Page 10 of Jacob

He grabs my wrist. “Enough,” he says, instantly releasing me as if I scorched his skin. “I can’t touch you,” he hisses through clenched teeth.

I take a step back. “Well, that’s a shame because I really enjoyed the other night. It’s all I’ve thought about.”

“You’ve no idea who you’re playing with, Butterfly.” He looks as shocked with his words as I am.

“Oh, I think I know, Jacob. Remember, I’ve known you since we were teenagers. I’m playing with the guy who’s hiding his feelings for me. Who fucked a girl over his desk while pretending it was me and then made me come on his demand. And it’s also the guy who won’t break his stupid ‘bro code’.” I wrap finger air quotes around his stupid agreement. “To be with the girl he likes. But what he doesn’t know is that, since Saturday, all I’ve thought about is him. How he fucked that girl, how much I wanted it to be me, and how much I want him to touch me right now.” I clear my throat, feeling brave. “It’s the same guy I imagined last night when I made myself come.” I almost blush. I’ve never been a dirty talker before, but I want him to know what he’s doing to me.

“Fuck,” he groans.

“I know exactly who I am playing with, Jacob. The question is whether he’s going to play the game too.”

4

JACOB

If anything, it’s me who should resign. She’s too much of a temptation and I no longer trust myself around her.

But if I leave, I won’t get to see her every day. And if I can’t touch her, I need to continue this sadistic torture of breathing the same air as her at least.

Like clockwork, at 3p.m., I watch Skye make her way to the restroom to touch up her lip gloss. She’s beautifully predictable.

I leap to my feet and storm in her direction. Time is fucking with me. I’ve been patiently waiting for her to appear, but every tick of the clock has dragged since she left me standing in the boardroom with an aching cock, surrounded by her heady scent.

Pushing the bathroom door open, I quietly shut it behind me, then turn the lock.

She’s too busy humming to herself to notice me. With her head buried in her makeup bag, she rummages around trying to find her lip gloss—the one that makes her lips look all pouty and wet and makes me want to kiss her so fucking bad.

I stand directly behind her and admire her delicate features, considering what she’d look like completely naked, in my bed with her thighs around my ears, screaming my name.

She lifts her head, spotting my reflection in the mirror, and lets out a surprised gasp.

Seeing us like this—reflected in the mirror—we look great together: her fresh innocent face, the opposite of my dark features. For a second, I have visions of us together on Christmas mornings, birthdays, and weekends, living life together. But then the heartbreaking realization hits me hard—I can’t have a future with her. No matter how much I want one.

She fumbles about with her earbuds, removing them. The airy music continues playing from them as I bow my head down and whisper in her ear. “So, you want to play?”

She doesn’t answer.

My mouth moves closer to her nape, like a magnet; my lips ghost her skin.

“Jacob,” she whispers.

“Shh, Butterfly.” Placing my hands on the counter either side of her, I press my chest to her back, closing her in. “You had your say earlier. Now it’s my time to talk.”

This is the closest we’ve ever been. I’ve resisted her for so fucking long. Since the day she walked into my English lesson at school as the new girl and sat down beside me.

“As your boss, I am telling you that you are going to stop wearing these sexy little dresses and tempting knee-high socks to work every day because it makes my cock hard for you, and if I have to jerk off in my bathroom for yet another day, I’m going to rub him away.”

Her mouth hangs open.

“Oh, don’t make out you’re all sweet and innocent now, Skye.” My lips almost touch her ear, making her eyes blow wide. “You’ve already worked out that I want to fuck you. Even more, since you showed me what was underneath those little dresses you wear. It’s such a pretty pussy, but I can’t touch you. Won’t. Imeant what I said; you are off limits. I slipped up on Saturday. I took it too far.”

I press myself closer to her body.

“You and me.” I meet her bewildered gaze in the mirror. “We can never happen. You will always be Owen’s girl. It can’t go any further. No matter how much we want to.”

Her expression doesn’t change.

“So, Butterfly, we’ll forget what happened. We’ll go back to being Jacob and Skye. I’ll be your boss. You’ll be my employee and Owen’s ex.”

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