Fall Into You (Morally Gray, #2)(46)

“Are you kidding me right now? You know half the people in that building are banging each other.”

“Still. It’s company policy.”

“Mention that again, and I’ll punch you right in your nose.”

He leans down suddenly and buries his face in my hair. He inhales deeply, then exhales and sighs in contentment. His shoulders relax.

I wind my arms around them and turn my cheek to his, lowering my voice to a whisper. “Things are different now. Do you actually think we can go back to ignoring each other at work after this?”

“We have to try.”

“Oh, really? The way you’re sniffing my neck would indicate otherwise.”

“Don’t be stubborn about this. Let it go.”

“No. Sorry.”

“You’re not sorry.”

“You’re right, I’m not.”

He burrows closer, sliding his arms under my body so he can squeeze me hard against his chest. We lie like that for a moment, just holding each other, until he murmurs, “I should let you rest.”

“No, you should give me an orgasm.”

“Goddammit, woman.”

“Stop trying to control me. You know I’ll win.”

He releases me and stands. Then, because it seems to be the way he gets his exercise, he starts to pace again. I prop myself up on my elbows and watch him until I start to get tired.

“Hey. Handsome.”

He shoots me a tense sideways glance but doesn’t stop pacing.

“How about this? Let’s not call it a relationship. We’ll call it a situationship instead.”

His look sours.

“Fine, it doesn’t have to be categorized. We won’t call it anything. It will be The Thing That Must Remain Nameless. And we’ll be very circumspect around the office so no one will know. I’ll even pretend to hate you. Everybody will believe me because you’re pretty awful.”

He stops pacing. “I’m awful?”

“Yes.”

“Like how awful?”

“Like so bad your nickname is the Grinch. Oh, look, there’s that face you make when someone tells you some truth you find annoying.”

“I’m not making a face.”

“You are. It’s like, ‘Ew, smelly peasant, get out of my way with your rotting teeth and dirty rags, can’t you see the king of the universe is passing through?’ Like that. Super arrogant and scornful. I’ve thought more than once that you must practice it in front of a mirror.”

He gazes at me in agitated silence, jaw working, eyes narrowed. Then he drops his head and starts to laugh.

“Does this mean I win?”

“No, funny girl, it doesn’t. But it does mean I’ll make you breakfast. In the meantime, lie there and think about all my red flags that are waving in your face. Then make the right decision.”

“I’m not changing my mind, Cole. Like it or not, I’m your girlfriend now.”

Shaking his head, he walks out of the room.





Cole





I’m cooking scrambled eggs in a saucepan I found under her stove, watching my hands shake and marveling at it.

I’m never unsteady like this, but I know it’s not because of what I did last night.

It’s because of her. The effect she has on me.

“Like it or not, I’m your girlfriend now,” she declared, as if it was a court ruling. As if it was inevitable. Final.

As if it wasn’t the worst decision she’d ever make.

Yes, I fantasized about her a million different ways before now. And yes, I wanted to know her better. But I didn’t know how her instant acceptance of what I’m capable of would feel. I didn’t know how it would move me.

Looking into her eyes as she said she didn’t care about Dylan, only about me, something heavy and profound shifted inside my soul, like tectonic plates moving under the surface of the planet, reworking how everything looks above.

She didn’t cry. She didn’t scream. She didn’t accuse me of being a monster. She simply heard the awful truth and accepted it with a grace I don’t deserve.

Then she shoved a stake in the ground and claimed me as her territory.

I’ve never met anyone like her.

I’m not sure if she’s a blessing or a curse.

My cell rings. I fish it from my pocket, glance at the screen, and put it to my ear. “Killian. I wasn’t expecting to hear from you.”

“And I wasn’t expecting to hear you eighty-sixed one of your employees, but here we are.”

It shouldn’t surprise me that he knows. Killian Black always knows everything. What’s surprising is that he’s calling me about it.

He usually stays out of my way, working mainly with Callum and my father, who both think I’m ignorant of their business relationship with the notorious former head of the Irish mob. He supposedly died years ago but is alive and well and running a thirteen-member cabal of powerful families like mine who work alongside—but mostly around—international law enforcement.

Suffice it to say, I’m not ignorant. But it benefits me to let my family think so.

“That a problem for you?”

“No.”

“Good.”