Page 60 of Boss Me

Cooper’s voice was gentler than I’d ever heard it. “Does that bother you, Ben?”

He didn’t even try to deny it. “Yeah, it does! He has everything! A wife and a family and you. Lucky bastard.” I hissed the last bit. I was so fired, but I couldn’t help it. I’d let my heart get outside my chest again.

“Are you…are you jealous, Ben?”

“Of course I fucking am! I care about you more than he ever will! Why else do you think I kissed you the other night? Did you think I’d make a career-ending move like that if I wasn’t head over heels for you?”

“Head over heels?”

Now he was laughing at me. Cooper Fallon was a lot of things, but cruel wasn’t usually one of them. I guessed an unwanted confession of love would do that to a person. I could never look him in the eye again.

I could never work in the office with him, either. Not with head over heels floating between us like one of Coco’s cheese farts.

I scrambled to my feet, ignoring the twinge in my ankle. “You know what? Forget it. I quit.”

I took two wobbly steps toward the SUV. Not that I had the keys or any way to get back to Cooper’s place. Or to the airport, which was where I really needed to go.

“Whoa.” With two good ankles, he was a lot faster than me, and he gripped my arms firmly but also gently. He came around to block me from the car.

“I’m no good for you, Ben. You know that.”

“I don’t know that. Or I didn’t before you—you—”

“Hurt you?” His eyes flicked between mine.

“More like I hurt myself.” I slumped. “Wanting something I could never hope to have.”

“Never hope? No, Ben. I care about you. More than I should. You deserve so much more than me.”

I looked him dead in the eye. “Don’t you think I should be the judge of what I deserve and what I want?”

“I—I guess you should.”

“Then I want you.” Time to go for broke. I drew myself up. “I deserve you.”

“Ben, I—” He tightened his grip on my arms and then released me. “Were you really serious about quitting?”

“Absolutely.” No matter what happened now, I couldn’t go back to my polite Mr. Fallons and the no-touching rule. Not since I kissed him. Not after I told him I deserved his affection.

Quitting my job meant there were no more barriers between us. “I could find another job easier than I could find another Cooper Fallon.”

“You’re officially resigning?”

Hope flared in my chest. “I’ll type up an email as soon as I get back to my laptop.”

“So, since you’re no longer my employee…” Slipping one arm around my back, he tunneled his hand into my hair then crashed his lips onto mine.

My pulse roared in my ears so loud I almost didn’t hear the hoots from the crew and Mateo’s “Finally!”

But I didn’t care about them. All I cared about was the man holding me in his arms and kissing the hell out of me.

22

COOPER

When Ben emerged from his room, I couldn’t help it. My jaw dropped. I supposed so even my wisdom teeth could ogle him.

He wore a black T-shirt that hugged every lean muscle. His jeans? I gulped. If he’d pulled up his shirt, I could’ve told you whether he was circumcised. He’d mentioned his family observed Jewish traditions, so he had to be.

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