Page 86 of Love so Hot

Emily stands, smoothing out her skirt with a practiced hand. "I'll leave you to it then. Time is ticking."

"Yeah, it tends to do that." I manage a half-smirk. I push back from Emily's desk and rise to my feet, the chair wheelssqueaking a feeble protest. "I'll handle it," I assure her, the words ringing hollow even to my own ears.

Stepping out into the sterile chill of the corridor, I head towards my office, dodging coworkers with a nod here, a tight smile there. The usual energy that pulses through me at the prospect of a challenge is strangely absent today. Instead, a thread of restlessness weaves its way through my thoughts, pulling me away from this concrete jungle of desks and screens and back to... her.

Once inside the safety of my own office, I slump into the ergonomic chair that promises comfort but delivers none. My gaze drifts across the twin monitors, each one an avalanche of unread emails. They blur together, a digital mosaic of demands and deadlines.

"Damn," I mutter under my breath, rubbing my eyes. Not a single part of me wants to deal with any of this. My fingers hover above the keyboard, but they're itching for something else—something, or someone, who's not part of this world. Willow.

The door swings open with a creak, and Jason's there in the frame, all sharp angles and sharper glances. "Can we talk?" he asks, his tone suggesting it's not really a question.

"Later, Jay," I say, cutting him off before he can launch into whatever crisis has his tie in a twist. "I'm heading out. I'll call you this evening," I say, suddenly making the decision.

He arches an eyebrow, incredulity etched into every line on his face. "You just got here."

"Yeah. And now I'm leaving."

Jason studies me for a moment longer, as if trying to decipher a particularly challenging ledger. Then, with a sigh that speaks volumes of his frustration, he steps aside. "Fine. But this evening means this evening."

"Careful," I reply, already gathering up my things. "Let's not forget who the boss is around here."

"Lawrence..." Jason starts again, but I'm past listening.

"You're more than competent enough to handle whatever the situation is you're worried about." I don't wait for his response. I'm out the door, my strides eating up the distance to freedom. To Willow, with her green hair and impassioned rants about saving some patch of earth I've never heard of. It's crazy, I know. But right now, crazy feels a whole lot like exactly what I need.

Chapter Thirty-Nine

Lawrence

The day'sgone by far too fast, and it's evening before I know it. Willow's sitting across from me in the living room, and we've just finished eating dinner.

"I hate to do this," I say to her, because I really do. "But I've got to go make a work call."

She gives me a knowing smile. "I sort of had a feeling things were going to catch up with you."

"Yeah, yeah," I say, brushing off the comment.

"I mean, I don't mind you playing hooky," she says with a smirk. "The less you're at work, the fewer environments you can threaten."

"Funny you should mention that because my call is actually about what we can do to wipe out Eastern Hemlock."

Willow's eyes go wide, and she sits up straight. "That's a keystone species! If you do that, you'll..." Her words trail off as I begin to laugh, and she throws a pillow at me. "Stupid idiot," she says.

"Says the woman who fell for it."

"Go make your dumb work call," she says. "I've got one of my own to make." For a moment, she looks almost sad as she says it.

I walk over to her and give her a kiss on her cheek. She blushes and then shoos me away, and it takes all of my willpower to walk away from her.

I trudge up to my office and lock myself inside. I dial Jason's number and throw the thing on speaker because the thought of putting his voice that close to my brain is more than I can handle at the moment. The phone's shrill ring slices through the quiet of my office, and Jason's voice bursts forth without even a "hello."

"Lawrence, we need to talk about Willow. This whole engagement is becoming a major distraction."

I lean back in my chair, staring at the ceiling, forcing my voice to even out. "Willow is my fiancée. This isn't just some fling. Now, if you have actual work to talk about, Jay, I'll hear it."

My hand clenches, knuckles whitening. Jason's not letting up; he barrels on with that infuriatingly calm voice of his.

"She’s an environmentalist protester, Lawrence. She’s causing more harm than good. The investors are getting nervous, and so am I."

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