Page 47 of Charmed and Alarmed

My words are cut off as the man above me comes with a roar, wedging his swelling length as deep as he can, filling me with his hot release. I kiss his jaw, his neck, his shoulder, moaning in pleasure at the feeling of it. “Jesus, princess.”

I giggle, drawing my nails up his spine, and feel him shudder at the added stimulation as his orgasm dies away. “I seriously can’t believe you got a tattoo of my name.”

He kisses my shoulder before lifting his head to look at me. “You’re my whole fucking life, Len. It might seem extreme to you, but to me? Fuck, to me it’sright. I like that whenever you look at me, you’ll know I’m yours.”

“Maybe I should get one too. So you know when you look at me,” I suggest as he pulls out and gets to his feet, reaching for his discarded T-shirt to wipe my cum from his softening cock.

Holden glances up at me, blanching at the suggestion. “You’re not putting ink in your skin.”

“No?” I hum, his gaze follows as my hand skims down my naked body, coming to drift lightly over my inner thigh, inches from the lips of my pussy. “You wouldn’t want your namehere?”

Holden blows out a long breath and glances up at me, his eyes much darker than usual. “You just love making me eat my words, don’t you, princess?”

19

HOLDEN

While I was gone in the days following Leni’s surgery, somehow, the news of our relationship spread through E&V like wildfire.

By the time I returned, tired but optimistic about the future of our relationship and Leni’s recovery, I was met by a lot of curious, judgemental looks and conversations that came to an abrupt halt whenever I entered a room.

It’s understandable. One of their bosses entering into a relationship with their other boss’s youngest daughter—a woman who is significantly younger and happens to work for him—was never going to go unnoticed. Even so, it hasn’t exactly made for a stress-free return to the office.

“Monica from accounting overheard Bram talking to Sophie,” one of my senior architects informed me when I questioned her about the origin of the rumors. “I don’t put any stock in that, of course. Monica is a gossip, and I’m sure it will die down soon,” she hurried to assure me, as if I was going to punish her for being the messenger.

The rumorswon’tbe dying down, though. Not if they’re true.

In a way, I was relieved that the Band-Aid was ripped off. The last thing I wanted Leni to be worried about when she returned to work was what her coworkers were saying about her, and I’d hoped the talk would simmer down by then.

It was a futile, foolish hope. Bram canceling all our shared meetings only added fuel to the fire, and when Leni returned to E&V at my side, whatever had died of the whole scandal, reignited spectacularly.

Linda-Rae from HR looked as though she wanted to throttle me when I told her.

“We’re going to have to be really boring, so people get sick of discussing us,” Leni informs me at lunch the Friday after she returns to work, as she maneuvers her way into my office on crutches, bearing a bag containing our favorite sandwiches from the deli across the street.

I feel eyes on us as I round the desk to help her into the chair, kissing her in thanks for the lunch. People can say whatever they want, but now that it’s out there, at least I don’t feel any pressure to be discreet. This woman is my future. I love her, and I’m not going to pretend we aren’t together.

“You didn’t need to bring me something. I was planning to order in for us.”

Leni waves me off, already unwrapping her sandwich by the time I sit down in my chair. “I’m glad I did. There’s a bulletin board in that place, and I saw the community college in town is doing an interior design intensive next month. I signed up.”

I pause halfway through the act of opening my own lunch, my heart lifting. “That’s great, Len. Interior Design, huh? I didn’t know you were interested in that.”

She shrugs, not quite meeting my eye as she reaches into her purse to produce two bottles of iced tea. “I didn’t, either. I’m supposed to be trying new things, though, and it seems like it might be fun. It’s not like I’m expecting it to be my career or anything, but you never know.”

“You never know,” I echo, unreasonably cheered by this piece of information as I take a bite of the turkey club she brought me. By the time I swallow, Leni has already moved on.

“I saw Dad,” she begins hesitantly.

And, just like that, my mood is deflating. “Yeah?” I ask. “What did he have to say? Something passive-aggressive?”

Leni chews slowly, her eyes on my face. “Actually, I think he’s doing a little better. You probably won’t be palling around any time soon, but I don’t think he’sactivelyplanning to murder you anymore. Not that you’re totally out of danger, but I’ve got to say, for such a little weirdo, Sophie seems to have had a surprisingly grounding influence on him.”

I can’t help but chuckle. “That she has.”

“She stopped him from getting rid of Cross Beam.”

The hamster I promised the team, which was purchased at the pet store on my way to work last week—and regrettably named Cross Beam by popular vote—is proving to be very good for morale. People keep bringing in things for her cage, and the entire engineering team stayed late last night to construct a bridge leading to a secondary enclosure. Bram ejecting her from the building would not have been taken well.

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