Chapter 21 A Place You Never Want To Find Leftover Chocolate
A PLACE YOU NEVER WANT TO FIND LEFTOVER CHOCOLATE
CLAIRE
After we stepped off of the stage, a group of Declan’s coworkers swarmed us. They offered praise and congratulations, but the entire time I only cared about what Declan thought.
I knew he didn’t want to do this. Even knowing that Tom and Sarah were competing didn’t make him want to do this. The only reason he agreed was because I didn’t let him say no.
I picked a song that strategically had the least amount of words possible, so when he tried to claim that he couldn't sing or couldn’t remember the words, he couldn’t. I outsmarted him due to my petty need to beat Sarah’s smug little smile off of her face.
Which I totally did.
I praised myself internally as Declan’s hand found my hip. I effectively tuned out what his friends were talking about until he snapped his fingers in front of my face. I blinked a few times before blushing.
“Do you want to go?” He asked.
“Go where?” I furrowed my brow.
He chuckled lightly. “They want to take us for a celebration drink at the little bar around the corner.”
“Oh, yeah, sounds like fun.” I smiled politely as everyone started walking.
It wasn’t that it didn’t sound like fun, I just hadn’t interacted much with Declan’s peers.
A lot of the things we’d done so far were alone or only with Tom and Sarah.
Of course, there was bingo night with the MistleHos, but this was different.
When Declan and I were alone, I could ignore the parts of us that didn’t click in real life.
I could ignore our tax brackets. I could ignore our upbringings.
Being in a group, though? I had to pretend to be a girl that fit. No one would believe that we were getting married if I appeared to not be cut from the same cloth as them.
I just like the little bubble we created for ourselves.
I wanted to stay in the bubble.
I could feel my nerves kicking in and when I got nervous, my quirks started. I could only walk in even patterns, counting my steps in my head. I could only have an even amount of drinks, which meant two minimum. My hair had to be perfectly tucked behind my ears.
The little things that I’d managed to hide from Declan until now were threatening to make me have a panic attack if I didn’t give into them.
I stared down at my feet as I counted in my head, not paying attention to the conversation that was happening around me. When we got to the little bar, I took an extra few steps to land on the number that made sense in my head.
Declan sat on a bar stool and pulled me to stand between his legs. I tucked my hair behind my ears again and exhaled.
“Are you okay?” he asked, cupping my jaw with his palm.
I nodded into his touch. “Yeah, just a little anxious.”
His eyes bore into me like he could see past my bullshit, but he didn’t say anything. Instead, he leaned across the bar and ordered two glasses of red wine.
The bar was rustic and quaint. It looked exactly how you would imagine a tiny bar in the middle of the mountains to look.
The walls were made of large stones and the ceiling was low.
There was dim lighting throughout and random ski memorabilia strewn across the ceiling and walls.
The ski lodge had upscale bars that were modern and sleek, but this would be more considered a dive.
I liked the vibe here. I felt more at home here.
I found out that the group that invited Declan to the bar were from the Denver office—the one Declan is trying to promote to join. That meant these would be his peers if he moved there. That also made me size up all of the women a little closer.
Not that they were a threat.
Obviously.
As nervous as I was coming in here, after two glasses of wine and constant check-ins from Declan, the tension in my shoulders eased.
Being in his presence had a bigger impact on me than I anticipated.
When I started to get twitchy, he could run a soothing hand over my back.
That familiar touch eased my anxiety enough that I didn’t look like a compulsive weirdo in front of his friends.
The group was nicer than I anticipated and no one talked down to me. No one really asked questions about me at all apart from where I was from. That should probably be considered rude, but at least I didn’t have to lie to their faces.
Declan and I hadn’t exactly told anyone that I work for Driscoff and Pugh as an executive assistant.
It wasn’t against the rules, per say, but it would be a judgment worth offense—it was also an insane cliché.
We wanted Declan to look like a family man, not a man who exploits his younger assistant for sex.
That being said, the less people pry into my life, the better.
All was going well when a cold blast from the open bar door swept over me. I wasn’t sure if it was the frigid air or the frigid bitch who walked inside, but my mood faltered.
Sarah Driscoff was testing my patience. She didn’t like me and she made it very clear. I hoped that embarrassing herself on stage today would be a deterrent from showing up tonight, but I was sadly mistaken.
