Page 95 of The Lair

He stays silent, glancing into the darkness as if it belonged to him. When a few moments pass and the dogs don’t bark again, he says, “I’ll check the cameras, but it was probably a fox or some other animal.”

“Right,” I mutter, silently grateful he can’t see the blush on my cheeks. I stand back up with as much poise as I can muster, then awkwardly say, “I’ll go back to my room. Thanks for…thanks for telling me everything.”

His nod is short, stiff, and he doesn’t look at me.

My stomach drops at his cold dismissal, but I tell myself it’s for the best. Crossing the line with my boss and landlord isn’t a good idea, no matter how badly my heart insists otherwise.

Chapter Thirty

The week goes by normally—oras normally as it can go after Travis told me about his empty bedroom, said I was his weakness, and almost kissed me.

It’s during times like this that I wish I had a group of tight-knit friends I could vent to. Charlie is as close as it gets, but it would be weird to tell him I have a thing for our boss. Lola is a good friend, too, but I don’t think we’re there yet. And I don’t talk about relationships with Jada, if only because my life has never been easy enough to allow those conversations, so I wouldn’t even know where to start.

So, I do the next reasonable thing—check online forums.

Several entries underIs it okay to have a crush on my boss?suggest that yes, it’s perfectly fine as long as I don’t act on it because it could ruin everything. I also find not-that-encouraging explanations on theIs it okay to be attracted to an older man?forum, which leave me more confused than before.

Eventually, I reach the conclusion that maybe I’m just infatuated with Travis. That it’s not a crush but a strong attraction explained by the fact that he’s the first man who’s shown mild interest in me. He’s the first man I’ve felt safe with,which is making me confuse feelings of gratitude with love. Possibly.

Only that my feelings for him don’t correlate with infatuation. They’re too strong, too real, too rooted in my heart.But what if I’m just seeing what I want to see?

Several articles and forums suggest going on dates to test this theory. Maybe Charlie or Lola could introduce me to one of their friends that isn’t a total creep. I haven’t been on a date since…well, ever. I think it’s time.

I’m twenty-five, for crying out loud. I’ve been kissed before, once, and it’s not that I feel particularly self-conscious about not having had sex, but I can’t exactly start a relationship with some unsuspecting man while I lie to him every day. But a date won’t hurt, and it could be a good distraction from Travis.

If everything else fails, at least I will have pushed past my fear of socializing. Who knows? Maybe I’ll make a friend or two in the process.

“Char?” I call out, knowing he can hear me from wherever he’s crouching behind the bar.

“What’s up, Alliegator?”

I set the broom aside and rest my elbows on the bar, getting on my tiptoes so I can look at him. He’s putting away some napkins and straws. “Do you have any cute, single friends?”

“If this isn’t an interesting request,” he teases. “Why? Too chicken to admit you like the boss?”

My cheeks flush before I can help it. “I just… You know.”

He stands and runs a hand through his blond curls. “Very eloquent, sweet cheeks. I do have a few cute, single friends who are into women. Want their number?”

“I was thinking maybe I could tag along whenever you guys hang out again? If you’re okay with that.”

“I’m sure we’ll do something fun this weekend. Lola will be there, and I’ll make sure to invite my cutest and most available friends.”

He throws me a wink before grabbing a dirty cloth from the bar and leaving in the direction of the changing room.

As I finish sweeping the floors, I try to convince myself that I’m doing the right thing by asking Charlie to set me up with one of his friends. There’s no real pressure to meet anyone anyway. I’ll just hang out with them this weekend and see how I feel about it.

“Allie?” Travis’s unmistakable deep rumble asks right before I spot his massive figure coming toward me, a scowl on his hard face that looks meaner than usual. And that’s saying something.

“What do you need, boss man?”

“Help me in the back. Bring the broom.”

I do as he says, trailing behind him until he stops by the pool table.

“What are you doing?” I frown when he gently takes the broom from my grip.

“Sweeping the floors,” he says, as if I weren’t looking right at him.

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