Page 118 of Karma

He pulled her closer until she leaned against him, her head in the crook of his arm. His body was warm, he smelled good, and she did her best to ignore the tingle of awareness inside her. Linc liked to hang out, to snuggle and watch a movie or just talk. Their friendship consisted of everything she’d want with someone she loved deeply except sex and the intimacy that came with it.

So as she sat with his arm around her, comforting him in silence, she ignored the scent of his cologne, masculine and sexy. She tried not to focus on the hard muscled body she leaned against, but it wasn’t easy.

She couldn’t lie and say she’d never wanted a relationship with Linc, but those days were over. When she was younger, she’d had a crush on him, but her mother had caught on quickly and warned her about their different status in life and how ultimately Jordan didn’t fit into his world.

Those words had crushed her young heart, but since her mother cleaned their home, they ultimately made sense, and Jordan had forced herself to focus on being Linc’s friend. Eventually, he’d gone to college, the cost fully covered by his family. She had student loans. She’d gotten a job in human resources for a company she’d liked while he’d attended business school.

But maybe she’d read too many romance novels, because her first year out of college, she’d met a hot guy at a bar. Collin had been attentive, taken her number, and called her the next day. They’d begun dating, and she’d quickly learned he’d come from a wealthy family who made their money in hedge funds.

The relationship turned serious fast, but she never met his family, and she’d begun to feel like he was hiding her from his parents. After all, he’d already met hers. And like with Linc, Jordan’s mother was wary thanks to Collin’s family’s wealth, but since she didn’t work for them, she hadn’t harped on the issue.

Then Jordan had missed her period and a test proved she was pregnant. And Collin Auerbach had panicked and handed her money to get rid of the problem. Much like Linc’s father had apparently done to one of his mistresses, as she now knew.

Jordan had thrown him out, ripped up the check, and the man she’d thought she’d marry got engaged to an oil heiress six months later.

As for Jordan, a month into the pregnancy, she’d experienced terrible cramps and heavy bleeding and lost the baby. The pain of remembering always hurt. And who had been there for her? Linc. He’d helped her with her grief and was there as she’d picked up the pieces of her broken heart.

After Linc had graduated business school, he began working at Kingston Enterprises, and he’d all but begged her to become his personal assistant. Something his father hadn’t been happy about because she was the help’s daughter.

This time she understood she’d never be good enough for anyone with wealth. Fine. She didn’t want the upscale, hoity-toity kind of life anyway. She just desired a normal existence with a job she enjoyed, a man she loved, and eventually a family of her own.

She’d taken the job at Kingston Enterprises, refusing to give up a great opportunity because Linc’s father was an asshole. Besides, the older man’s office had been a long hall away from Linc’s. Once she’d been hired, she’d rarely seen him. And she and Linc had fallen into a special work dynamic. She’d be a fool to think about him as anything other than her boss and friend.

A friend she treasured and didn’t want to lose by adding sex to their relationship. No more wealthy men for her. Plus she saw the kind of women Linc dated, the type of families they came from, the approval his mother gave those women, all proof her own her mother’s words still held true. Jordan wasn’t in his league and didn’t belong there.

“I need a plan,” he said, speaking up out of the blue.

She’d actually thought he’d fallen asleep.

“Do I go meet my sister? Or do I let it go because knowing the truth about her father might be too painful for her?” His words sounded slurred, and he was obviously in no position to talk tonight.

“I think we should discuss this in the morning. You need a clear head to make those kinds of decisions.” She pushed herself off him and rose to her feet.

“Stay with me,” he said, and when she glanced at him, his lips were set in a little-boy pout.

This was the Linc not many people saw. The vulnerable man beneath the businessman he presented to the world. “You need sleep. Do you have a car waiting?” she asked because he used a driver to get around the city.

“I sent him home.” He stretched his feet out on her couch, and she realized he was settling in for the night.

“Kick off your shoes,” she said. No way could he sleep on the couch in his work clothes.

He did as she instructed, and his black dress shoes fell to the floor.

“Now take off your tie and shirt so you’re comfortable.”

“Bossy,” he muttered and began to undo the buttons. He worked his way down, revealing his muscled chest and defined abs from time with a professional trainer. He shrugged out of the shirt, struggling with the buttons on the cuffs, but he managed to release them.

Swallowing hard, she took the shirt and tie from him and put them aside, planning to hang them up so they didn’t wrinkle even more. He’d need them to wear home in the morning.

Despite herself, she couldn’t help but stare at his naked chest. It had been years since they were kids swimming together in his family’s pool, and the man in front of her now was a far cry from the boy he’d been.

How could she look at him and not drool? “Do you want to wash up before you settle in for the night?” she asked in a husky voice.

She reached out a hand to help him to his feet, and without warning, he pulled her forward. She tumbled, twisting herself so she landed on top of his hard body.

“Linc, what are you doing?” She lifted herself up, intending to climb off him when a firm arm around her back locked her in place.

“I need you,” he said, his voice full of longing.

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