Page 103 of One Big Little Secret

For a split second, I almost break down in tears, fighting the urge to stuff my palm against my mouth andscream.

Yep, I’m losing it.

I hate this entire situation so much.

My hands move ahead of my brain, and I’m in the middle of ripping the drawings down to shove in my drawer when there’s an obnoxiously fast knock on the half-open door.

Here comesstrike two,right on time.

I know it’s Kayla before I turn around and smell her wall of heavy perfume.

She has a certain way of making an entrance.

Most people just knock once, maybe twice, sometimes three times. Then they wait to be invited in.

Not her.

She knocks away like a woodpecker, like she’s tapping out a song, right before she barges in and flings the door at the wall.

Probably because she’s so used to being invited everywhere. She can’t imagine a situation where she’s not treated like royalty deigning to grace us mortals with her presence.

“Lemmykins!” She throws her arms around me in an exaggerated hug and plants a perfumed kiss on my cheek, almost knocking me off my chair. “So this is your work lair. Niiice.”

“Hey, Kay,” I manage.

“Huh. It’s kinda small, though, isn’t it?” She wrinkles her nose as she looks around, probably wondering how normal people consider an office a luxury at all, before she forgets all about it. “Anyway, is he here right now?”

He?

It takes me a second to realize who. I just blink at her innocently.

“Patton Rory. Duh. I know you couldn’t tell me much last night with the big storm and all. God, my Thai order was solatein that storm.” She makes a disgusted face and looks around. Almost like she’s just expectingto find him hanging out here even though I’m a humble operations manager and he’s the flipping owner with a few dozen other properties to look after.

I try not to think about all the times hehasbeen in my office, though. Or the fact that he saved my butt last night, only to ruin my life with that kiss like delicious poison.

Stop thinking about it, Salem.

“He’s not here,” I say lamely. “He’s a busy man, you know. He’s probably meeting clients or…” God, I don’t even know. “Actually, I don’t really know his schedule today.”

“But you’re his manager.” The way she beams at me says everything—she expects him to burst in at any second and then drop down on one knee and propose to her at first sight. “You guys talk, right? About like business stuff?”

“Yeah. But that doesn’t mean he’ll just pop in here any second. Some days, I don’t see him.”

Especially not after last night. The way he went slinking off like a guilty cat after knocking over a flower vase.

He’ll be avoiding me for sure.

Just as much as I’m avoiding him.

“You don’t know that, Lemmy.” Kayla sits in the other seat, the one Patton sat in that one time when we were actually being friendly—though not that friendly. “Besides, I’ve got time to kill. Let’s just catch up andseewhat happens.”

“You’re just going to wait here?” I bite my tongue.

“Yeah?”

“But—”

“Um, how else do you expect me to meet him?”

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