Page 56 of Doozer

“Follow me,” he growled.

What fresh hell do you have in store for me now?I wondered as I slid on my shoes and stepped out of my room.

He scowled as we walked down the hall. “Let me be crystal clear. You still have the next forty-eight hours to yourself, but if you break curfew, I’m gonna fuckin’ rain down so much pain on you, you’ll wish you were dead.”

“Wow,” I breathed out as he stopped at the conference room door and pushed it open. “Who could possibly—”

“Hey, Steph.”

I gasped as Doozer studied me from across the room. I heard the door close behind me and I rocked from foot-to-foot not sure what he was doing here.

“You gonna say hi?” he asked.

“Are you here to dump me?” I blurted.

He frowned. “I wasn’t the one who wrote a Dear John letter. I’m here so you can tell me in person.”

“I didn’t write you a Dear John letter.”

“What else would you call it?”

I bit my lip. “I was processing my thoughts. On paper. But I couldn’t dump you if my life depended on it. Obviously.”

He cocked his head. “Obviously?”

“Marco, I love you. I can’t think straight because of it. Ergo, obviously.”

He crossed his arms. “Your letter made it sound like you wanted to end things in order to think straight.”

“I know,” I breathed out. “I’d had no sleep and I was really sad. But ending things is not what I want on any level.” I blinked in an effort not to cry. “I don’t know what I’m trying to say, Doozer. You know I suck at this kind of shit.”

His mouth twitched. “I do know that.”

“And…?”

“Get your ass over here and kiss your man,” he demanded, and I wrinkled my nose.

“Or… you can getyourass over here and kiss your woman.”

He didn’t hesitate, taking three long strides and wrapping his arms around me, lifting me off my feet. He kissed me so hard, I’m surprised we managed to stop ourselves from stripping down and fucking on the giant table.

“Fuck, baby, I missed you,” he said after he broke the kiss.

“I missed you more.”

“Doubtful.”

“What are you doing here?” I asked once he set me on my feet. “Does Minus know?”

“That I’m here?”

“Yeah.”

“He sent me.”

I gripped his cut. “Shut the fuck up. Why the hell would Minus send you?”

He patted my butt. “Because I’ve been moping like a puppy who’s just gotten swatted with a newspaper. He was over it.”

---