Page 38 of Sweet Temptation

John shifted his focus to his doorway, to Theo standing at the threshold, his hands jammed into his pockets. A chill moved through him, even though his office was hot.

“Just doing some thinking,” John said, pinching the bridge of his nose in an attempt to pull himself together.

Theo stared at him for a moment, his eyes narrowing. “Want to talk about it?” he finally asked.

John snapped his laptop shut. Maybe...maybe it was time to spill to his friend. Christ knew his chest was going to explode like a damn grenade if he didn’t pull the pin and release the pressure soon.

If he could just get Theo to understand, maybe he wouldn’t be subjected to his friend’s right hook. Rumor had it Theo had a good one.

“I need to get a coffee.” John ignored the look Theo pointedly cast at the incredibly fancy, incredibly expensive espresso machine that stood on a table in John’s office. John had purchased it a few months earlier, reasoning that, while he certainly preferred an Americano to regular drip coffee, there was no need to spend five dollars several times a day to have one.

It was rare to find a skill he couldn’t master, but... Well, he wouldn’t be adding barista to his résumé anytime soon. He really should donate it. Probably would have dropped it off at Goodwill somewhere, except...

Well, he kind of liked the idea of a piece of himself staying behind once he’d gone. Not that he’d ever, ever admit that out loud.

“I’ll come with you.”

John could feel Theo’s eyes on him as they made their way to the elevator, and his mind raced. There was no better time than now, a day before he left, to tell Theo how he felt about Meg.

He opened his mouth, then shut it again, the words stuck in his throat.

He had a lot of acquaintances. Lots of people he could go for a drink with, or for a round of golf, which he played but really didn’t enjoy.

Theo was the first person he’d thought of as a friend in years, except maybe for Lhane.

Theo’s warning had been clear—stay away from Meg. And though John could be a little awkward about relationships, even he knew that sleeping with someone’s sister was probably not kosher.

He didn’t regret the act, necessarily, since Meg had made him feel more than he’d felt in a lifetime.

He did regret the loss of his friendship with Theo, and possibly with Jo, if he didn’t handle this right. He supposed he could just keep quiet, and if it had remained just about sex, he would have.

What he had with Meg wasn’t just about sex, though, not anymore. And he didn’t know what to do about it.

The elevator opened directly into the coffee shop. John felt something tighten around his lungs when he stepped out into the cavernous space and air heavy with the scents of coffee and cinnamon. As though he were a compass and she was north, he saw her immediately, one woman in a crowded café.

What was she doing here? He felt a curious mix of excitement and dread. Buoyed up by seeing her and weighed down by the knowledge that he was deceiving his friend, lying right to his face by pretending that he and Meg were nothing more than acquaintances.

“Ah, hello?” Theo said.

“What?”

Theo stepped to the side as two people passed them, paper coffee cups in hand. “I just asked you three times what you wanted, and you zoned out on me.”

“Sorry about that.” He scrubbed his chin. “Lot on my mind.”

He zoned out again, and Theo sighed. “Your order, dude. What do you want?”

“Sorry.” John blinked up at the menu. “Ah...espresso. Something with a lot of espresso.”

Man, he needed to get his shit together.

Theo snorted. “I guess you don’t plan to sleep tonight.” Before John could answer, Theo ordered a regular coffee for himself and a quadruple-shot Americano for John.

Americanos were John’s coffee of choice. It wasn’t much of a thing, remembering what a friend liked to drink. But he’d never had a friend close enough to care before.

Unable to resist, John glanced back at Meg, and that was when he noticed Jo, seated across the small table from her sister. She was waving them over, and she looked cranky.

Shit.

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