Page 107 of By His Rule

He took me for wings, for fuck’s sake.

With a discreet shake of my head, I duck out of the office.

“I’m going out for lunch. We can continue this after,” I mutter.

I take off, my heels clicking against the tiled floor as I leave Kian to his supermodel lunch date.

Something unpleasant swirls in my stomach, and as I approach Mellissa’s desk, she also looks less than impressed.

“Everything okay?” I ask hesitantly.

“She just…she…” Melissa huffs in irritation. “Just because she’s young and pretty, it doesn’t mean the world owes her anything.”

Okaaay.

“I’m going to grab some lunch. Would you like me to get you anything?” I ask, forcing a smile on my face in the hope of looking unaffected by Sasha and her picnic basket. I bet she doesn’t even have plastic plates and cups. I bet it’s fine China and crystal in there.

“Cake would be fantastic. I’m having one of those days.”

You and me both.

“Did you want to come with? We could?—”

“I can’t, I’m due in a meeting momentarily. But thank you for the offer.”

With a smile, I grab my purse from beneath my desk and head out, more than ready to put some space between me and the romantic picnic happening in Kian’s office.

I’ve almost managed to escape the building when a familiar voice calls my name.

Spinning around, I find Tate talking to a security guard.

“Hey, what are you doing here?” I ask.

“Coming to take my bestie for lunch. Why else would I be here, silly?” she says with a wide smile. “So, what do you fancy?”

“Umm…”

“You’re right. That sandwich place a couple of blocks down. That’s exactly what I’m craving.”

With a laugh, I say, “Sounds good, T.”

Linking her arm with mine, she leads me from the building.

I shouldn’t need a distraction from Kian and his supermodel, but fuck, I really do.

“He’s busy,” Melissa informs me once I’ve returned from lunch and delivered her a mouthwatering piece of chocolate cake.

“Still?” I balk.

My lunch with Tate might have run over a little—enough that I’d no doubt receive a dressing down about my punctuality if Kian were to notice, but it seems that he’s still otherwise engaged.

Images of what the two of them could be doing behind those darkened floor-to-ceiling windows make a shudder rip through me.

Melissa smiles sadly at me, and I cringe.

He’s just my boss; why should I care what he’s doing right now?

“Great. At least that will give me a chance to catch up.”

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