SECRETLY MARRIED TO MY BOSS

chapter 9

Jake keeps eating as I figure out what to say to Cora at work.

This is not going to be pretty.

When I walk into the office after breakfast with Jake, Cora is already sitting at the desk just outside my office. She looks up with a cool and professional smile as I walk by.

“Morning.” She glances back down at the stack of papers in front of her. “I’ve been sorting through the contract for Garfield Homes and their acquisition of Lakeland Interiors. You might want to take a second look over some clauses.”

I nod and open the glass door to my office. “Why don’t you come in for a moment? I have a couple of things that we need to clear up.”

She sighs, tucking her hair behind one ear. “I’m sure there’s nothing we need to speak about.”

My hand tightens on the gold handle. “Cora. Office. Now.”

Her blue eyes flash with irritation as she stands. My gaze drops to how her matte faux leather pants hug her thighs. I throw up a mental wall to avoid the thought of having her bent over my desk in those pants.

Cora strides into my office and starts opening the curtains that cover the windows lining two walls. Bright light floods the room as she opens the last one and heads to the beige suede couches near the bookshelves.

She sits down, crossing one leg over the other. “What did you want to talk about?”

I sigh and sit in one of the matching armchairs across from her. “I want to talk about what happened on the retreat. I’m sure that you know drinking at the bar together was a mistake, and it never should have happened.”

Her mauve-painted lips flatten into a straight line. “I’m aware of that.”

I shift in my seat. Her stare makes me feel like I’m in court under the watch of a well-respected judge.

I don’t want her to go back to hating me after this. We just agreed to try getting along, and I would hate to ruin that.

My heart slams against my chest. “Well then, I’m glad we agree it won’t happen again.”

Cora nods, strands of her dark hair falling around her face. The corner of her mouth twitches up into the ghost of her saucy smile. “Griffin, if you’re worried about me trying to kiss you, that’s the last thing you need to worry about.”

“Good.” I clear my throat, but annoyance flows through me. I cross my arms, my hands curling into fists. “You’re the last person that I would want to kiss. I was drinking a lot, and I wasn’t in my right mind. For that, I apologize.”

Liar. You want to kiss her again. You might even do it right now if your office door weren’t made of glass.

Cora laughs and leans back into the cushions. “I’m glad we’re on the same page then. You’re not my type anyway. And even if you were, you’re an ass. I’ve already kissed enough of those for a lifetime.”

My body tenses as I watch her. She sits perfectly still, that amused smile still on her face.

It would be lying to say that her words didn’t sting.

Cora stands up and adjusts her white silk blouse. I think I catch a flash of her nude bra visible beneath the fabric before she goes over to my desk and scoops up the files waiting for her.

“If that’s all, Griffin, I need to get back to my desk and review these. I’ve got a few messages to forward to you, so I suggest not going too far from your desk.”

The petulant child in me wants to demand that she stay in my office and speak to me longer. I want her to be as unsettled by this conversation as I am, but she seems content.

Fuck, she is acting like she already had this conversation with me.

And I guess she did. Waking up alone should have sent a pretty clear message.

I thought she would still be there when I woke up on the couch that night. Every woman I’d slept with before stayed until I woke up. But Cora is not every other woman…

Here she is, acting like the kiss meant nothing to her.

Maybe I was the only one who thought it felt right to kiss her.

I sigh and run a hand through my hair. “I was expecting this conversation would go differently.”

Cora shrugs and balances the stack of paperwork on one arm. “I don’t know why you would think that. We were both drinking, and we were the most incompatible people on earth. Add in being my boss, and we’re nothing but a trainwreck waiting to happen.”

My words get caught in my throat at her casual tone.

Cora is too relaxed about this entire situation. She’s acting like it was just another kiss with a stranger in the bar. One that she means to forget as quickly as possible.

Though this is for the best, I want her to admit that she enjoyed being with me.

Cora pulls open the door. “Now that we’ve talked about that night, there’s no need to discuss it again. Honestly, I’ve put it behind me.”

She leaves, the door swinging shut behind her.

Cora strides across the office, dropping the files on her desk and heading into Kaleigh’s office. A few moments later, laughter echoes from there before Cora comes back out and takes a seat at her desk.

Annoyance gnaws at me as she settles into work like nothing happened at all between the two of us.

If that’s how she wants to handle things, then so be it. It’s better this way.

I think.