Page 93 of My Boss

“You were hopeless,” I say bluntly. “Couldn’t you have just suggested a trip to the mountains together?”

He looks at me as if I knew the answer.

“Well, yes, I would have said no. But why did you throw it at me so suddenly?”

“From my observations, you were a spontaneous woman. I thought it would be better if I took you by surprise.”

“Oh, yeah sure. I have to admit that I was surprised and mad as hell at you. Not only did you want to ruin my weekend plans, but you also threatened me with losing my job. A brilliant move, Jan.”

“I didn’t anticipate that you would resist so much. It was a big challenge for me. It seemed to me that you like when something happens unexpectedly. That it excites you.”

“I like it, but not when I’m forced to work on weekends.”

“OK, I admit it was a bad idea. I made a mistake. I’m not good at it. I have never courted a woman.”

I raise my eyebrows.

“Did they jump into your bed with no invitation?”

“And they jumped out of it as fast as they jumped into it.”

“Why?”

“Let’s call it a lack of communication.”

“What about your wife?”

“My ex-wife,” he specifies. “I don’t want to talk about her,” he adds firmly.

I don’t see any sign on his face that the topic evokes any major emotion in him. He just looks as if he really doesn’t feel like talking about her.

“All right. I’ll go take a shower then.” I walk around him, but then he grabs my hand and pulls me to him.

“Let me help you.” He reaches back and unhooks my bra.

Shivers run down my skin. My breathing speeds up.

Next, he undoes the button and zipper from the skirt, sliding the fabric down and over my bare feet.

“Done.” He smiles, satisfied, and suddenly, he picks me up.

“What are you doing?” I put my arm around his neck.

“I’ll carry you to the shower.”

“I can handle it.”

“You said you were tired.”

He enters the bathroom with me and puts me in the shower.

“Move over. I’ll turn on the water.” He opens the tap, rolls up his sleeve high, leans over and checks the warmth of the water jet with his elbow. He is so focused that it makes me want to laugh at him. He acts as if I were a child for whom a bath needs to be prepared. “The temperature is just about right.” He withdraws, then unexpectedly takes off his turtleneck, pulls down his pants…

I raise my eyebrows in surprise.

“Do you want to take a shower with me?” I ask.

“Absolutely.”

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