Page 38 of Alive At Night

“You don’t have to—”

“I’ll do it Monday,” Julian insisted, swiping his jacket and tie off the ground. “Now, come on. It’s getting late.”

Couldn’t argue on the late part. I grabbed my heels without hesitating, eager to put an end to this night. But when I tried to straighten, shoes in hand, my entire world momentarily tipped.Careened.My scream bounced off the walls of the parking garage as a strong arm looped beneath my back and my knees, and I realized—with a fair bit of horror—that Julian wascarryingme.

“What the hell are youdoing?”

When he spoke, his words brushed across my hair. I felt them—like a breeze. “Seems a bit obvious, doesn’t it?”

“Maybe not as obvious as you’d think,” I hissed before trying to shift, wondering if I could roll out of his arms and back into a more composed position. But Julian’s grip tightened. His fingers pressed securely into my sides, just like they had at the football game last week.

“Julian, put me down,” I demanded when I realized I couldn’t escape on my own.

“No.”

“Julian.”

“I saw at least two broken bottles earlier,” he said plainly. “And I don’t know about you, but I’d like to get home. Which means I really need you not to slice your feet open.”

“If you had justtoldme that, I could have put my shoes back on.”

“You mean the torture devices?” he corrected. From the corner of my eyes, I saw the wry twist of his lips.

“You’re going to get my dress dirty.” I flicked his fingers, hoping he’d let go. He didn’t.

“No, I’m not. My hands are clean enough.” His voice dropped. “I’d never dare otherwise with you.”

“Sometimes you are absolutely infuriating,” I grumbled, hating how his body heat seemed to be pressing in from all sides. God, I hoped he couldn’t feel how sticky I was. A shower. I just needed a shower. And I needed Julian to stop getting so goddamnclose.

The rumble of Julian’s soft laughter vibrated in his chest. I felt it—like an earthquake, shaking my world. I leaned into the comfort of it without thinking. What was wrong with me?

“Sometimes?” he questioned.

When he didn’t put me down even when we got to the elevator, I amended, “All the time.”

The doors slid open, and Julian stepped us beneath the fluorescent bulbs of my building’s outdated elevator. He tipped me back toward the ground slowly, and I had to fumble with my dress to keep it from riding up again as I slid down his front.

Infuriating. Absolutely infuriating.

He stepped back as soon as he could, undoubtedly scrambling to get away from me, and when I’d composed myself, I glanced around the elevator to find Julian on the opposite side of it. His eyes were trained on the ground, but they lifted when I faced him.

Julian and I were like magnets—always had been. We were two same-sided magnets, and the repulsion force was overwhelming. Undeniable. There were times, though, that one of us…flipped. And suddenly, there’d be apull.

“All the time?” he repeated, eyes bright.

Caught in a magnetic force I was trying to fight, I found it hard to respond.

Julian’s expression tightened. He looked like how I felt inside. “Feeling’s mutual, Daisy.”

CHAPTERTEN

julian

BY TWO O’CLOCK THE next day, I started looking forward to the evening. Or, more accurately, when the office would be empty besides Juniper and me.

It had nothing to do with the high-heeled princess I shared my office with and everything to do with, well, everyone else. I hadn’t been able to go more than five minutes without an interruption today, and all I needed was some fucking peace and quiet.

Peace, quiet, and Juniper St. James were not a usual combination, but working together on the case last night had been an odd relief of sorts. We got along better when speaking a common language, and law was it.

---