Page 27 of The Wrong Boss

It was the tiniest break in his otherwise calm demeanor, and it made the breath leave my lungs in a rush.

I looked at those hands on that glass, and a vision flashed through my mind. Another glass in a low-lit bar. A hand sliding up my thigh, the press of his thumb against my knee.

Those hands had been on me. In me.

It couldn’t be. I’dlookedfor him. I’d been desperate to find him, to tell him about my—our—daughter, and had only given up when life swept me up in its current, when I’d resigned myself to doing it alone.

How could I have searched and searched and come up empty, only for?—

As he turned away from the bar cart where he’d been fetching himself a glass of water, the world fell away from beneath my feet.

Dark eyes snapped to mine. Recognition flared. The earth tilted.

My loafers’ heels were only an inch high, but I felt like I was teetering on six-inch stilettos. The last remnants of strength in my legs gave out as my knees knocked.

Distantly, I felt my mouth shape his name, but no sound came out.

Then everything went black.

TEN

COLE

Carrie’s eyes rolled back,and she crumpled before Kaia even realized something was wrong. I vaulted over my desk and tried to make it in time, but Carrie hit the deck with a dull thud. Her head bounced on my expensive Turkish rug.

Infuriating woman.

Kaia yelped, crouching, but I was already there.

The feel of Carrie in my arms was a familiar weight. Too familiar. Not familiar enough. My heart rattled as I lifted her onto the nearest couch, panic constricting my airway as her limp body dangled over my arms. Her head lolled onto the throw pillow.

“Carrie,” I croaked, then turned to bark at Kaia. “Water.”

She was beside me in an instant with a bottle in her trembling hands. “I don’t—I don’t know what happened. She wasfine.”

“Carrie,” I said, sliding an arm behind her neck. I lifted her, studying those cheeks that weren’t quite as full as they’d been seven years ago, that mouth that I’d dreamed about for far too long. Her hair was a different color. A slightly lighter shade of brown. But it had only taken the brief moment when our gazes had crashed against each other for me to know that her eyes were exactly the same shade of gray.

She was here. She’d just walked into my office like it was nothing, and now she washere.

Her eyes fluttered. Slivers of familiar silver revealed themselves to me, and my heart gave a mighty thump. She blinked, frowning slightly, then moved her gaze to mine. She recognized me—why else would she faint at the sight of me?—but there was confusion or shock or horror beginning to enter her gaze.

“Drink,” I commanded, bringing the bottle to her lips.

“So bossy,” she grumbled, and I couldn’t help the startled laugh that fell from my lips. Relief swept through me like a cool breeze. Itwasher. It washer.

But why did I care so much? Why did it feel like I’d just escaped death? I didn’t evenknowthis woman, but I watched her swallow a few sips of water until she pushed the bottle away and tried to lift herself up.

“Stay there,” I told her. “Kaia, call an ambulance. We need to get her checked out.”

“That’s really not necessary,” Carrie protested, shoving my chest to give herself more room.

Kaia made a horrified noise, something between a gasp and a gurgle, then made for the door. “I’ll call 9-1-1.”

“Don’t, Kaia,” Carrie protested. “I’mfine. I just need a minute. I, uh, skipped breakfast this morning,” she said, eyes sliding over to mine as a question burned in them. She shrugged slightly, like she was trying to get something off her shoulder.

That’s when I realized I still had my arm curled behind her neck. I was kneeling beside the couch, my stomach brushing her elbow. After I’d handed her the water bottle, I’d rested my free hand on her hip. My fingers had curled into her side, and my thumb was tracing the waistband of her tight skirt without me knowing when it had begun the motion.

Clearing my throat, I stood and took a step away. My palms burned with the feel of her. I still couldn’t believe that she was actually here. “You need to get checked out,” I told her, voice hard.

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