It was my turn to stiffen in the chair.
Erica gestured to the other person. “Exactly. My assistant won’t be leaving my side. Bob, you’re just cranky because my request to have an assistant was approved—unlike your request. Everyone knows any assistant of yours would sue for sexual harassment within the first week.”
Bob let out a dreamy sigh. “Ah, but that would be one glorious week.”
The group started laughing again, but I wasn’t hearing them. I wasn’t enjoying the camaraderie they all seemed to have while teasing each other.
Kian’s team of lawyers and his publicist? Or maybe he has more than one?
He wouldn’t be coming alone tomorrow. He would have a team with him and maybe even his family, who all knew me.
I couldn’t be there.
There was no way.
I looked at Erica. How could I stop this train wreck from happening? And I was seeing now that it would be a train wreck. I was the wreck. This would ruin my life. I would be exposed, and Kian would have nothing to do with it. It would be all my own doing because I’d let my roommate talk me into attending her interview and because the truth was that I wanted to come for myself.
I wanted to see Kian again.
A raging headache was coming on. I felt it pushing at my temples, and it was growing more and more by the time Susan came back and started the meeting.
I wasn’t paying attention. I was screwed.
I was on the roof again that night, but I wasn’t there because Kian had called me. I called him, and I did so with shaking hands. To have gotten the text was one thing, but to be the one to initiate the meeting was a whole other level.
That was me.
I had gone to that level, and I still could imagine Snark yelling at me. Before, it was like I had committed a crime by omission. There was wiggle room for a defense team. Not now. I was planning, concocting, and being the mastermind of my own crime. There would be no room for a defense if I were caught red-handed.
And why was I thinking that I’d be prosecuted? For what? A text message? Because I’d forgotten that Kian would probably be surrounded by a team of people tomorrow? Because I still had to go to that interview with my roommate, or she’d have my head on a stake?
I was so screwed.
“What’s wrong?”
I screamed, lurching in the air, as I grabbed at my chest. I was where he’d been, waiting at the side of the building, perched on the edge, so I could see when he arrived. It should have given me time to prepare. Nope, that hadn’t happened. I’d had no time to prepare.
I swung heated eyes to him.
Kian was standing behind me with an amused grin on his face. He tilted his head to the side with his hands at his sides, and he seemed relaxed. As I patted my chest again, feeling my heart palpitations starting to lessen from my heart trying to climb out of my chest, I couldn’t stop myself from checking him out again.
He really was so gorgeous.
I didn’t recognize the brand of his clothes, but I knew they were custom-tailored. He had on that leather jacket from before. It was zipped up with a button that stretched across the collar, giving him a lean and sleek look. He wore jeans again. The others had been dark while these were faded, but they were fashionably faded, and they fell over his legs perfectly. They molded to the tops of his thighs, and even though I’d only gotten a glimpse of his backside, I could tell his jeans smoothed over his ass in a delicious way.
This…this was why I wanted to see him tomorrow. I was attracted to him, and—holy shit, I couldn’t be. That was not good, not at all.
His eyes narrowed as he patted the side of his face. “Have I grown two heads?”
“No.” I let out a shaky smile. “Sorry.” Get it together, Jo. You two are not freshmen paired together for a class project. “I, uh…never mind. I called because I didn’t know what else to do, and I thought maybe the only thing I could do was see if you had any ideas.”
“Okay.” He moved a little closer.
I should’ve backed up, but I didn’t want to. It was exciting to be standing this close to Kian. I was beginning to sound like a love-struck moron. Snark would be cursing my head off if he could see us now.
Kian added, “Tell me what’s going on.”
“It’s your interview tomorrow.”
I felt his surprise. He didn’t show it. His face was still unreadable, but I felt he was startled.
I continued, “I know about it. Actually, this is the problem. A friend of mine is one of the reporters, and she asked me to be there to help her out.”
“Ah.” His head bobbed up and down. “And my sister will be there.”
I gestured to my face. “I know I look different, but—”
“If she’s looking hard enough, she’ll recognize you,” he filled in the rest. “And you don’t want to risk it.”
“I have a life here, a normal one. I can’t…” Oh, boy. Here came the emotions again. I stopped and glanced away for a second. “I can’t risk losing that, but I also can’t risk not being there for my room—friend.” I’d figure out later why I’d referred to Erica as only my friend, not my roommate. “This interview with you is a big deal to her.”
“No, I understand.” A small grin flitted across his face. “I got a lot of offers for interviews, but my team was selective of whom they’d choose. They don’t understand why I want to interview at this college. No one does.”
My chest was getting tight. “Why did you? Why are you, I mean?”
He lifted a shoulder and shifted to the side, so he was gazing out over the city. “I don’t know. I think maybe because this was where I wanted to go to college.” He glanced down, kicking at a small rock on the floor. His hands formed into fists before he shoved them into his pockets. “I think me coming here was a way to fool myself, like I could still have a normal life after everything.” He looked back to me. His eyes traced over me and fell to my lips, lingering there. “But even if there is a retrial, I’m starting to realize that some things have to be let go.”
I licked my lips and felt myself leaning toward him. He was still looking at my lips, and his eyes darkened when my tongue flicked out. It was dark, but he was close enough that I could see his eyes melding with the night color. My hands started to reach out. I was going to touch his sides, almost like I wanted to anchor him and go to him.
