Page 29 of The Swiping Game
I set her coffee and donuts down before taking a seat on the corner of her desk. I might have started doing this to get a rise out of her, but now I’m glad. It’s letting me be that much closer to her. “Call it a hunch.”
“Fine. I’m talking to a guy,” she says. “Bring it on. Hit me with your best jokes.”
“What do you mean? You’re seeing someone and I’m happy for you. No jokes.” I open up the donut box and take one for myself. “And you’re welcome for the coffee by the way.”
“Oh,” she says, apparently not realizing I brought it. “You brought me coffee? Again?”
“I did.”
“And you don’t have some smartass comment about me dating someone?”
“I do not.”
She stands up and puts the back of her hand to my forehead. “You don’t have a fever. Are you okay? Did you hit my car? Did aliens come down and replace you with one of their own? Are you dying? You can tell me if you’re dying. I won’t make a joke about that. Everything else, though, I will.”
“Not that I’m aware of—for any of those things.”
“Something has to be wrong,” she says, walking around her desk to stand in front of me. God, I wish I could reach for her. Her waist is right there. All it would take is one reach, and I could have her in my arms. “Why have you been so nice to me lately? Where are the donut jokes? The digs about my messy desk? I’m starting to get worried.”
This is it. This is the opening. Ask her out tonight. There’s never going to be a better time than this.
I take a deep breath. “I was wondering, if you didn’t have—”
“Dean! My favorite agent!” Neil yells as he steps off the elevator. “Let’s get going. I have money to spend, and I’m sure your players would like to take advantage of that.”
I let out a disappointed sigh as Neil steps off the elevator. “Sure thing. Be right in.”
I begin to gather my coffee and suitcase, silently cursing Neil for ruining the moment. Maybe it’s a sign that it’s not time to tell her. I’m going to go with that because every other reason makes me want to punch this guy, and I need him to give my clients roughly twenty million dollars.
“Hey,” Tara calls as I start walking away. “What were you going to ask me?”
“Nothing.” I shake my head. “Was just going to make small talk.”
She gives me a confused look but then shrugs it off. “Whatever you say. Thanks for the donuts, I guess. Though next time you come in here, I’d appreciate snarky Dean. I don’t know how to handle this one.”
“We’ll see,” I say as I shut the door to Neil’s office.
“Have a seat,” Neil says, directing me to the small conference table. “Did you see that story this morning? Charlotte is giving Ty Pierson $48 million.”
“They are?” I can’t believe I didn’t see that. Usually, I see those alerts immediately.
“Thank God I have a few years until you try and pull that shit with me on Bryce. And the day you do . . .”
I don’t hear whatever else Neil says, as I’m frantically patting down my pockets for my cell phone. I should have gotten a notification about that deal. I would have heard it or felt it vibrate.
Okay, I know I had it this morning. Then I was in the elevator when Tara.
Oh shit.
I abruptly stand and turn to look through the glass walls of Neil’s office towards Tara’s desk.
And as soon as I see her, my stomach sinks to the floor.
She’s standing there with my phone in her hand, looking at me like she doesn’t know if she wants to cry or kill me. Maybe both.
She knows. I don’t know how or what happened in the last five minutes, but she knows.
