Chapter 20
HAYDEN
When someone dies, everyone tells you that they’re still there, that they’re looking down on you and cheering you on. Over the past few weeks, I’ve really wanted to believe that’s true. But right here, right now, I know that Rylee isn’t just looking down on me.
She set this whole thing up.
I keep my eyes locked on Hailee’s as she stands in the middle of the enclosed space with her chest heaving and her fists balled at her sides as if she’s trying to hold herself back from something.
If that thing is me, then there’s zero holding back needed. I’m right here, and she’s welcome to whatever she wants.
I undo my bowtie, letting it hang loosely around my neck before undoing the top few buttons. I’ve already long abandoned my jacket and mask, thank fuck. I hate the idea of my face being covered and her pretending I was anyone else.
Fuck that. I want her to look into my eyes and know exactly what’s making her react as viscerally as she is now.
I let my eyes drop to her lips. They’re stained deep red, and I’m dying to know just how well it might stay on. If I were to kiss her, would I end up with it all over my lips? If she were to drop to her knees, would it smear all over my—
Stop, Hayden.
Just fucking stop.
Your pants are way too fitted to be getting hard in here.
Unless…
My eyes continue tracing the delicate curve of her neck before dropping to the small swell of her breasts covered by red fabric that I’m desperate to peel away from her.
“Hayden,” she warns, her voice barely a whisper as I make a show of enjoying every inch of her.
The thick band around the middle of the dress shows off the curve of her waist, and then the fabric flares out over her hips and plummets to the ground with splits on either side, showing off almost the entire length of her legs when she walks.
I can’t see them right now, but I know for a fact that there are the sexiest fucking shoes hiding under that fabric as well, with straps that wrap up around her calves.
The image of dropping to my knees and delicately unwinding them from around her legs, and then shoving all that fabric out of the way and discovering exactly what might be hiding beneath…
Fucking hell.
I drag my hand down my face as I try to gather my racing thoughts.
“You need to press the alarm. We need to let someone know we’re stuck.”
I take a step closer, and her sharp intake of breath hits my ears.
“Is that what you really want? For someone to come and rescue us so we can go back to the party?”
She chews on her bottom lip. The fact that she doesn’t immediately agree has my excitement growing.
“I…uh…aren’t you hungry?”
I let my eyes drop again. “Yeah,” I rasp. “Fucking starved.”
I undo my cuffs and roll my sleeves up to my elbows as I wait for her to react.
“We should press the button,” she says, although there’s zero conviction in her tone.
“Okay,” I say, stepping away from the panel of buttons. “Go ahead.”
She looks from me to the buttons and back again.
She steps forward, and I follow her movements, my fingers twitching with the need to reach out and pull her to me.
But no matter how much I want to, I won’t.
I need her to come to me of her own accord.
She showed me at her apartment how she feels about being told what to do.
If anything is going to happen here, it needs to be on her terms. That being said, though, I’m more than happy to play dirty in an attempt to get what I want.
She hesitates, her hand over the button.
“The choice is yours, Hailee,” I breathe. “If you don’t press that, do you think anyone will notice? Do you think they’ll come looking for us?”
“Harlow needs her iPad,” she states. “I told her that I’d—” She hangs her head. “She’s relying on me.”
“Yeah,” I breathe, hating that I’m putting her in this position.
“Press the button. Call for help. It’s the right thing to do.”
She nods once before she lifts a perfectly manicured finger and presses the button, and…nothing happens.
“Shouldn’t that make a noise or something?” she asks, glancing over at me.
“I don’t know. I’ve never been stuck in an elevator before.”
“Me either,” she says before pressing the red button with the alarm symbol etched into it.
My eyes lift to the sign above her head.
“In an emergency, hold for five seconds and wait for operator.”
“Pretty sure I’ve been holding longer than five seconds.”
“Yeah.”
I pull my cell from my pocket and unlock it.
“Uh, Hails.”
“Yeah?” she says, finally releasing the button and turning to face me. “I don’t have any service.”
She opens her purse and pulls her cell out. “Me either. No data…” She taps on the screen and waits a few seconds. “No Wi-Fi networks to connect to.”
“Shit.”
“Yeah,” she agrees.
“I’m…uh…not sure…huh.”
“What?” she asks, her brows pulling together.
“Nothing. I just love seeing this different side of you.”
“What side?”
“The non-work, not-always-in-full-control version.”
Her mouth opens and closes a couple of times as she fights to come up with a response.
“See, work Hailee always has a comeback.”
Putting her cell away again, she lets her purse drop to the floor.
“I don’t like being out of my comfort zone,” she confesses quietly. “I like to have everything planned and know what’s likely to happen.”
“Sounds…boring. Don’t you think?”
“Safe,” she counters.
“I get that, Hails. I really fucking do. But don’t you ever just want to say fuck it, jump, and see where you end up?”
She shakes her head. “I can’t,” she admits.
Concern rolls through me like a tidal wave.
“Someone hurt you,” I reason, and the second she lowers her gaze, I know I hit the nail on the head.
“Don’t,” she whispers. “Please.”
I rush forward, hating everything about her body language, the defeated way her shoulders curl in, making herself look smaller than ever.