“Declan! Congratulations. You were wonderful.” Sarah dropped a kiss to his cheek. His eyes widened in horror as if to tell me that he didn’t want that to happen.
He laughed nervously. “Thanks, Sarah. I really can’t take any credit. Claire here was the one who stole the show.”
I stepped between Declan’s legs and looped my arms around his neck.
“I did it for you,” I cooed in a way that would normally make me vomit.
I was not this swoony girl who talked in a higher pitched tone around men.
I didn’t care to be considered cute. But, in front of Sarah I also didn’t care much about my dignity.
I wanted to play dirty.
Declan smirked at me, his fingertips digging into my hips. He leaned forward, brushing his lips against mine in a soft kiss.
“Behave,” he whispered against my mouth.
“No,” I said back, kissing him harder.
A throat cleared next to us, pulling our attention away from each other and back to the group.
“Have you two thought about wedding plans?” Sarah asked, completely unashamed that she interrupted us.
I forced a smile at her. “We haven’t gotten that far. We’re just enjoying our trip.”
“I bet your parents are just over the moon, Dex. Your Mom always told me how much she looked forward to us getting married.”
I stilled in Declan’s arms. This was foreign territory. We hadn’t even really discussed Declan’s family; it just hadn’t come up.
“She will be very excited when we tell her,” he said flatly.
Sarah was like a hound sniffing out her prey. “Didn’t you just love her, Claire?”
“I…” My eyes swung between Sarah and Declan, unsure what to say.
“We haven’t gotten to go up to Illinois yet. We’re planning a trip to see her in January,” Declan said with an ease that I did not currently possess.
Sarah hummed before touching my arm. “Don’t worry, she won’t judge,”—her eyes roamed my body—“much.”
“I would hope not. Her son is in love, and that would make any parent happy,” I said hopefully.
Sarah picked at her finger nail as if to appear bored by my statement.
“Of course. I would just make sure to get a new hair dresser first, since yours has clearly done you a disservice."
My eye started to twitch as I muttered, “this is my natural color.”
Sarah opened her mouth to say something else that no one wanted to hear, when Declan stood.
“Okay, you know, we’ve had a long day. We’ll catch up with you all later.” He grabbed my wrist and pulled me toward the door.
My feet felt like lead as Sarah wiggled her fingers at me.
That bitch wouldn’t win.
The second we were outside, I twisted back toward the door. Declan’s arms wrapped around my middle, pulling my back to his front.
“Let it go, Bear.” He attempted to soothe me, but I was too worked up.
“No. I’ll go tell her where to put her hair bleach. I heard it’s tasty if you drink it,” I hissed, pushing against his arms.
Declan barked out a laugh as he bent down and swooped me right over his shoulder. I let out a shriek as I banged my fists on his back.
“Let me down!” I shouted.
“No. I don’t want you committing murder in a foreign country.”
“She’d deserve it,” I huffed.
“I know, Bear. I know.” Declan landed a slap on my ass as he carried me all the way back to the chalet.
He didn’t put me down until we reached the third floor, where he dumped me on the kitchen island.
I crossed my arms and looked away from him. I could’ve held my own with Sarah, I didn’t need him monitoring me.
“Look at me, Bear,” Declan ordered, but I didn’t move.
He hooked two fingers under my chin and forced my head level with his. I wasn’t positive what my face looked like, but I hoped I looked capable of murder in cold blood.
“You’re kind of sexy when you’re jealous,” he said, placing a kiss on my cheek and leaving his lips there.
“I’m not jealous,” I insisted, pushing him back a step.
He just laughed at my futile attempt to move him. “Baby, you looked like you were going to claw her eyes out.”
“Yeah because she’s a bitch in snow boots.”
“Can I take your mind off of it?”
I shrugged as he pulled me to my feet. His hands moved up my thighs slowly before his palms smoothed over my hips. Just as I leaned on my toes to kiss him, he pushed me around and placed my palms flat on the table.
“Be a good girl and don’t move,” he said in my ear, making goosebumps erupt down my body.
I did as I was told and stood perfectly still as he hooked his thumbs into the waist of my leggings and peeled them down my legs.
Then, he reached around and unbuttoned my sweater, peeling it off of my shoulders and leaving me in only my bralette.
He used one foot to kick my legs further apart, forcing me to bend further over the counter.
I felt a palm brush over my ass before rearing back and landing a slap to one side. I hissed in pain and pleasure, reeling in the feeling of being at his mercy.