Page 14 of Flirt
CHAPTER FIVE
The week passed slowlywith nothing to distract Cameron from his conflicting feelings about Asher. He barely knew the bestselling author, but the glimpses of the man behind the mask of cool indifference only made him want to know more. Every time he thought about it, though, Nico was right there to pull him back from the edge and remind him it wouldn’t end well.
A knock at his office door drew him out of his thoughts, and he blinked slowly, glancing around the familiar room as if he’d never seen it before. God, the things that man did to him, and they hadn’t done more than hold hands. Even that much had been more out of comfort and solidarity than anything romantic. The knock came again, a little sharper this time, and Cameron sighed as he sat up straighter in his high-backed executive chair.
“Come in,” he called, smoothing down his blue-and-white pinstriped tie.
The door swung open, and Natalie pushed into the room with a confident stride. Cameron cringed, eyeing the way her vibrant red top hung off her shoulders by thin straps and plunged between her breasts. The fabric fell in layers around her midsection, flowing into a pointed hemthat stopped just above the waistband of her loose-fitting black pants.
“What the fuck are you wearing?”
Except for a swift roll of her eyes, Natalie ignored him as she rounded his desk to stand in front of the plated glass windows that overlooked the city. With her back to him, he noticed that the only thing holding her blouse together was two, tiny strings tied together across the middle of her back. The big brother in him seethed, and he wanted to demand she go change into something that amounted to more than a fucking handkerchief.
“No, seriously, what the fuck are you wearing?”
“A shirt.”
“That is not a shirt.”
Sighing, Natalie flicked her fingers at him. “I’m meeting Aiden after work. I wanted to look nice.”
Clearly, they had a very different definition of “nice.” Still, Cameron bit the inside of his cheek and said nothing about his sister’s current boyfriend. The guy was a complete tool, but like the topic of her wardrobe, his opinion really wasn’t welcomed.
“Fine,” he relented. “So, what are you doing here?”
“We’re supposed to have lunch,” she answered easily, her back still to him. “Did you forget?”
Shit, he had forgotten. “No,” he lied. “I just didn’t realize what time it was.”
She shook her head, making her blond curls sway against her back, which just served to remind him how much that damn scrap of fabric she called a shirt pissed him off. Better to change the subject.
“Since when do you knock?”
“Since you started keeping things from me.” Turning away from the window, she strolled back around his desk and dropped down in one of the leather chairs. Crossing one leg over the other in a smooth, practiced move, she templed her fingers under her chin and stared. “What are you hiding, Mr. Stone? Or, should I askwho?”
“I thought we were going to lunch,” Cameron hedged.
Natalie smirked. “We are.”
The words still hung in the air between them when another knock sounded at the door, this one much quieter and merely perfunctory since the door opened right away. His office assistant nodded at Natalie, a conspiratorial smile playing on her lips as she brought two, brown paper bags and a drink carrier over to the desk.
“Enjoy your lunch, Mr. Stone.” She flipped her long, dark hair over one shoulder and studied him for several seconds, her big brown eyes shrewd. “Will there be anything else?”
“No. Thank you, Amelia.” He paused in the act of reaching for the drink carrier, his hand hovering over his desk as he glanced back and forth between the women. “You two planned this.”
“You caught us,” Amelia answered, cheeky and unrepentant as she adjusted the cuffs of her white button-down.
“It’s a trap,” Natalie added, her grin growing smugger by the second.
“It’s a goddamn ambush,” Cameron mumbled, grabbing one of the drinks and a straw. No need to ask or check labels. He knew both would be unsweetened tea with lemon. “Thanks again, Amelia. Have you taken your break?”
The smile she’d been holding back finally broke through, and she shook her head as she sauntered back to the door. “I’m leaving now.” She shared a knowing look with Natalie and chuckled quietly. “Have fun.”
Then, with a wiggle of her fingers, she slipped out of the office, closing the door behind her with a quiet click.
“If you want to talk about anything…” Natalie trailed off, giving him a half shrug before snagging one of the bags off the desk and pulling it into her lap.
“There’s nothing to talk about.” He pulled the remaining bag closer and reached inside to remove the cardboard to-go box with an appreciative groan. “Oh, you’re definitely trying to butter me up, but this time, I’ll let you.”
