Page 36 of The Enemy of My Enemy Is… My Fake Boyfriend?

I didn't know which was worse, the pounding in my skull or the way my heart raced like I was on the verge of a cardiac event. That. That was definitely worse.

Ethan stood in front of me as Chase's office door swung open. My God. Was Chase back early? Or was it Hannah? Coming in to do a little work or get something for him?

Peering around Ethan's large frame, I saw who it was. Thankfully, not Chase or Hannah. But this could definitely be just as bad.

It was Joe, the head janitor that I'd met a handful of times, someone who could definitely recognize me.

Keeping my head down, I focused on my toolbox, closing the lid, and acting like it was the most complicated thing in the world to lock the clasps.

"Hey there," Ethan said in a friendly tone. "We were just finishing up in here with the clogged toilet."

I peeked up to catch a glimpse of Joe, looking us over from head to toe with narrowed eyes.

Oh, God. Oh, God. Oh, God. We absolutely could not get caught in here. I could only imagine the headlines.

Aria Stratton Caught Sabotaging Chase Harrington's Office and Puttinga Bouillon Cubein His Shower Head

Or even worse...

Aria Stratton Arrested for Hiding Dead Spiders and Sushi in Chase Harrington's Desk

Seriously? Was I about to go to jail overa bouillon cube and cured mackerel?

My palms sweated while I fiddled even more with the clasps, and I dared look up at Joe during the interminable wait.

He suddenly smiled, relief flashing through me. Unless it was an evil smile and then—

"Sure was nice of him to leave you a parting gift before he took off for his long weekend," Joe said.

Oh, dear God.

The two actual men in the room chuckled and I did my best to laugh, but it came out a little too high-pitched. Ethan laughed a little louder, most likely in an attempt to cover up my possibly grave error.

He patted me hard between the shoulders. "Come on, man. I'm ready for a shot of whiskey after that one."

One hand heavy on my back, Ethan grabbed the toolbox from the desk with the other and steered me right past Joe who held the door open for us, still chuckling softly to himself.

Once we'd made it into the now empty office space, Ethan dropped his arm, and we continued on to the elevators. I found myself holding my breath while we waited, wondering if he could hear my heart pounding away.

I fought the inexplicable urge to grab onto Ethan's hand or at least his arm for support, but I fought it, of course, for many reasons.

My heart still racing the whole way down in the elevator, we made our way through the bustling lobby, people in a hurry to get the heck out of work. Fortunately, we blended right in with the rush and made it in one piece to our van still sitting out front in a commercial parking zone.

Heaving a huge sigh of relief, I got into the back while Ethan took his spot behind the steering wheel. I plopped onto the floor as he started the engine, my limbs shaky with spent adrenaline. "Oh, my God. I've never in my life been so happy to get into the back of a windowless white van."

"You mean you've been in one before?"

I laughed, truly laughed. "Well, no. Thank goodness."

"Hold on tight. This thing's fun to drive." Ethan pulled away from the curb. "Where to?" he asked.

"My office. Well, my mom's office." I began to unzip my coveralls, more than happy to shed my manhood. "I cannot believe we just got away with that."

"Yeah, I was pretty sure we'd get caught or wouldn't even get in. But you were surprisingly convincing at the front desk and very well organized with your little toolbox."

"Right? I really was." Was it strange to be so proud of myself for pulling off stupid, useless pranks that wouldn't amount to anything?

Shuffling around, I managed to take off my coveralls. I'd worn a shirt underneath but no pants. Rifling through the bag in the back, I pulled out some jeans and shimmied into them.

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