I used my napkin to wipe my mouth and then accidentally let it fall to the ground. Bending over to pretend to grab it, I slid my hand up Annalise’s dress under the tablecloth and watched her jump when my thumb stroked over the warm center between her legs. Her reaction was to immediately slam her thighs shut, and I almost lost my balance when she closed my arm between her legs with a yank. I coughed and tugged my hand free, trying hard not to laugh.

Is there some way I could finger her right now and watch her attempt to talk business to douche’s sister at the same time?

She looked down at me with warning in her eyes. “Are you okay, Bennett?”

I righted myself in my chair and dropped my napkin on the table in front of me. “Just a slip of my hand.”

My hand discreetly slipped a few more times before the end of the night—the last time to squeeze her ass while we walked to the restaurant door behind our potential new clients. Their car pulled up just before mine did, so we said goodnight and watched them pull away.

If they’d looked, Lauren and Trent could probably still have seen us in the rearview mirror as I pulled Annalise into my arms.

“You were so bad tonight.” She pressed her palms against my chest.

I brushed my lips with hers. “I can’t help myself. I want to do bad things to you. Come home with me. I missed you in my bed last night.”

Her eyes softened. “I missed you, too.”

I couldn’t remember ever missing anyone, except for Sophie. And that was totally different, because she was really gone. Yet I hadn’t just fed Annalise a line. I’d actually missed her. After one night apart. And as much as the thought freaked me out, the thought of not having her in my bed tonight actually freaked me out a little more. So I ignored the warning bells blaring that I was taking things too far.

The valet pulled up in Annalise’s car.

“I’ll follow you,” I said.

“Actually, could we stay at my place tonight? I ordered a new chair for my living room two months ago, and it’s being delivered tomorrow morning sometime.”

“Yeah. Of course.” I kissed her forehead. “As long as I fall asleep and wake up inside of you, doesn’t matter where we are.”

Chapter 36

* * *

Annalise

“Shit-take.” Madison shook her head.

“Umm… What?”

“Did you not just hear the waiter? He pronounced the shiitake mushroom special as shit-take and asked me how I wanted my baked lobster cooked. Umm…done?”

I chuckled. “Sorry. I guess I zoned out for a few seconds there.”

Madison brought her wine to her lips. “Probably exhaustion from getting laid every night by your new boy-toy.

I sighed. “Can I ask you a hypothetical question?”

“Of course. If it makes you feel better to pretend it’s not about you, go right ahead. Shoot.”

“It does.” I paused and thought about how to word it. “If a woman is involved with a man—one who’s been very upfront from the beginning that he doesn’t want a long-term commitment—would it be insane for said woman to walk away from a good job with a shitload of stock options and money at stake on the off-chance the guy might come around and want something more?”

Madison frowned and set down her wine glass. “Oh, honey. You were only supposed to use him as a rebound.”

I ran my finger through the condensation on the base of my wine glass. “I know. And it should have been the perfect arrangement. I mean, he’s a narcissistic, commitment-phobic, chauvinistic, arrogant ass.”

Madison threw her hands in the air. “Well, of course you fell for him!”

We laughed.

“Seriously though, one of us is going to be reassigned to Texas in a few weeks. Would I be nuts if I looked for another job so the two of us could have a chance?”

“How much money are we talking about here?”

“Well, I have stock options that vest over the next three years. Basically, they give me the opportunity to buy 20,000 shares for a set price of $9. So it depends on what the stock is worth when they vest.”

“What’s it worth now?”

I winced. “$21 a share.”

Madison’s eyes bulged. “That’s what…almost two-hundred and fifty grand profit?”

I nodded and swallowed.

She guzzled the rest of her wine. “You like him that much.”

I nodded some more. “Don’t get me wrong, he’s all those things I originally thought, but there’s so much more underneath. Like, he has this childlike quality to him, but at the same time, he’s so committed and responsible with his godson. Plus, he makes me laugh, even when I’m pissed off at him. And he has a good heart, but he doesn’t want anyone to know. Not to mention—he has the goods and knows how to use them.”

“How does Bennett feel about all this?”

I shook my head. “We haven’t spoken about it.”

“Well, I think that’s a conversation you need to have before you consider tossing your career and that much money aside.”

“The thing is…I don’t think we’re there yet. And I can’t imagine him being okay with me giving anything up for a chance that he’ll come around. In fact, I’m pretty sure he’d fold himself right back into the little box he stays locked up in most of the time if he knew what I was thinking. Something has him gun-shy about relationships. But I don’t know what.”

“Don’t you think that’s a red flag in itself? That you don’t even know what made him anti-relationship?”

“Of course I do! And I know the entire thing sounds ludicrous to even consider. But…I really like him, Mad.”

“You know, sometimes it’s hard to see things clearly in a rebound relationship. People often seek the security and comfort of what they just lost—and it can cause attachments that are more to the relationship than the actual person.”

“I’ve thought about that. I have. But I don’t think I’m trying to replace Andrew or what we had.”

Madison didn’t look convinced. I’d expected her to tell me I was insane for even considering giving up a great job and money for a long shot at a man—at least, at first. But now that she wasn’t on board or excited about my idea, it put a damper on my enthusiasm, too.

I changed the subject and tried to enjoy the rest of my night. Although, there was a reason the woman had been my best friend for more than twenty years: she saw through my bullshit.

When we were leaving the restaurant, she hugged me extra long.

“If you love a narcissistic asshole, I’ll love him, too. If you decide to quit your job and take a chance on love, you can sleep on my couch and come to my work dinners four nights a week with me when you’re broke. I’m here for you, no matter what. I didn’t mean to shoot down your feelings. I was just being protective of you, my friend. I trust your judgment. You can make more money and find a new job.”

She pulled back and cupped my cheeks in her hands. “You have time. You’ll figure this out.”

I felt my eyes well up and pulled her in for another hug. “Thank you.”

***

I’d decided not to text Bennett before showing up. But now that I stood in front of his building, looking up at his dark window, I wondered if this was a bad idea. It felt like a booty call, something I’d never done. In fact, in the eight years Andrew and I had been together, I hadn’t once even considered showing up unannounced. We just didn’t have that type of relationship—which had never seemed odd to me, until tonight.

But here I stood; so screw it. No point in rethinking what I’d felt comfortable doing before I started overanalyzing things and comparing them to my last relationship. I took a deep breath and opened the door to his building. Pressing the buzzer labeled Fox, I waited while tapping my nails on the metal of the built-in mailbox underneath.

I jumped when his voice came through the intercom. “Yeah?”

He was so grumpy; I couldn’t help but smile. “Delivery for a Mr. Fox.”

I heard the smile in his words. “Delivery, huh? Whadda you got for me?”

“Whatever you’re in the mood for.”

The buzzer buzzed, opening the door before I’d finished the last word. I chuckled, feeling giddy.

But as the elevator climbed, other feelings started to take over. My body started to tingle, and my heartbeat sped up. My first booty call. No wonder people made such a big deal about it.

When I stepped out of the elevator, Bennett was waiting in the hall, shirtless, leaning against the doorframe of his apartment. He was the picture of confident and casual, and his eyes glittered as he watched me walk toward him.

He took a piece of my wayward hair between his thumb and pointer and played with it. “Whatever I’m in the mood for? That’s a pretty big statement for a little girl.” His voice was so damn thick and gruff—I loved it.

I shifted restlessly, feeling electricity crackle in the air all around us. Attempting to pull it together, I straightened my spine and looked up at his imposing frame.

“I’m here, aren’t I?”

Bennett’s mouth curved into a slow, wicked grin. “You most certainly are.”