Page 87 of Meet Me at Midnight

I hug Avery tighter and hope. Hope for a smooth resolution. Hope for our friendship and a relationship with Beau all at once.

Hope I haven’t ruined the only real family I’ve ever known for good.

Gold handle in hand, I swing open the heavy door to our office building, show my badge to the security guard Steve in the lobby, and head toward the elevator, contracts for the Higgins Chocolate company clutched to my chest. I’m on my way back from picking them up at the lawyer’s office and absolutely freaking starving for lunch.

I didn’t get a chance to stop today, and unfortunately for me, I probably won’t before it’s time to go home. I’m way too busy to do anything but try to get through the massive amount of work on my plate even though last week’s Thanksgiving meal has more than worn off.

I push the button to call the elevator and wait for the doors to open, my hair whooshing away from my shoulders when the cart stops at this floor and air is pushed toward me.

When the doors open, I step inside and push the button for the fifteenth floor, watching as the doors close in front of me. They’re almost shut when a well-manicured hand shoots inside, Avery’s voice yelling from the other side.

When they don’t immediately bounce back, I panic, jumping forward to hit the door-open button while she shrieks. The contracts fall from my hands and scatter everywhere, but I get the door open just in time to stop the elevator from starting to go up with Avery’s arm caught inside.

“Oh my God, I almost died!” she says dramatically, one hand to her chest and the other clutched around a fresh cup of Starbucks coffee. I squat and pick up the papers from the floor, piling them haphazardly until I can sort them out at my desk. “Clearly,” Avery tsks. “This is yet another reason to tell Neil that me having a job isn’t a good idea.”

“Are youjustgetting here?” I ask suspiciously. I haven’t exactly been in the office all day, but she wasn’t here this morning, and hermorningcoffee order in hand makes me question it. Avery’s morning Starbucks is always of the hot variety. Her afternoon order comes with ice.

“Technically, yes. But I was working remotely. I mean, itisthe week after Thanksgiving, you know. There’s just a lot of shit going on.”

“Working remotely?” I laugh. “Doing what exactly?”

“The same thing I do at the office.”

“So…nothing.”

She smiles, unashamed. “Exactly.” She digs in her purse for her lip gloss and smooths some on her lips while she chatters. “But you know how it is. I was out at Novu until three last night, and then that guy from Hermès, Fester…” She laughs, and I scrunch up my nose. “Yeah, the name’s not the best, but he’s hot, okay? Anyway, he wanted to go get tacos from that little truck after, and I told him I would as long as he ate my taco too.”

A shocked giggle escapes my throat. “Avery.”

“What?” She waves a careless hand in the air and flips her hair over her shoulder. “He’s a little weird, but he has unbelievable tongue control.”

“So, I guess that’s why you didn’t come home last night?”

She nods. “Yeah, he’s got a place downtown, so it was easy.”

I can’t deny that Avery not coming home last night was not an issue for me. It gave me the glorious opportunity to sleep in Beau’s bed. All night long. Though, we only slept part of the time. The other part, he spent fucking me so good I can still feel a delicious throb between my legs.

The elevator dings, and the two of us step out, headed for my desk. Avery doesn’t even bother with stopping at her own before sitting on the surface of mine. “Anyhoo, I’m going out with some of the guys I met while I was with Fester last night. We made plans for this Saturday, and you should really come. It’s not, like, a work night or anything, so your shawl can survive the night at home without you.”

“I don’t know,” I say on a shrug.

“Come on!” she insists. “You haven’t been out with me since you got drunk on the boat. That was weeks ago. Plus, we’re going to the new club that’s opening this weekend.” She waggles her brows like that means something. “It’s called Sage.”

My desk phone rings, and I lean forward to pick it up, but Avery slams a hand down on top of it. “I’ll let you answer if you say yes.”

“Avery, I bet that phone call is important.”

She smiles. “Say yessss, Juuuune.”

“Fine!” I agree on an annoyed snap. “I’ll go, I’ll go. Just let me answer the phone.”

Satisfied, she moves her hand and jumps off my desk with a wink and a wave, off to God knows where. I put the phone to my ear quickly, before I miss whoever is on the other end.

“Juniper Perry,” I greet, picking up my notepad and a pen just in case.

“Come by my office,” Seth McKenzie says on the other end. “I have something you need to drop off with the courier.”

“Sure,” I agree easily, listening as he hangs up the call without anything else. I toss down my pad and pen and hustle down the hall to his office, knocking on the doorframe as I lean in.

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