Page 48 of Fireworks Flame
Deiss leans against the counter next to me, both elbows resting on it as he lifts his chin at Phoebe. “What are you doing here so early? Do we need to break you out of a bout of writer’s block?”
“Actually,” Phoebe says, her eyes brightening with excitement, “I came by to tell you that Mac is at lunch with his agent.”
Deiss’s head tilts. “Right now?”
She grins and nods.
“Let’s go,” he says, pushing himself off the counter. His hand slips up my arm, cupping the crook and tugging.
I slide off the stool and close my laptop, setting it under the counter with my free arm as I look up at him in question.
“Mac’s agent always leaves the tab open,” he says, pulling me toward the door. His hand trails down to my wrist before it releases me, and he glances back at Mia. “You’ve got this?”
“You know it, boss,” she says quickly, causing my mouth to fall open in disbelief.
I glance at Phoebe and see the same shock on her face.
“Did she really just call youboss?” I ask once the door closes behind us and we’re headed toward Phoebe’s car.
“Without sarcasm?” Phoebe adds, her voice high with disbelief.
Deiss shrugs.
“I knew she liked you,” Phoebe says, “but I didn’t know she was actuallyniceto you.”
“It’s not like she offered to knit me a sweater,” Deiss says, opening the door to the front seat and waving me in. “She just said she’d do her job.”
“She almostsmiled,” Phoebe says, ducking to climb in behind the wheel.
“That’s an exaggeration,” Deiss says, closing the door and sliding into the back. “She doesn’t even do that when I hand her a paycheck.”
I fight the urge to check my makeup in the visor mirror. I did the new, quicker version this morning because of our longer run. I could’ve stayed behind when Deiss left for work, but it seemed silly not to walk together.
“She smiled at me once,” I say.
Phoebe gasps dramatically. “No!”
“Did she really?” Deiss asks.
I nod. “I was coming back from the restroom, and a customer bumped into me and spilled their coffee all over me. It made her smile.”
Phoebe snorts. “So, she smiled at your pain.”
“You don’t know that,” I say. “She could’ve been happy I got burnedorshe could’ve been happy my favorite pink cotton half-sleeve was ruined.”
“Either way,” Deiss says, “it was Liv who prompted that joy.”
“Exactly.” I turn in my seat so I can see him. He’s leaning toward us from the hump in the middle, which is funny since he’s always been the king of shotgun. “I have brought sunshine and happiness to your employees. You thought you were doing me a favor by letting me use your laptop, but it is I who have turned out to be the true gift.”
“ ’Tis she,” Phoebe says grandly.
“You actually look like sunshine today.” Deiss’s eyes scanme, taking in my orangey-yellow top, perfectly coordinated with the skirt that doesn’t completely cover my thighs while sitting. “But I guess your hair is always kind of sunshiny.”
He reaches forward absentmindedly and fingers a lock of it. His touch sends a tingle through my scalp that travels down my neck.
“Ironic, for the Ice Queen.” Phoebe flashes me a teasing grin. “Maybe you’re melting.”
“I’m trapped in vacation clothes.” Her words prompt a flush of pleasure that warms my cheeks. It’s a strange reaction, seeing as I’ve never minded the nickname. Have I?Ice Queensounds formidable. Nobody would dare mess with an ice queen. “It’s a false illusion that will be rectified once I get my money back.”