Erica gestured to the other person. “Exactly. My assistant won’t be leaving my side. Bob, you’re just cranky because my request to have an assistant was approved—unlike your request. Everyone knows any assistant of yours would sue for sexual harassment within the first week.”
Bob let out a dreamy sigh. “Ah, but that would be one glorious week.”
The group started laughing again, but I wasn’t hearing them. I wasn’t enjoying the camaraderie they all seemed to have while teasing each other.
Kian’s team of lawyers and his publicist? Or maybe he has more than one?
He wouldn’t be coming alone tomorrow. He would have a team with him and maybe even his family, who all knew me.
I couldn’t be there.
There was no way.
I looked at Erica. How could I stop this train wreck from happening? And I was seeing now that it would be a train wreck. I was the wreck. This would ruin my life. I would be exposed, and Kian would have nothing to do with it. It would be all my own doing because I’d let my roommate talk me into attending her interview and because the truth was that I wanted to come for myself.
I wanted to see Kian again.
A raging headache was coming on. I felt it pushing at my temples, and it was growing more and more by the time Susan came back and started the meeting.
I wasn’t paying attention. I was screwed.
I was on the roof again that night, but I wasn’t there because Kian had called me. I called him, and I did so with shaking hands. To have gotten the text was one thing, but to be the one to initiate the meeting was a whole other level.
That was me.
I had gone to that level, and I still could imagine Snark yelling at me. Before, it was like I had committed a crime by omission. There was wiggle room for a defense team. Not now. I was planning, concocting, and being the mastermind of my own crime. There would be no room for a defense if I were caught red-handed.
And why was I thinking that I’d be prosecuted? For what? A text message? Because I’d forgotten that Kian would probably be surrounded by a team of people tomorrow? Because I still had to go to that interview with my roommate, or she’d have my head on a stake?
I was so screwed.
“What’s wrong?”
I screamed, lurching in the air, as I grabbed at my chest. I was where he’d been, waiting at the side of the building, perched on the edge, so I could see when he arrived. It should have given me time to prepare. Nope, that hadn’t happened. I’d had no time to prepare.
I swung heated eyes to him.
Kian was standing behind me with an amused grin on his face. He tilted his head to the side with his hands at his sides, and he seemed relaxed. As I patted my chest again, feeling my heart palpitations starting to lessen from my heart trying to climb out of my chest, I couldn’t stop myself from checking him out again.
He really was so gorgeous.
I didn’t recognize the brand of his clothes, but I knew they were custom-tailored. He had on that leather jacket from before. It was zipped up with a button that stretched across the collar, giving him a lean and sleek look. He wore jeans again. The others had been dark while these were faded, but they were fashionably faded, and they fell over his legs perfectly. They molded to the tops of his thighs, and even though I’d only gotten a glimpse of his backside, I could tell his jeans smoothed over his ass in a delicious way.
This…this was why I wanted to see him tomorrow. I was attracted to him, and—holy shit, I couldn’t be. That was not good, not at all.
His eyes narrowed as he patted the side of his face. “Have I grown two heads?”
“No.” I let out a shaky smile. “Sorry.” Get it together, Jo. You two are not freshmen paired together for a class project. “I, uh…never mind. I called because I didn’t know what else to do, and I thought maybe the only thing I could do was see if you had any ideas.”
“Okay.” He moved a little closer.
I should’ve backed up, but I didn’t want to. It was exciting to be standing this close to Kian. I was beginning to sound like a love-struck moron. Snark would be cursing my head off if he could see us now.
Kian added, “Tell me what’s going on.”
“It’s your interview tomorrow.”
I felt his surprise. He didn’t show it. His face was still unreadable, but I felt he was startled.
I continued, “I know about it. Actually, this is the problem. A friend of mine is one of the reporters, and she asked me to be there to help her out.”
“Ah.” His head bobbed up and down. “And my sister will be there.”
I gestured to my face. “I know I look different, but—”
“If she’s looking hard enough, she’ll recognize you,” he filled in the rest. “And you don’t want to risk it.”
“I have a life here, a normal one. I can’t…” Oh, boy. Here came the emotions again. I stopped and glanced away for a second. “I can’t risk losing that, but I also can’t risk not being there for my room—friend.” I’d figure out later why I’d referred to Erica as only my friend, not my roommate. “This interview with you is a big deal to her.”
“No, I understand.” A small grin flitted across his face. “I got a lot of offers for interviews, but my team was selective of whom they’d choose. They don’t understand why I want to interview at this college. No one does.”
My chest was getting tight. “Why did you? Why are you, I mean?”
He lifted a shoulder and shifted to the side, so he was gazing out over the city. “I don’t know. I think maybe because this was where I wanted to go to college.” He glanced down, kicking at a small rock on the floor. His hands formed into fists before he shoved them into his pockets. “I think me coming here was a way to fool myself, like I could still have a normal life after everything.” He looked back to me. His eyes traced over me and fell to my lips, lingering there. “But even if there is a retrial, I’m starting to realize that some things have to be let go.”
I licked my lips and felt myself leaning toward him. He was still looking at my lips, and his eyes darkened when my tongue flicked out. It was dark, but he was close enough that I could see his eyes melding with the night color. My hands started to reach out. I was going to touch his sides, almost like I wanted to anchor him and go to him.
