Page 17 of The Lamb and the Llama
She quickly busied herself, jotting down more notes.
“So, coffee?” he asked again.
“No, I’m fine,” she answered. Finally, she looked back up at him.
His eyes dropped from hers.
Fuck! He’s pissed.
But seriously, didn’t he understand they had a job to do? They didn’t have time for inappropriate workplace behavior.
The same flashes from the night before rushed through her mind once more, and heat streamed down her neck and cheeks as she remembered telling him she wanted him. Or was that a dream? Because ever since she’d met him, she was having some pretty inappropriate dreams about her boss. She instantly wanted to pull her hair out of the tight bun she had it in and unbutton the first two buttons on her blouse, but she was still in the office.
“Amira, are you all right? Can I get you some water? You look flushed.”
Amira played with the collar of her button-down blouse. It seemed to constrict her with each breath she took. All she wanted to do was hide until Gregor showed up.
“Just a little warm,” she answered. “I think I’ll hit the cafeteria for some iced tea. The crisp morning air might do me some good.”
Amira went to stand but was met with his outstretched hand containing an opened water bottle.
“Amira, please talk to me. What’s wrong?”
She swiped the bottle away from Richard and took two unladylike pulls from it before she met his eyes. They were brown pools of milky chocolate goodness, and she couldn’t help but melt at the sweetness she saw behind his gaze.
“Nothing’s wrong.” Her voice was almost a whisper.
He placed a hand on the back of his neck and rubbed it. She remembered him doing this during the interview and figured it was a nervous habit.
“You just seem… distracted.”
“Of course I’m distracted. I have a big assignment, and I also have to think about the fact that Zagan escaped from prison,” she snapped at him, and he took a step back, looking surprised at her change in tone. She took a breath and calmly explained, “I just want to make sure I’m ready, that’s all. The former king will be here soon.”
“All right. Let me know when he arrives.” He gave her a sharp nod, though his eyes seemed doubtful about her explanation. Even so, he turned and left Stan’s office.
She let out a huge breath when he was gone. Had he wanted to talk about what happened the night before? Did he regret anything—especially when she touched his junk? And was last night just as fuzzy for him to remember as it was for her?
She wanted to know the answers, but she also didn’t think it was the best time to think about it. She needed to focus on the job.
And definitely not allow what happened last night to happen again.If she couldn’t control herself, Stan might kick her off the Gregor detail. She didn’t want that to happen. She also didn’t want to offend Richard or give him the wrong idea. She liked him and could even see herself dating the man, but she’d be damned if he stood in the way of her promotion. He’d have to understand that whatever they had going on between them had to be casual until after the assignment was over.
“Ready for your assignment?” Stan’s eyes were set ablaze as he appeared at Amira’s side, rubbing his hands together.
Amira swallowed hard before she answered. She gave him a thumbs-up. It was the best she could do because she was worried her voice would crack.
“Is Dick coming?” Stan asked.
Amira coughed out of reflex. Did Stan know what she did last night to Richard? Pretty sure it was an inappropriate sexual assault in the workplace since he was her boss. Well, former boss. Was it written all over her face?
“I’m right here, Stan,” Richard said, appearing in Stan’s more private part of his office. He stood firm between where Amira was and where Stan was. “And I told you before—stop calling me Dick!”
Richard’s cheeks were sporting the most gorgeous shade of red. Did that mean that he was also thinking about what happened last night? And more importantly? Did that mean he liked it?
He wasn’t alone. Next to him was King Gregor. Amira recognized him from the photos in the mission brief.
“Stan! It’s so good to see you!” the man called out.
Stan and Gregor shook hands. “It’s good to see you, too. But where’s your guard?”
