“Taken? Who’s taken?” Travis muttered.

Rather than answer his question, Chase leaned in and kissed me on the lips. With a cheeky grin, he added, “Twelve for lunch good, Buttercup?”

So much for subtlety and avoiding PDAs.

***

I had thought Sam would be the person who wouldn’t take the news well. I wasn’t expecting it to be Josh.

“This puts me in a very uncomfortable position, you realize.” He looked at me sternly.

“I’m…I’m sorry. I didn’t intend for anything to happen between us. In fact, it was the last thing I wanted to happen at my new job. I really like working here. I like working for you.”

Josh sighed. “I’ve been with Parker Industries for five years. I started where you are and worked my way up. Chase is a very intelligent man. I’m sure you know that. He questions everything and has a strong hand in managing this business at every facet. It took me a long time to build a relationship of trust with him—one where he’ll rely on my expertise, even if he doesn’t necessarily agree with my direction. I won’t have you undermine that.”

I was completely shocked. “I won’t. I wouldn’t.”

He frowned. “I hope not.”

We stared at each other awkwardly. “Does Sam know?”

I nodded. “She does.”

After a few seconds, Josh nodded hesitantly. “I appreciate you coming to me at least.”

“Of course.”

He put his reading glasses back on, signaling that our conversation was over. “Why don’t you finish compiling the focus group results, and we’ll discuss them over lunch. My assistant will order us something in.”

There was no way in the world I was going to mention that I already had lunch plans. Plans with his boss. I’d be canceling with a certain someone else.

My text letting Chase know things didn’t go as well as I expected with Josh went unanswered, as did the follow-up one I sent letting him know I needed to cancel lunch. I could see it had been read, but not even a quick K came back in response. I chalked it up to him being busy and dove into compiling the last of the data Josh and I were going to review over lunch.

It was clear that I’d damaged my relationship with my immediate boss, and it was going to take some time to repair. Although we worked together right through lunch and for hours into the afternoon, things between Josh and me felt strained. It was as if he’d put up a wall of professionalism that wasn’t there before. I hoped time would chip away at that wall once he realized I had no intention of undermining him in any way.

As we cleaned up the paperwork we’d spread all over the table in his office, Josh said, “Why don’t you update the PowerPoint with our final slogans and packaging picks and email it to me.” He caught my eye. “I’ll forward it on to Chase to take a look at.”

I nodded.

Just before I walked out of his office, he added, “I’d like to keep communications through the proper chain of command in the future. I spoke to Chase about it as well this morning.”

I nodded again.

Although I thought it unnecessary, I couldn’t blame him for feeling the way he did. And I was curious at how his conversation with Chase had gone this morning. Normally, I heard or saw Chase around the office a few times during the day. But his blinds and door had been closed whenever I passed by today. His absence was noticeable, and by the time the end of the day rolled around, it had started to make me feel anxious.

I waited until after the office began to empty out—after Josh, specifically, had left for the day—before making another trip down the boss’s hall. Just as I rounded the corner, Chase’s door opened, and he walked out with a woman. I’d never seen her in the office before. She was attractive, with blonde hair pulled back in a neat ponytail that worked with her business-casual look. They shook hands, and I assumed it had been some sort of a business meeting…until she put her other hand on top of their joined hands. It was a small, yet intimate gesture. She said something I couldn’t hear, and I suddenly felt like I was intruding as I walked up to them, but I couldn’t very well back up.

They both looked over at me, realizing in unison that someone else was in the hallway. My heart started to beat a little faster.

“Hi…umm…I thought I’d stop by before I left since I haven’t seen you all day.”

The woman looked back and forth between the two of us. “I better run anyway. It was good to see you, again.”

Chase nodded.

Oddly, I felt even more uncomfortable after the woman left. Yet in my internal battle between uncomfortable and curious, curiosity won out.

“Who was that?” I asked, trying to sound casual.

Instead of answering my question, Chase spoke curtly. “I have a lot of work to get back to.”

My uneasiness grew. “Okay. I’ll talk to you tomorrow, then? I guess?”

He didn’t look at me as he nodded, and I jumped at the sound of his office door slamming behind him. What the hell is going on?

I had a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach that whatever it was, I was about to get hurt.

Chapter 29

Reese

Chase didn’t show up at work the next day. My uneasiness had worked its way into an overall sinking feeling, and my stomach was upset because I knew something had changed. I had no idea if it had something to do with the woman coming out of Chase’s office last night, or maybe with the reaction Josh had had to our couple-status news, but my anxiety over the unknown was killing me.

There had been no response to my text checking in on him either. Even though my phone was set to make a sound whenever a new text arrived, I found myself checking it every two minutes.

I was fast losing the little focus I’d brought with me to work. A tiny voice in my head whispered, See? This is what you get for having an affair at the office. Don’t you ever learn your lesson?

I tried to ignore it. Toward the end of the day, I stopped by Chase’s secretary’s desk and attempted to sound casual. “Do you know when the boss will be back?”

“He didn’t say. Just received a one-line email saying he wouldn’t be in.” Her brows drew together, and she shrugged. “Not really like him.”

I stayed at the office until after seven. Still not hearing anything from Chase, I picked up the phone and called before I left. Voicemail answered on the first ring. Moving from anxious to worried, I sent another text. The second one never even showed delivered. Whatever was going on, his phone was off, and he didn’t want to be reached. I struggled with what to do next.