Page 49 of Master Debater

I gestured her inside, and Madison retreated down the hallway.

“You’re the sexiest thing I’ve ever seen in my life,” I said as Willa rounded my desk, and then I made a big show of glancing from the bag in Willa’s hands to her face. “And you’re also looking lovely.”

Willa yanked the bag behind her back with a gasp, and I hooked my finger on the belt loop of her black slacks and tugged her onto my lap. The bag crinkled as she played keep away, but I finally pried it loose.

After placing it on my desk, I returned my full attention to the woman straddling me and unleashed all my pent-up energy, moving my mouth over hers and placing a palm to her back so I could trace my fingers down her spine.

“Hey,” I said, peering into the green eyes she’d accentuated with winged eyeliner today. Her lips were cherry red, and loose blond curls cascaded down around her shoulders. The middle button on the white shirt she’d tucked into her pants was clinging on for dear life, and I couldn’t help cheering for it to fail. My gaze could hardly pick a place to land. “I take it back. You’re tastier than that food’s going to be, and I haven’t had my fill of you in so long that I’m going to need an encore of one of our many stellar performances.”

She pretended she was going to resist my charms, but I moved my mouth to the spot at the base of her neck that never failed to result in her submission. Sure enough, she melted against me. Her hand cupped my elbow, keeping hold of me as she tilted her head and gave me full access of her delicious skin. “You’re the one working so late all the time.”

“I know, I know. It’s been so crazy, and I thought things were going to slow down, but…” I nuzzled deeper into the curve of her neck and sucked on the skin there.

“So, uh. Does your receptionist usually work so late?”

“It depends,” I answered, far more interested in tasting more of Willa than discussing work.

“On what?” she asked, and the slight pinch in her voice let me know this conversation had just veered from casual territory.

I lifted my head. “On how late I’m working or how much help I need. She’s more than a receptionist. She’s a legal assistant.”

“She’s pretty,” Willa said, and my posture tensed. Just like a guilty person who’d just been caught. Only I wasn’t guilty of anything besides hiring smart, qualified women. I’m sure Madison had no trouble attracting men and women, as she liked both and often brought dates to company functions. But she was only a year or two older than my sister and not even close to my type. Not to mention we’d worked too many late nights irritating each other while stressed out to ever consider anything besides a professional working relationship.

“I’m sure my Christina is still in her office as well. We’ve got a hefty caseload.”

“And Christina is…?”

“The paralegal who works at the firm with me. Would you like an introduction?” I pulled back so Willa could see I wasn’t hiding anything. While I wished she wouldn’t ask prying questions and beat around the bush on what she really meant, I also understood why she’d want assurance after her last relationship.

It was just the exact reason I’d avoided being in one for so long. Questions. Justifications for late nights. Being accountable to anyone else in any aspect of my life.

Willa gnawed on her lip and then shook her head. “No. Sorry. I just…” She placed her hand on the side of my face. “I’ve missed you this week. You kept cancelling our dinner plans, which is why I decided to bring dinner to you, but when she asked what my business with you was, and I told her I was your girlfriend, I could literally see her shock. Which means, either she didn’t know you had one, or she was just that baffled because of the way I look.”

“Dead sexy, you mean?”

She tilted her head, and I brushed my mouth over hers. “I thought we were over this.”

“I thought so too,” she said, dragging her hand from my neck to the center of my chest. “I’m working on it, but I guess I didn’t realize how much I’d miss you, and that scares me too.”

I placed my hand over hers, curling it into my grasp and giving it a reassuring squeeze. “Hey.” Not a hello this time, but an, I hear you, I’m sorry, and an I miss you too. “It’ll get better soon. I’ve got to survive one more month, and then I’ll be all yours. Promise.”

“Okay. I trust you.”

“And that means the world to me. Now, tell me. How are things going with you?” My stomach growled, triggered by the scent of food and overtaking my question.

Willa spun around on my lap, re-inflating the situation in my pants in record time, and opened the bag of food. “Don’t worry, I’m starving too. We’ll put this convo on pause and multitask so we can make the best use of our limited time together.”

I was going to offer another idea, but as she dug out the burgers and fries, my hunger demanded to be appeased first. Then I’d have more energy for the rest of the night. As Willa set out our food, I moved the chair opposite my desk to right next to mine so we could remain close as we ate.

“I do have an update, actually. The song I’ve been working on has now turned into songs—plural.” Excitement flickered through her eyes as she bounced on the seat of her chair. “It’s like once I got closure on my past, the dam that’d been forced upon me crumbled apart, and the words and music just flowed. I’ve got three ready to go, so the next step will be recording the demos, and then Rashida is going to help me curate a list of music publishers so I can start submitting my work. Can you believe it?” Her squeal drifted over to me, infecting me with the same happiness, and I leaned forward and squeezed her knee.

“That’s amazing. I’m so proud, and I can’t wait to hear it.”

“Funny you say that because I was hoping to play one of them for you tonight. It’s so close to done, but I could use the help of a handsome pianist. There’s a tiny part of the melody that needs a bit of extra polish.”

“You’ve come to the right place.” I closed the distance between us, giving her another quick kiss on the mouth. “Anything you need, you got it. You got me.”

The brilliance of her smile flooded the room, so much light, my worries faded into the dark recesses of my mind.

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