“Hey,” I say, reaching out and twisting our fingers together before tilting her chin up with my other hand.
My eyes search hers, desperate to read all her well-hidden secrets.
“I’m right here. We don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do.
You want to sit and recite High School Musical songs?
We can do that. You want to play Eye Spy? We can do that too.”
A smile twitches at her lips, and internally, I give myself a high five for dragging her from wherever her head went just now.
“We’re trapped in a metal box,” she points out.
“Yeah, I get your point. Eye Spy would be shit.”
She puffs out a laugh, her head tilting to the side, gazing up at me with emotions I can’t decipher dancing in her eyes.
All I want to do is lean in and brush my lips against hers, test the waters, see if she’s as interested as I’m convincing myself she is. But I made her a promise a few minutes ago.
“Hails, would you—”
A loud crackle fills the air and she spins around, leaning closer to what I assume is a small speaker.
“Hello? Is anyone there?”
Nothing.
She jabs her finger against the alarm button again, and then again and again. But nothing more happens.
“Shit,” she hisses, her shoulders dropping again.
Unable to stop myself, I reach out and do exactly what I was imagining earlier: I let my knuckles brush down the ridges of her spine, all the way until I hit the fabric resting just above her ass.
I bite down on the inside of my cheek to stop myself from groaning at how soft her skin is, just like I knew it would be.
“Hayden,” she whispers, risking a glance over her shoulder.
“You were the most beautiful woman in the room tonight. Did you know that?”
She shakes her head. Her movement is so slight that I’d miss it if I weren’t so close.
“By a fucking mile. I couldn’t take my eyes off you.”
A rush of air spills from her lungs as my hand curls around her waist.
“All I could think about were the kind of excuses I could make to come and talk to you.”
“You don’t need an excuse to talk to me.”
“I do, though, because we both know that I don’t want to talk about work.”
I step closer until her ass brushes my crotch.
“Work is the last thing I want to talk about when I’m with you.”
“What did you want to talk about?” Her voice is all breathy. She might be fighting to retain control, but it’s a losing battle.
“You,” I state as I lean forward and press my lips against her bare shoulder.
Her breath catches, and her hand lands on top of mine around her waist.
This time, when a groan threatens, I don’t try to smother it. I let it spill free, letting her hear exactly what she does to me.
“I want to know everything, Hails. I want to know about your past.” Her eyes slam closed, but I don’t stop. “I want to know everything about your life right now, and I want to hear all your hopes and dreams for the future.”
“You don’t. You don’t want all that.”
Irritation tightens my muscles, but I force it away again because I know what she’s doing. She’s trying to keep control, trying to keep her walls up.
“I want everything, Hails.” I lift my free hand and gently tap the side of her head. “I want everything that’s in here. And”—I let my hand drop, resting it over her heart, loving the way I can feel it pounding beneath her ribs against my palm— “everything that’s in here.”
“We can’t, Hayden.”
“Why? Give me one good reason why we can’t,” I demand as I spin her around, pushing her back against the wall and pressing my leg between hers, ensuring she can’t run. Not that she can go anywhere.
A self-deprecating laugh tumbles from her lips.
“A million reasons. Because we work together. Because I’m too old for you. Because you’re too good for me. Because—”
“Kiss me,” I demand, cutting her off.
“What?” She blinks up at me, her amber eyes glittering with so much gold.
“You heard me. You want to be in control? Take it. I’m handing it over. All of it.”
A second passes. And then another and another.
Convinced she’s about to turn me down, I prepare myself to step back and do whatever I can to push everything that’s happened in here behind me.
But then her hands land on my chest and I swear my heart stops beating as they slide upwards.
“Hails.”
“No talking,” she demands, and my lips immediately snap closed.
“Do you mean it?”
I nod. I’m not entirely sure what I’m agreeing to, but if she’s going to keep touching me, I’ll agree to anything.
“Anything,” I rasp when she doesn’t respond.
Her eyes hold mine, her tongue peeking out and dragging across her bottom lip.
Fire burns through me. I swear to God, I’m going to fucking combust if she doesn’t do something soon.
But then, she stretches up on her toes, her small hands fisting my shirt. Her breath tickles over my lips a beat before her lips brush against mine.
Oh fuck.
Oh fuck.
Snaking my arm around her, I pin her against me, helping her stretch up as our lips part. Her tongue finds mine, and I’m about to throw myself headfirst into everything this woman is willing to give me when the ground beneath our feet shifts.
“Oh shit,” she gasps, pulling back, her eyes wide. “We’re…we’re moving.”
She shoves at my chest, and I have little choice but to stumble back.
“Oh my god. Fuck. Shit. That—”
“You’re freaking out,” I point out as the screen begins to count down the floors.
“No, I’m not.”
I glance over and raise a brow.
She’s serious for two seconds, and then a smile breaks through and laughter explodes.
It’s a little manic, and I’m not sure what to think about it, but I can’t help joining in.
And that’s exactly how four members of hotel staff, two elevator technicians, Reese, Fletch, Harlow, Rett, and Bea find us a few minutes later when the doors open and we finally spill out.
It wasn’t the kind of seven minutes in heaven I thought I wanted with Hailee.
It was even better.