Page 8 of River

Kat chuckled. “You never take the day off.”

“Kat, I’m fine. And just so you know, you can wear whatever you’re comfortable in. You don’t need to ask. We always assumed you liked wearing heels and those sexy dresses.”

“You think my dresses are sexy?” she asked with a playful grin.

“Don’t you? But let’s not discuss how sexy your dresses are.”

“Agreed,” she said, smiling.

With that, I stood up and walked past her. I needed a moment to regain my composure. I passed by the others, heading toward the door.

“Where are you going?” Gage called out from his office.

“I’m taking the day off,” I said over my shoulder.

Everyone paused what they were doing and stared at me. “But you asked us to be here this morning. We thought you had something important to tell us,” Gage said, clearly puzzled.

“No, nothing important,” I replied with a forced smile. “Actually, I think we should all take a couple of days off.”

Gage chuckled and grabbed his jacket. “See you in a couple of days, then. Who’s up for breakfast?”

I paused, listening to hear if Kat was going with them. Then I heard her say, “Not today. I’ve got to tackle these emails. I’ll call if something comes up.”

“All right, but it’s your loss. We’re heading to the pancake house,” Gage said as he walked outside. All of our phones were hooked up to our main line so we wouldn’t miss an urgent message.

“The pancake house? My jeans are already snug. Oh, what the heck. Count me in,” Kat said with a laugh. “I’llcome back and work later. What’s a little more snug? Their waffles are worth it. Strawberry waffles will be my punishment for indulging.”

I met up with them at the pancake house, and they didn’t seem too surprised to see me. We walked in together, and I found myself walking behind Kat.

“Did you hear me talking about the strawberry waffles?” Kat teased.

“No, I’m here for the blueberry pancakes. I’ll share some of mine with you if you share yours with me,” I said with a chuckle.

“Deal,” she replied, smiling at me. “They put the best-whipped cream on their waffles. You should tell them you want to try it on your pancakes,” she said, smiling.

Breakfast turned out to be a great idea, but I couldn’t help noticing how many men were watching Kat as we made our way to the table.

I walked beside her, guiding her through the restaurant. Don’t ask me why, but I felt the urge to claim her somehow. I rested my hand on her lower back, silently letting those guys know she wasn’t available. Not that she was actually taken. I didn’t even know why I did that.

Kat seemed oblivious to all the attention, including mine. I wasn’t sure if she even noticed the way those men looked at her. We were almost done with breakfast when two guys approached our table, grinning as they neared Kat.

“Hey, Kat! We weren’t sure it was you. We’ve never seen you with your hair up. How are you? The surf’s up today—are you hitting the waves?”

“Hey, Josh, Mitch,” Kat greeted, introducing us. “These are my bosses: River, Gage, Tag, and Gideon. Josh and Mitch are champion surfers. I’m not sure if I’ll make it out there today, but it’s great to see you.”

“Always a pleasure to see you, Kat. Maybe tomorrow? The waves are supposed to be just as good.”

“Absolutely. I’ll see you tomorrow,” she replied, still smiling ten minutes later.

“Why are you grinning like that?” I asked.

“You should’ve seen your faces when Josh and Mitch asked if I’d be surfing,” she laughed. “It was hilarious.”

We all chuckled.

To be honest, I was glad Kat hadn’t been this outgoing before our trip to Texas. If she had been, I don’t think I’d have been able to resist her, and I would’ve had to fire her since we don’t date coworkers.

Yeah, I know it’s a stupid rule, but I put it in place because of a bad experience I had during college. I dated a coworker, and when things got serious for her but not for me, breaking up made everything uncomfortable.

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