Page 24 of Twice as Forbidden

He reaches over and grabs my hand. “We can still work.”

No, we can’t. Not after what I’ve done. “Noah…”

He lets go and takes his hand back, shutting off the car. “I know. How about we settle for friends?”

I offer him a gentle smile. “Friends.”

“Fuck buddies?”

“Noah—”

“Kidding. I’m gonna miss it, though. You’re a really great fuck.”

“Noah!” I slap his shoulder.

He laughs. “What? It’s true. Bedtime has always been my favorite. Even just sleeping. You have this way about you that gets me to sleep.”

The air in the car thickens, tension replacing the easy rhythm of conversation.

I study him, waiting, expecting him to say more.Is this why he’s been crawling into bed with me?Why, for most of our relationship, we were never apart at night?

The realization coils in my chest, questions pressing against my tongue. I open my mouth to ask, but then I see it—the moment Noah shuts down. His jaw tenses, his fingers tightening around the steering wheel. His gaze flicks away, his body shifting slightly like he’s trying to retreat without actually moving.

Whatever he just let slip, he regrets it. He’s exposed something he never meant to, and now, he’s pulling the walls back up.

“Noah—”

“Well, since no sex, I guess we should go in.” He shoots me a goofy smile and gets out, rounding the car as I climb out. “You know, a lot of friends still do things.”

“Not this friendship.”

“Nothing? Not even a little…” He makes a circle with his hand and mimes giving a blow job.

Fire burns my face, the tips of my ears getting hot. Me on the shower floor... water dripping over my face and body as his dad slams his cock into the back of my throat…

“Wait—you’re blushing. Is there a chance?”

“I’m not blushing.”Shit.

“Never say never.” He wraps his arm around my shoulder and walks us to the restaurant. “Let’s go. All this talk about being platonic and friends is making me hungry.”

What have I gotten myself into?

Chapter eleven

Jackson

“Getmehisfile,”I snap into the phone. “I want to know how this kid passed the screening exams and ended up on my payroll.”

I hang up with Wayne and lean back in my chair, my jaw tight as I scan the evidence spread out before me. Every detail points to one conclusion.

Jethro Brock. At least, that’s the name on his application. Hired six months ago as a material handler—bottom of the totem pole. His keycard shouldn’t have given him access to the operations room. He shouldn’t have been allowedanywherenear the system controls. Yet, he bypassed security, entered the restricted area, and tampered with our operating system.

The result? Machines thrown out of sync. Production lines disrupted. An entire multi-million-dollar order jeopardized.

All by a kid withno prior experience.No relevant background. No logical way to explain how he had the skills—or the clearance—to pull off something this precise.

Unless he wasn’t just some kid. Unless he wasplanted.

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