“Depends. We all take turns.”

I nod, like I know what we’re talking about. I don’t. I really, really don’t. I can’t remember now why I accepted his job proposal. I think it was the muscles.

“You live alone?” he asks.

I blush like a young girl. “If you’re asking if I’m seeing someone, the answer is no.”

He turns to look at me. “I was asking if you have a roommate.”

“Oh.” I have to look away so I can remove my foot from my mouth. There I go again, assuming this is a two-way crush. Idiot. “In that case, the answer is no. I live alone.” I turn to face the windows so he won’t see my expression, best described as “humiliated.”

His voice is suddenly closer. “Are you seeing anyone?”

I freeze, my back to him. Is he behind me? Is he going to touch me? Kiss me? Ravish my body?

“No.” My voice is barely a whisper.

“Good.” I can tell from his voice he’s near the front door now. “That makes it easier.”

I spin to face him, not quite losing my balance, but coming close. “Easier for what?”

He opens the door, jingling his keys in his hand. “Easier to make demands on your time. We work late hours sometimes.”

He and Sahara are through the entrance and going down the front porch stairs before I realize what’s happening.

He’s leaving! Why so soon?! I’m still buzzing! This party’s just getting started, yo!

I race to the door and throw it open wide. “Hey! You! You can’t just wine me and dine me and not . . . and not . . .” Oh my god! I almost said “sixty-nine me”! Ack! Alert, alert! Send the fire engines! I’m on fire!

“And not what?” he’s standing at his door, smiling at me. Sahara’s already in the bed of the truck.

“Say good-bye!” I shout before slamming the door shut. Holy shit.

I run back into my living room and grab my hair on both sides. “Oh my god! What did I just do?!” Snatching a pillow off the nearby couch, I fling it across the room. But just one won’t do; I’m too embarrassed. I grab another and another, winging them as far and as fast as I can. Felix runs for cover, hiding under the coffee table.

The couch cushions are next, those bastards. I flip them upside down and sideways. Ugh, it’s so not satisfying to mess up a couch cushion. I want to break something, but I hate breaking things because then I have to clean them up, so instead I mess up my hair. When I’m done, I’m certain my hair looks like it got caught in a blender. Phew. Using all that energy to destroy my hairdo and my surroundings has actually helped me calm down a notch.

“Okay. It’s okay.” I’m trying to convince myself as I breathe like an angry bull. “I didn’t say, ‘sixty-nine me.’ I said, ‘say good-bye.’ Totally reasonable. Totally normal, right? People should say good-bye when they leave after sharing lobster and wine. Wine me, dine me, say good-bye to me. That’s the polite thing to do.”

The doorbell distracts me from my rationalizing. I walk to the foyer, tripping over one of my pillows on the way. I land on the door and barely get it open. I’m half bent over, huffing and puffing like I just ran a mile or five. When I see who it is, I pull the door open wider.

Ozzie is standing there, a giant mountain of muscles and cool. One of his eyebrows goes up when he takes in my appearance.

I stand up straight and lift my chin. I have to try and salvage what little pride I have left with some fake bravado. “Did you forget something?”

He glances first at my hair and then my mouth.

“Yeah. I forgot to say good-bye.”

And then something crazy happens.

He reaches out and takes me by the waist, easily drawing me to him.

My lips part as his face gets closer and closer. I can’t breathe. I can’t talk. I can’t even think straight.

“Good-bye,” he whispers against my mouth, just before he presses his lips against mine.

Melting. I’m melting, just like that lobster butter, into his arms, inside my body. Everything is going hot and boneless.

He, on the other hand, is as solid as a rock. Everywhere.

What is happening?!

I’ve barely tasted any of him, and he’s pulling away again.

When I realize I’m looking a little too wasted, I get control of myself and stand on my own. His hand falls away, and I want to cry with loneliness. Holy drunk girl going on here.

My hands are shaking when I reach up to push my hair back from my face. I can be cool. I can handle this . . . whatever it is. Maybe he kisses all his new employees. I’m not going to be the first one to make a big deal out of it, if that’s the case.

“Well . . . good-bye then,” I say, staring at his shoulder. I can’t bring my gaze any higher.

He walks backward two steps before he turns around and walks to his truck. “See you around, Little Bo Peep.” He climbs up into the vehicle and shuts the door, reversing out of the driveway in mere seconds.

I wait until he’s out of sight before I close the door and fall to the floor in a puddle of goo.

“Oh my god, he kissed me!!”

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

After receiving instructions from Ozzie via text again, I show up for my first day of work two days later on Monday at the warehouse, leaving Felix to fend for himself at home. He’s used to it. I’ve had plenty of full days at the studio. I’m pretty sure he naps the entire time I’m gone.

I’m kind of surprised I’m able to find the warehouse, even though I was just here not that long ago. It seems like everything passed by in a blur. I’m completely over Ozzie kissing me already. It was nothing more than just too much wine. I’m not even going to look at him funny when I see him again. He’s my boss now, and because he’s my boss, I will not ever be touching his lips or his gorgeous body again.

When I pull up to the warehouse, Thibault motions for me to bring my car inside. Everyone else has parked outside.

“Is there something wrong?” I ask after rolling down my window.

“Just helping you keep a low profile. Park it over there.” He gestures to a dark corner on the far right of the building. I didn’t even notice it existed when I was here before. This place is huge.

When I emerge from my car, everyone but Ozzie is standing around in the middle of the big space. He’s nowhere to be seen. Sunlight streams through the open wall of the warehouse, but it’s slowly cut off as the big door rolls closed.

“Welcome, everyone,” Thibault says. “Today is May’s first day with us, so I thought we’d give her a little primer about what we do before we have our morning meeting.”

I nod at everyone, receiving nods in return. Dev gives me a smile, as does Lucky. Toni’s more serious. I kind of respect her for that. She looks all business, and from what I can tell, she’s doing well in a man’s kind of world. I wonder how high she can kick in those black leather boots she’s wearing.

“Who’s first?” asks Dev.

“You are.” Thibault nods at him. “Just give her the basics.”

Dev rubs his hands together. “Okay, batter up.” He makes a quick bow. “Consider me your PE teacher.”

I smile, remembering the chubby balding man who always wore puffy sweat pants and carried a basketball under his arm at my high school. Mr. Pritchard was so nice.

Dev’s expression goes dark. “Only not like any PE teacher you’ve ever had before.”

“You can say that again,” mumbles Toni.

“Let’s see what you got.” He gestures for me to move closer. “Come on over here and hit me.”

I laugh for a second before I realize he’s serious. So is everyone else.

“Hit you?” I hug my purse to my side, glad I left Felix home today. Felix doesn’t like violence of any kind, and I can’t say as I blame him.