Chapter 13
13
T he pressure of the last hour presses down on me—work, stress, chaos—but right now, sitting next to Rachel, I feel a sense of calm. I glance at her, still surprised she stayed. After everything, I wouldn’t have blamed her if she’d bailed. But here she is.
“Can I take you out for dinner to apologize?” I ask, the words slipping out before I can overthink them.
Rachel turns to me. “You want to apologize?” Her voice is almost teasing.
“I do.”
She bites her lip, holding back a laugh. “Are you into cold plunging?”
“No …” Where is she going with this?
“Well, I think you can apologize by doing a polar plunge into the lake.”
I raise an eyebrow. “So, you want to punish me?”
Her cheeks flush, her giggle soft but playful. “I want to know why you were talking to your CEO about penetration and backdoors … and I also want to know how seriously you want to make up for the last hour.”
The flirtation in her voice is impossible to miss. I’m caught between laughing and taking her seriously. Holding her gaze, I decide to lean into it, feeling bolder than I have all day. “Do you want to know that before or after I spoil you until you can’t take anymore?”
Rachel’s breath catches, her smile faltering as the heat between us builds. “Patch.”
I freeze. No one calls me that except my close friends, and hearing it come from her does something to me. Something I wasn’t prepared for. She bites her lip again, glancing out the window. “I’m going to need you to polar plunge first,” she says, looking out at the lake.
I raise an eyebrow, feeling the pull of her challenge. “Is degradation your thing?”
She swats my arm, whispering, “Patch! Are you … are you naughty?”
I smirk, running my fingers along my lips as I think about how far I can push this. “Am I polar plunging alone?”
She doesn’t answer right away, her eyes searching mine. The playful atmosphere between us shifts. The tension between us isn’t just about teasing anymore. Our attraction to each other is undeniable.
“Maybe,” she finally says.
“I’m serious, though. Let me make it up to you. Dinner. No interruptions.”
She tilts her head, her smile returning. “I’ll consider this offer after you run into the lake.”
“Do I get to keep my clothes on?”
She bites her lip, checking me out. “What do you think?”
“I think there are a lot of security cameras here … so can I keep my boxers on?”
“Mmm … I’ll allow it.”
“Are you joining me?”
“Mmm,” she teases, snuggling into my chest. “Undecided.”
I grab her jaw, staring deeply into her blue eyes. “Do you want me to beg you to join?”