Page 37 of The Ice Queen in the Corner Office

Instead, I turned away from him and resumed my jogging pace. I couldn’t let him see that I was a tiny bit glad he’d won.

I needed a moment to remember all the reasons he was bad for me and forget how sexy he looked, standing there grinning at me.

“Sore loser,” Alex said, catching up to me, barely breathing hard, the rat fink bastard.

“You cheated. You let me think you were out of shape.” I hadn’t believed it, but still…

“You shoved me so hard I almost landed on my ass, so we’re even.”

He had a fairly valid point, so I said nothing. He continued to jog along next to me. “I get one more day of your time. Want to race for a third day?”

I snorted. “You said you’d let me jog in peace if I raced.”

He chuckled. “Nope. You got to jog in peace only if you won.”

I sighed, pretending a good deal more annoyance than I felt. “Fine. But if you’re going to jog with me, you don’t get to talk to me. Prove you have some restraint and keep quiet for a little while.”

“Deal.”

True to his word, he didn’t make a sound. He kept pace with me, letting me set it and never pushing to go faster, and he didn’t speak. Together, we watched the sun rise and together we turned and headed back to the house.

When we got back to the porch, he stretched next to me, still not speaking.

“Thank you,” I said. And I meant it.

He nodded and followed me inside.

I’d never tell him, but I’d enjoyed that silent jog, maybe more than any other run I’d had before. I felt peaceful and relaxed and I didn’t need to be alone to feel it, he was part of it, and that was better in some way I wasn’t ready to consider.

“I’m going to get a shower,” I said.

“I need to eat,” he said. “I’ll shower after. Meet you back here at nine?”

I nodded, and he turned and headed to the kitchen.

He didn’t suggest we shower together or complain that he was losing out on time with me. He could have been a jerk about our deal, but he wasn’t.

I watched his strong back and stare-worthy backside as he walked away.

***

“Did you get enough to eat?” Mom asked, smiling at me.

My chest pinched. God, I’d missed her.

I pushed back my chair and stood, bringing my dirty plate with me. “I did, and it was delicious. Thanks, Mom.”

“You’re welcome, honey.” She grabbed my plate. “I’ll take care of this. I’m sure you’ve got a busy day planned.”

The twinkle in her eye and her smile that wobbled like it wanted to roll into a laugh let me know she was up to something. “I have time to wash my plate, Mom. In fact, if there’s anything at all you’d like me to do around here, I’d be happy to do it. I’m here to help and to spend time with you.”

She patted my shoulder with her free hand. “You’re here for vacation, sweetheart. Why don’t you go see Alex, he said he’d be waiting for you at the cabin?”

I put my hands on my hips and stared her down. “You want me to spend the day with the enemy?”

Mom’s smile slipped just a touch. “Sweetie, I don’t think of him that way. He did us all a favor buying the company. And he seems like a good guy. I think Cody’s kids are working on a petition to convince you to marry him and make him their uncle.”

I shook my head. “You shouldn’t encourage that, Mom. I can promise you that Alex has no plans for anything long term.”

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