Page 38 of Hold Me Instead
She marched out of her office, cookie and coffee in hand, to search for the thoughtful delivery man. The cinnamon sugar haze distanced her from her surroundings, and she entered the kitchenette unprepared for Zachary exiting it. Instead, her hands full of deliciousness bounced off his equally delicious chest, and she yelped, spreading her arms wide to avoid losing crumb or drop. His hands shot to her waist, skirting her coat. She thought she was steady, but once she felt the heat of his palms sear through her clothing, who was she to argue about the possibility of needing assistance? This unexpected breakfast treat was starting her day off on the right foot, after all, and to lose any of it would be a travesty.
Then came the onslaught. His subtle, woodsy scent swept around her, almost a citrusy element to it she hadn’t noticed before. Compounded with cookie spice and notes of coffee, Charlie found herself frozen. It was an overstimulation, and she wanted to absorb it all. Absorb him. Eat him up alongside that cookie like the snack he was meant to be. She tried to stifle a giggle, and a whimper escaped instead.
The collision, the inhalation of deliciousness, all happened in a moment—a moment of silence—both facing each other, his hands on her, her grip clutching her cookie and drink tightly. But at the soundshe’d let slip, Zachary’s hands flexed at her waist, his eyes zeroed in on her mouth, and Charlie licked her lips.
She licked her damn lips, as though she were inviting him to take a closer inspection. Her heart pounded, and her brain became a floundering, broken record with the wordsCoworker,hot. It had been so long since she’d kissed a man, and his lips were just as tempting as his scent, drawing her closer, except his hands slowly let go.
“Guess it’s a good sign you dove in before getting settled?” He gestured toward her body, and Charlie blinked herself alert—blinking through yumminess was difficult—and looked down.
Her coat was half unzipped, her purse still slung over her shoulder. She was, much like some of her patients, clearly food motivated. She shrugged away any embarrassment, taking another bite of her cookie and purposefully talking through the savored chew. “You’ve discovered my weakness. Not everyone is savvy enough to figure it out.”
Zachary laughed, the sound shooting tingles to her toes as she struggled to swallow. Good Lord, but those laugh lines, pushing their way through the stubble on his face. She liked the way it had grown in over the week.
“I think I’ve discovered mine too.” He stepped even closer, watching her face carefully, his hand reaching for her wrist and raising it up.
Charlie’s feet stuttered forward, her eyes locked in his trance. Her lips parted as his focus flicked back to her mouth, and she inhaled sharply.Holy shit.This is happening.Now.Zachary.At work.
He guided her hand, still holding one half of the cookie, and took a bite. Her mouth dropped open farther, air escaped in a gust, and her eyes narrowed. He grinned at her reaction, chewing away happily. It was a chewing grin, for God’s sake, and it wassexy?
“I can’t believe you just did that,” she said.
He shrugged, releasing her from his warm grip, and swiped a knuckle at the corners of his mouth. Forfuck’ssake, even that was hot!
“We have a shared weakness,” he said. “Those are way too tempting.”
Charlie sputtered. “You bought it for me!”
“I’m surprised you didn’t inhale it on the five-second walk over here.”
“I was savoring it!”
“Well, that’s just smart.”
“Exactly.”
“Coming to find me while doing so wasn’t.”
She stifled a laugh. “Who manages to buyonesnickerdoodle, anyway?”
He looked away, expression sheepish.
“Did you eat my other cookie?” she asked, voice low.
He scratched his head and winced. “Uh…that one was for me.”
His nervous laugh made her shake her head, but she was grinning so wide, her cheeks brushed her glasses. “You owe me another one.”
“I barely took a bite!”
“You ate an entire cookie before this! You know as well as I do, every bite counts.”
“True.” He tilted his head, looking at the floor. “Tonight? We could grab dinner first?”
Her inner teenager executed a series of backflips. Charlie bit her lip and wished she could fan her cheeks, the cookie and coffee limiting her movements. She suddenly had a new understanding for “zoomies.”
Zachary cleared his throat. “I wanted to go over stuff with you. Discuss the books and Dad, fill you in on all that.”
Business.Of course.
