Fair Game (38 page)

She was silent so long, Connor sweetened the pot. “Added benefit, working in Operations, there won’t be any conflict of interest with dating your ex-boss. As long as you don’t sign any of Kyle’s purchase orders.”

“Take it, Josie,” Kyle whispered.

“And you won’t leave?” she asked just as softly.

“I will never leave.”

She sucked in a breath, then rolled her lips between her teeth, held them a second, then puffed the air back out in a rush. “Well, of course I don’t even have to think about it. Yes, yes, yes”—she bounced on her toes—“I wanna groom for Director of Materials.”

“Well, then start searching for your replacement,” Connor told her.

She saluted. “I’m on it.” No one stopped her when she marched out of the office.

Connor raised one mocking brow. “You realize you have your work cut out for you.”

“Oh yeah,” Kyle answered, finishing with a chuckle. “Do I ever know.”

Connor gave him the nod. “Welcome to the family.”

This time he meant more than the company family. Kyle thought about denying that, claiming his boss was moving them forward way too fast, but honestly, it wasn’t damn fast enough. If he could, he’d move in with her tonight. “Thanks.”

“I’m not even going to ask how long this has been going on.”

“Thanks for that, too.”

“Tell your girlfriend she better call my wife fast, because if I get home and I’m the one”—he tapped his chest—“breaking the good news, there will be hell to pay.”

Hands on the doorjamb, Josie stuck her head back in the door. “I’ll call her, dammit. Now”—she gave Kyle a look—“are you coming? We’ve got to figure out who’s going to fill my spot.” She disappeared again.

Connor shook his head. “Really, you don’t have a clue.”

Oh yes he did, and he wanted every delicious moment he could get. “Coming, dear,” he called, then winked at Connor before following Josie out.

 

 

 

FOR the rest of the day, they didn’t say a word to each other that wasn’t business, but she was going mad for a taste of him. They went over the potential for promoting from within, which was Castle’s policy where possible. She had a meeting with Swanson and Nichols to discuss her new job, yadda, yadda, et cetera ad nauseam.

At precisely five forty-five, she left Kyle a message on his cell. “I’m running late. Meet me at my condo in an hour.”

She couldn’t believe she’d walked into Connor’s office and told him she’d been playing naughty with her boss. Okay, she hadn’t
said
that, but Connor was no idiot.

Kyle had made the sacrifice by finding a new job. She could do no less than admit to everyone that she wanted so much more with him than to be his program manager. And Connor had given her a new job out of it. Woohoo, they didn’t have to hide
and
no one could claim favoritism. Well, at least because of Kyle. As she’d told Connor, they’d always say it because she was family.

Kyle hadn’t balked, either, when Connor welcomed him. Hot damn.

She had so much to do. Calling Faith in the car—her cousin shrieked with delight—picking up champagne to celebrate her new job and Kyle not having to hand in his resignation. There was one other must-do errand.

Of course, when she finally arrived home, Kyle was early—or she was a tad late—and lounging on her front stoop.

He was so damn beautiful. She couldn’t wait to get him out of those jeans. Wow, wow, wow, how had she gotten so freaking lucky?

Why did it take her so long to figure it out? Ah, the mysteries of life.

She tossed him the little present she’d just had made for him. Catching it deftly, he opened his hand and stared at the silver key on his palm.

“Open the door,” she said.

He thumbed over his shoulder. “This door?”

“Yeah, that door.”

He didn’t move. “And this is mine?”

“Yeah, it’s yours.”

“So I can come and go as I please?”

“It’s stupid to make you stand outside if I get held up, don’t you think?” She knew she was making light of it.

She knew he got it as he unlocked the door. Then, with a certain ceremony, he pulled out his own key ring and snapped her key in place.

It was warm out, but with the blinds closed and the drapes pulled, the condo had stayed relatively cool. She set her computer case down by the stair wall, but held on to the bag with the champagne. “You probably don’t have a change of clothing for the morning, do you?”

“Ending up in a lot of dusty places, I always carry a change of clothing.”

She was pussyfooting, not saying what she meant. So she grabbed his hand, yanked him over to the sofa, and made him sit. “Okay, here it is.” She hugged the champagne bottle to her chest as she stood before him. “I’ve got this whole bad habit going about needing to protect myself, making sure no one ever gets one up on me, especially not my boss.” Someday, maybe tonight after she’d had her way with him, she’d tell him the whole story about her asshole college professor. “But I’m so over that. I didn’t even need Connor to give me the materials job”—she wagged her finger—“not that I’m giving it back. But what you did, looking for a new job—nobody’s ever done anything like that for me.”

“You’re worth it, you know.”

“I didn’t know that until you did it. And it kind of overwhelmed me.” She shrugged, then flopped down on the sofa beside him. “You probably think I was all melodramatic and everything, marching into Connor’s office, and I’m really not a melodramatic person.”

“I liked it.”

She finally relinquished the champagne bottle, setting it on the coffee table. “I wanted to show you I wasn’t all talk and no action. That I don’t want
us
to be a secret. That I don’t care if people say you’re playing favorites.”

“Josie—”

She put a hand over his mouth. “You wanna spend the night with me?”

“God, yes,” he said against her palm.

“I hated Little Miss Snowflake,” she confessed.

“I know.”

“You did not.”

He raised one eyebrow. “Did, too.”

“I’m glad you didn’t touch her.” She ran a hand down his shirt-front. “That you didn’t
vant
to touch her.”

He laughed at her bad imitation. He had the most gorgeous eyes she’d ever seen on a man.

“And I won’t make you wear my panties or force you to let me use the dildo.”

“Now wait a minute there, don’t be too hasty.”

She nuzzled his ear, drew in his scent, came alive with his closeness. But he had to understand she was totally serious about him. “No more games, Kyle. I promise.”

He pulled back, gave her a boyish grimace. “The panties we can skip, but I liked the dildo.”

“You did?” He’d certainly seemed to have one helluva great orgasm.

“You damn well
know
I loved the dildo.” He kissed the tip of her nose. “And for the next game, I get to use it on you.”

Oh God, he was so perfect. “No way, next game is mine. You made me do the sex club, remember?”

“Oh, I remember.” He held her chin in his hand. “Don’t ever stop playing those kinds of games with me, Josie. Promise?”

“Oh yeah, I promise.” She started planning the next game right then. “And baby, you better watch out.”

“Payback’s a bitch,” he whispered. Then he paid her back exactly the way she loved.

Jasmine Haynes
has been penning stories for as long as she’s been able to write. Storytelling has always been her passion. With a bachelor degree in accounting from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, she has worked in the high-tech Silicon Valley for the past twenty years and hasn’t met a boring accountant yet! Well, maybe a few. She and her husband live with Star, the mighty moose-hunting dog (if she weren’t afraid of her own shadow). Jasmine’s pastimes, when not writing her heart out, are hiking in the Redwoods and taking long walks on the beach. Jasmine also writes as Jennifer Skully and JB Skully. She loves to hear from readers. Please e-mail her at [email protected] or visit her website,
www.skullybuzz.com
, and her blog,
www.jasminehaynes.blogspot.com
.

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