Page 20 of Never Always
“Do you want to grab dinner tonight? I know that’s a strange question as we’ve worked together for a while now and I’ve never asked you before, but I’ve been working up the courage.”
We get to the landing where our office is and he stops, blocking the door. The bright red exit sign catches my eye.This is what you want, Tennyson, I remind myself. Even if it’s not. “Am I that intimidating? So much so that you had to work up courage to ask me to dinner?” It’s meant as a joke, but my subconscious wants a truthful answer. What’s wrong with me? Grey meets my eyes and for what it’s worth, he does look scared and that’s a turnoff.
“Sure. Look at you. Look at your career. Plus, as far as I can tell, you don’t date and I figured it was because you haven’t met anyone up to par.”
Flattering, I guess. “I can assure you that’s not the reason I don’t date. It’s a bit more complicated than that.”
A silence stretches longer than is comfortable. “So, dinner then? What do you think?” Grey prompts, opening the door for me. I ask him another question, just trying to clarify what he means by the statementlook at you. Grey is explaining, quite poorly, might I add, as I open my office door to see Grange spinning in my chair like a toddler before a timeout.
“Good morning,” Grange drawls, curious gaze flicking from Grey to me—my body more specifically. Two words and I’m doing that weird melting, dizzy dance that I didn’t know I was capable of. Grey shuffles his feet next to me and I realize the awkward triangle this became in a matter of a second. “What are you two up to this morning?”
“How did you get in here?”
Grange shrugs and spins the chair again. “A vet let me in. You ready to get to work, boss?” He stands without an ounce of dizziness. “Or did I interrupt something here.” The smile he flashes me is predatory.
“We can finish our conversation later,” Grey inserts, self-conscious embarrassment rolling off him in waves. Like a pack animal or something similar, Grange smells it, hones in on it.
“I did interrupt something. We’ll I’ll be damned. Did she finally ask you out?” He motions to me, gaze focused on Grey who is staring at the carpet.
“That’s none of your business,” I interject before Grey can answer.
Grange laughs, and I shake my head, rounding him to put my bag on my desk. I pull on my lab coat. “I asked her out,” Grey replies, an attempt to be strong. “Will you go out with me, Tennyson?” My back is facing them, my hand on the door handle leading to the lab, my only escape at the moment.
My pulse is banging against my neck, my fingertips, my chest. “Wait, let’s make things interesting,” Grange says. “Go out with me.”
I spin, eyes wide. “What?” My voice doesn’t sound like my own.
“Fine, just play chess with me. No date,” Grange replies, standing from the chair. Grey can’t see him waggle his brows at me.
While I watched Grange’s every move in disbelief, I didn’t see Grey, shoulders slumped, walk away, tail tucked. My gaze darts to the empty doorway and Grange turns to glance. “Guess I win, then?” He takes a step over and closes the door. “Rematch?”
Swallowing hard, I tamp down on my excitement to let the anger in. “You…you…” I stutter. “How could you do that to poor Grey?”
He quirks a brow. “He did that to himself. He needs to grow a pair.” Grange looks down to his hand and starts picking at a fingernail.
I bristle. “Just because someone has a hard time asking a woman out doesn’t mean he needs to grow a pair. You are a chauvinistic pig, Granger. Not everyone has to be like you.” My shaking hand opens the door and I push into the freezing lab.
Grange follows and even though he shouldn’t be in here, I don’t tell him to leave. “Do you want to go on a date with him?” He hikes a thumb over his shoulder. “I’ll go and apologize to him and tell him that he can have you.”
I spin, aiming a finger into his chest, shaking my head. “Have me? I’m not an object.”
Grange sets both hands on my arms and pushes my hand down. “You are. The most precious kind.”
Wrinkling my nose, I shake my head. “Oh, you make me want to vomit.”
“I’m joking with you, Fire. Calm down. I, uh, got a little jealous when he said he asked you out. I didn’t expect to feel that way and words slipped out. Forgive me.”
Leaning back, I peer at his face. It seems to look honest, no trace of a snide smile or evil twinkle of his darn baby blues. “Jealous?”
“Jealous,” he confirms. “Don’t worry, it shocks me as much as it shocks you but I’m man enough to know what I’m feeling and express it as such. I’m not a complete Neanderthal.”
I scoff. “Debatable.”
“Tell me what you want.” His tone is husky.
Looking away, I think how uncomfortable it made me when Grey asked me out. Now, I’m not sure if it’s because I feel conflicted because of what happened last night with Corrick or if it’s Grey. “I’ll go out with you. A date. Not chess,” I deadpan, horrified with myself. “I don’t want to see the victorious expression I’m sure you’re wearing right now, so leave me to work.”
His laugh tells me I’m right. “Maybe the vets need help with the enclosures today,” I add.
