Page 74 of Game Change

I close my eyes and take a breath. “Yes, but things have changed.”

“I did not know who you were until you walked into that conference room. I didn’t scam you. It was a coincidence that we met, and—”

“I believe you,” I say, and he stops talking. He takes a breath and exhales. Then, he picks up my hand and kisses the back of it. “I didn’t believe you at first, but I believe you now.”

“Thank you,” he says.

“I took my anger out on you when Milton did this. If I’m upset with anyone, it will be him.”

And I’m pretty sure Milton is sick, but since he has not shared the details with me, I won’t pry. That’s another thing that hurts. I thought he and I were close, but maybe that was just a figment of my imagination.

Chapter 38

Colin

The last thing I want to do is talk about my uncle, but I’m fine with her being angry at him and not at me. I move my chair closer to her and clasp her chin. Her skin’s soft, and so are her brown eyes. I love it when she looks at me this way.

“I want us to eat dinner and go back to my place. We can watch a movie before we go to bed and make love. I want to wake up with you tomorrow and every day after that. I just want to be with you, Honeybee.” She looks into my eyes as if she’s trying to read my mind. “Come closer.” I help pull her chair close to mine, and she rests her head on my shoulder.

“I want that too,” she finally whispers. “I wanted it when we met, but—”

“Then let’s be together.”

“You make it sound so easy, but the reality is, it’s not that simple. You’re my boss.”

“Where was this concern when you told me you weren’t attending more meetings? Or the times before that when you ignored my orders? Don’t forget all the attitude you gave me. Those looks almost killed me.”

“Well, I was pissed the fuck off,” she says. “But I don’t want to be angry anymore. I’ve made peace with how things turned out about the promotion. It is what it is. As much as I wanted it, Mr. Kincaid gave it to you, and there’s nothing I can do about that. Being angry won’t fix anything.” It looks like she wants to say more, but she doesn’t.

“What else are you concerned about?”

“It’s never a good idea to date someone you work with.”

“We started before the job got between us. We made plans before Milton blew it up to smithereens.”

“Have you ever dated a black woman before?”

“Yes,” is all I say.

Her head snaps up in shock, and then she arches an eyebrow.

“Really? Esme?” she whispers.

“No. She’s Colombian.”

“Then who?”

“Does that matter? It’s in the past, but there was Lucinda and Faye.”

“Two?” She leans back in her chair. “I never would have guessed,” she says, looking at me over the rim of her champagne flute.

“Enough about that. Just tell me what I want to hear.”

She giggles at the question. “We’re kind of too old for the boyfriend-girlfriend thing, don’t you think?”

“You’re never too old to fall in love.” Her breath hitches, and a blush spreads across her cheeks. “Tell me you’re mine.”

“I’m yours.” I cup her cheeks and plant a kiss on her lips. “But I don’t want anyone in the office to know.”

---