Page 14 of Miss Understood

I clear my throat and stand up taller.

“Mr. Davis out in the wild; I never thought I’d see the day.” I skim him head to toe a little too slowly. It definitely borders on inappropriate. I do it anyway.

Jesse scratches the back of his head and resists smiling as he sweeps his gaze down to take inventory of my outfit.

“Jeans?” His eyes flick back up. “And here I thought you were hiding black leather and a whip under those jackets and skirts.”

“Don’t you wish.”

His eyebrow hitches, and he leans a fraction closer. He smells too good—like aftershave, and spice, and sweat, and all things masculine.

Why is my body intent on betraying me right now?

I don’t realize I’m raking my teeth over my bottom lip until it draws his attention, and his eyes darken three shades.

Even with the loud music in the bar I can hear my heart pounding between my temples. Jesse’s eyes are pinned on me, heavy breaths making waves of his chest. The spicy hit of his cologne goes to my head.

It’s all too much. So much worse than when I want to bite his head off.

My heartbeat moves between my legs, and I feel something dangerously close to desire. So I take a step back just as my drink arrives and hold it up between us.

Get it together, Luce. Remember the lion hiding under that pretty package.

I shake my hair off my shoulders and hope he can’t read what is probably written on my face.

“Mateo won the bet,” I say, taking my straw between my teeth and darting my eyes toward Jessica, who is swaying in her seat at Jesse’s table.

She’s pretty in a girl-next-door kind of way. Natural makeup and bangs that sweep just above her eyes. A blush-pink blouse matches her cheeks. She’s a carbon copy of every girl I’ve ever seen Jesse date: soft, delicate, sweet.

Definitely not just a friend.

I’ve seen Jesse leaving the office with plenty of women on his arm. So why does the sway of her hips make me want to rake my eyes out of my head right now?

“She looks nice,” I say, looking up to see his gaze is still pinned on me.

Jesse narrows his caramel eyes, and his whole face pinches. “She is,” he says. “I know it’s a far-fetched concept for some people.”

There it is. That snappy tone and loaded comment. The man goes out of his way to ruin my day, even if it’s jumping hurdles just to get to me. He couldn’t just buy me a drink and be cordial for five seconds. He had to bring me back down to his level.

I avert my eyes and pick up Nate’s drink off the counter, shooting Jesse a smile just to prove he has no effect. “Thank you,” I say too sweetly. “For the drink and the reminder.”

“What reminder?”

But I don’t answer him.

He doesn’t need to know what I was stupidly thinking for one second in that inch of distance between us. Because, like always, he quickly reminded me of the ever-present teeth chomping in my direction. I might have been momentarily distracted by his ridiculously large muscles and the thick imprint of his dick pressing against his slacks, but that’s just physical. Hormones. Biology. All that crap. People hate-fuck all the time, and for a reason. It doesn’t mean I like him, because I definitely don’t.

Jesse is insufferable. And, to top it off, he’s my boss. I don’t ride on people’s backs or dicks to get to where I want to be. I make it happen for myself. So Jesse Davis can take that hot-as-sin body and flaunt it elsewhere. I’m not falling down that rabbit hole.

“Have fun with Jessica,” I say, spinning away on my four-inch black pumps. It sounds more like a threat than well wishes, but maybe that’s how I mean it.

After all, I tried to be nice—kind of. As nice as someone can be to a man determined to constantly put me in my place. But that’s it, I’m done trying, and it’s better this way. Jesse can go screw himself and his date.

Good luck to them both.

6

Jesse

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