Page 10 of Snow Harm, No Foul

“I’ve never seen you make a special drink for someone before.”

“I’m a fuckin’ bartender.”

I search for a cup, wishing I had something better for her than a plain beer glass. Something more fitting for the woman in my office.

“Bartender, yeah. Romantic? I didn’t know you had it in you.”

“I’m not bein’ romantic. I made her a drink ’cause she doesn’t like beer,” I argue, even if he is right.

Matty watches me pour the frozen drink into the cup and then hands me a straw still wrapped in paper. I nod in thanks and wrap my hand around it.

“You don’t have to deny it, Niko. I’m happy for you. I’ve waited years to see you panting after a woman.”

I open my mouth to deny it, but the words don’t come out. Yeah, I’m more than aware that I’m panting over her.

It’s not the first time, and I’m certain it won’t be the last. I’ve just got to make her pant right back.

4

IVY

Oh,my god.

What is happening right now?

Mr. Shaw—Niko—has always been cool, calm, and collected. He’s the gruff, grumpy type of guy who only speaks when he’s forced to, and even then, you’d usually be lucky to get two or three words from him. That’s not been the case today at all.

Something is different this time around, and I’d bet it has to do with the lack of a certain face.

Not only has he been the one encouraging me to talk, but he’s out there, what, making me a daiquiri just because I said I liked them? If I had known he was asking because he wanted to get me something, I’d have given him a blander answer. Or hell, even accepted the foamy piss water he offered to start with.

I’ve never been a beer drinker. It was one of my quirks that Travis hated with a passion. He thought my drink choices were dramatic and that I should learn how to handle a couple of beers without turning my nose up. I became okay with having a water or soda instead of a cocktail or mixed drink because there was no fighting then.

It wasn’t until I left him that I realized how pathetic that made me. The first thing I did when I decided I was done withhim was grab my backbone from wherever I’d hidden it over the nine months I’d spent with him and put it back into place.

It hasn’t moved since.

I smooth my hands down my thighs and then touch the frosted window, needing the cold against my burning flesh. If I wasn’t worried that I’d be caught with my front smooshed to the window, I’d try to cool the rest of myself off, too.

The office we’re in is spacious, but with Niko inside of it, it may as well be the size of a supply closet. His blatant big dick energy fills the room and threatens to make the walls curve against the force of it.

It’s not a loud confidence that he has but a quiet one that attacks when you’re not paying attention. One second, you’re trying not to cry, and the next, your heart is threatening to shoot through your chest at the feel of his hand around yours.

I rub the space between my breasts with my cooled hand and sigh. There are business matters to discuss, but I don’t care about them at all right now. It’s been months since I’ve felt this intense of a desire toward someone, and that’s . . . I’m worried that there’s something wrong with me because of it.

This is the man who raised the one I spent nine months of my life with. I thought I loved him, and we shared really intimate things.

Does it make me a bad person to be thinking about his father in a way that has me debating hopping onto the table and begging him to feast on me?

Maybe if Travis wasn’t such a piece of shit, I would think that I absolutely am. But he doesn’t deserve any kind of loyalty from me. Not anymore. So, aren’t I just a normal warm-blooded female who finds Niko, a grown man, really dang attractive?

Yeah, I think I am.

With a rush of confidence, I pinch the straining top button of my blouse and let it fly open. The curves of my breasts appear,but it’s nothing too revealing. A tease, really. Something to snag his attention.

Being devious like this is exciting. It makes me feel alive and sexy, and I don’t want to put a premature ending to it, even if it doesn’t lead to anything more than a few hours of good conversation.

Niko’s footsteps are heavy as they approach the office. I mess with my hair and pull my shirt open a bit more before folding my hands on the table.

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