“How was that interview?” Brad asks suddenly, breaking the silence, catching me off guard.

I turn, propping myself up on my elbow. My long hair spills over my shoulders and gathers on the bed, my breasts peeking through. “It was so great.” I kiss him on the mouth, lingering for a moment before pulling away slowly. “She offered me the job, and it’s a really great offer. The workspace is amazing, and I’m really excited about it.” I can’t help grinning as wide as my cheeks will allow. “I want the job—it just feels right, you know?”

I kiss him again, this time softer, trying to gauge where his head is. I press gentle kisses along his cheek and neck, searching for any sign of how he’s feeling. My stomach knots. I hate that this has always been my go-to move to get what I want—it feels gross. “What do you think about that?” I ask, threading my fingers through his hair.

He grunts low and deep, his expression thoughtful. “Hmm. I think… it’s a good thing your tits are in my face because I don’t love the idea of it.” He pauses, a teasing smile tugs on his lip. “But… I can see that you’re happy about it, and I want you to be happy, so if that’s what you want to do, I support it.”

“Really?” I kiss him hard, excitement bubbling up inside me.

He chuckles. “Yes, really.”

“Ah! Thank you!” I grin, kissing him again. “I’d much rather take the job with your support than without it.”

“Right. Just please tell Mike right away, and promise you’ll stay until he finds a replacement. He values you a lot at the company.”

“I know. I will, I promise.” I’m completely elated. I straddle him, pressing my lips to his, playfully. His strong arms wrap around my back, pulling me closer. “You’re a smart man, Brad Sterling,” I whisper in his ear, teasingly. “You know exactly how to play your cards to get what you want in bed.”

He chuckles, his grip tightening around me. “And I’d say you played your hand just as well, Coop—getting what you want.”

I pull back, grinning at him, biting my bottom lip. Just when I’m ready to give up, Brad surprises me with a response like that. Maybe we’ll be okay for a while. But deep down, I can’t shake the feeling that his ‘support’ has strings attached—it always does.

Chapter 6

RYAN

October

“Right. We want this to be mutually beneficial, so let’s adjust the percentage to give both sides some room to breathe as we integrate. I’ll send over the revised terms, and we can aim to finalize everything by Friday.”

As I finish speaking, I notice Genevieve peering through my office windows, mouthing something to me. I give her a quick wave, inviting her in. She steps in quietly, waiting for me to wrap up the call.

“Yep. Appreciate the conversation, Paul. Looking forward to wrapping this up. Let’s reconnect later this week. Talk to you soon.” I disconnect the call and remove my earbuds.

“Hey, Genevieve, what’s up?”

“Hey, Ryan. I have a new employee I’d love for you to meet when you have a minute.”

“Great. I’ll be right out.”

“Okay, we’ll be in the lounge.”

I jot down a few notes from my call with Paul and fire off a quick email, my to-do list growing longer by the second. Grabbing my water jug to refill while I’m in the lounge, I head out to meet Genevieve.

I spot Genevieve as I turn the corner, her back to me, standing next to a blonde. I hate to be that guy, but I can’t help checking out this woman’s ass. Her long hair falls past themiddle of her back, and her pants show off her body in all the right ways. I do what any guy would do—I look.

“Genevieve,” I call out.

Both she and the blonde turn around, and my heart stops dead in my chest.

“Hey, Ryan. I wanted you to meet our new Project Manager, Cooper Bradley,” Genevieve says professionally.

I freeze for a moment. Cooper and I lock eyes, and I can tell she’s just as surprised as I am. Before the awkwardness sinks in, I grin and extend my hand. “Cooper. It’s been a while.”

She hesitates, then takes my hand, smiling. “Yeah, it has. Nice to see you again, Ryan.”

“Wait… You two know each other?” Genevieve’s surprise is nothing compared to the shock that I’m feeling.

“Yeah…” Cooper speaks slowly. “Ryan and I met in Newport back in…” She turns to me. “Oh, when was that? March?”