Page 100 of A Temporary Forever

I take a sip of the amber liquid. “What do you want, Quinn?” The idea of talking about Celeste with this douchebag makes the hair on my nape stand on end.

“It’s been a month since you joined us, and next week we’re announcing not one, but three mergers. I wanted to acknowledge that having you join us was a brilliant decision.”

Is he taking the credit now? “You mean blackmailing me into it?”

I’ve been working a lot since I signed the partnership, but I’ve been enjoying every moment. I’m not telling him that though.

“Semantics. You’re here, and I just wanted to acknowledge your contribution.” He swirls his whiskey in his glass.

“Careful there, or I might think you like me.”

“Let’s not get carried away.” He raises his glass and I snort.

“Well, for what it’s worth, I enjoy my role at Merged.”

He tips his glass to me and then takes a sip. “I know we didn’t start off on the right foot, but I respect that you put our differences aside and made a smart business decision.”

I swallow a quip, because if I got to know this man a bit better in the last few weeks, I know this is a rare moment of honesty with a dose of humility on his part, and I’m going to enjoy it along with my Macallan.

“My wife told me how cutthroat the entertainment world is, but at the end of the day, everyone pulls together for the best performance.”

“I guess I have your missus to thank.” He stands up.

“Don’t go anywhere near her,” I warn.

“Protective. I never took you for the marrying kind.”

He isn’t wrong, and I’m not really married. “You don’t know me, Corm. And as much as I appreciate the celebratory drink, I’m not interested in bonding with you over my private life.”

He chuckles. “Fair enough. I promise not to charm her when I finally meet her. Xander and Declan are across the street at the bar. We were hoping you’d join us.”

I check my watch. Goddammit, Celeste is probably on her way home already. I text Peter, who confirms it.

If I go home now, I won’t be able to avoidher bed. Or mine, but either way there would be me in a bed with a woman.

First, that kind of sex feels boring.

Second, if we were in her room, would she expect me to stay? And if we were in mine, I wouldn’t be able to send her away.

That would certainly hurt her. And I promised her, and myself, not to make her feel used ever again.

“I need fifteen minutes to finish this report. I’ll join you then.”

Bonding with my partners is overdue anyway, especially after our rocky beginning. And it would solve my Celeste dilemma.

Somehow, due to the sheer demand of our schedules and a bit of careful planning on my side, we’ve avoided evenings at home together, essentially solving my little problem.

But I was looking forward to seeing her tonight. Fuck. I finish my whiskey, not savoring it anymore. If there was someone I wanted to celebrate my one-month anniversary with, it was Celeste.

So why do I fear her in my bed so much? Waking up beside her might not be such a bad thing. Not that I’d know, since I’ve never done that.

But having her in my bed, as opposed to in places where we could get discovered, might bring the novelty and excitement factor down a notch.

It would be a sure way to get bored, and fuck, I don’t want that.

Goddammit, this is such uncharted territory.

“Are you joining us?” Roxy pops her head into my door. “You know they accepted you already, but it wouldn’t hurt to join the fun sometimes.”

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