay Sanders?”

Emery laughs. “Oh hi, Cole. It’s nice to hear from you. Yes, I’m fine, thank you for asking. How are you?”

“I’m sorry, I can’t do pleasantries right now.”

“Shocking.”

She laughs again, but it’s affectionate. She’s used to me by now. And if she can tolerate my psychopath brother, Callum, she can certainly handle my quirks. Compared to him, I’m almost sane.

“Shay Sanders. Tell me everything.”

Her tone changes from light to worried. “Oh God. Please don’t tell me there’s a problem already.”

Yes, the problem is that I fucked her before she started working for me, and I very much want to do it again and again and again, but we have an ironclad policy against it.

Also, inconveniently, she thinks I’m a dick.

But I can’t say any of that. I also don’t want to lie, so I sidestep. “She said that you told her I was your customer.”

“When Callum mentioned he’d contacted a recruiter to fill your assistant position, he asked me if I might know anyone. I said I’d keep an eye out, but he stressed that I should be careful. I knew what that meant. Did she seem upset about it?”

No, but she did seem upset that I suggested she’s a scheming, manipulative liar.

I feel the beginnings of a headache forming a band of tightness around my skull. Then I remember I didn’t have lunch because I was too busy obsessing over Shay. Closing my eyes, I grasp my temples and squeeze.

“No. Why didn’t I know you referred her?”

“I don’t know. When she sent me flowers to thank me for recommending her for the position, I mentioned it to Callum. I assumed he would’ve told you.”

He probably would have, but as I avoid him as much as I avoid everyone else, he didn’t have much chance.