16. Willa
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
WILLA
Trevor
Caught an early flight. Can I bring you lunch?
Me
Uh, sure? You know where the studio is?
Trevor
I have this handy little gadget called GPS…
What sounds good?
Me
Veggie sub from Subbie’s, hold the sarcasm.
Trevor
LOL. Gimme 20.
S etting my phone to the side, I fiddle with the exposure on the Crockett family portrait.
“Working through lunch again?” Emily stops in front of my desk, tucking her short black hair behind her ear. She pulls the sleeves of her baggy cable-knit sweater over her knuckles.
I save the portrait and pull up the Brown family’s file. “No. I have someone bringing me lunch.”
“Ooh, like someone special ?”
“Yes.” The answer flies out of my mouth so fast, my hand slapping over my lips is almost comical.
Emily’s face reflects my surprise as she leans over my desk. “The suspense! The intrigue! Tell me more…”
“He’s just a friend.” I stare at my screen, avoiding her gaze.
“A special friend , huh? Good for you, finally getting out there.”
The tips of my ears burn as I try to focus on anything but the heat sliding up my neck. “I’m not getting anywhere. He’s a friend—that’s it. Not special or anything. Only a friend.”
“Oh, okay. Got it. A super not special friend who turns the tips of your ears red. Totally just a friend.”
Glaring over the monitor, I resist my impulse to crack a smile at my smirking assistant.
She squints, staring me down, but a clearing of my throat has her snapping straight.
“Okay, okay. I’m going to lunch now.” She takes a slow step toward the door.
“I won’t ask anything else about your special friend.
” Another hesitant step. “ Or decide to order in so I can meet him…”
“Emily, go.”
“ Ugh , fine,” she says over her shoulder, quickening her pace. “You’re always so secretive, Boss Lady. I promise I won’t te?—”
Emily bumps right into Trevor, smashing the Subbie’s bag in his hand. “Ope! I’m sorry. You okay?” he asks, grabbing her shoulder while she steadies herself. The stretch Emily’s neck has to make as she looks up at him is cartoonish.
“Whew! You’re a tall drink!” Emily turns to me with no attempts to be subtle and says, “Good job, boss!”
I roll my eyes.
He chuckles and shakes her hand. “I’m Trevor. Nice to meet you.”
“Emily… And I’m late for lunch. Bye!” She dips around him, flitting outside to her car.
“She’s fun.” Turning his smile on me, he struts to my desk, completely demolishing all my boss-mode attitude to goo as I melt down to my shoes.
It’s the dimples over the rugged line of his jaw, and the way his long olive Henley hugs around his shoulders.
The sleeves pushed up his muscled forearms, with the tattoo snaking up the left side.
Strong fingers clutching the white paper bag with my lunch in it certainly doesn’t hurt.
I’m eating it all up, and he hasn’t even handed me my sandwich. “You okay?”
I snap to attention, ears burning again as I realize he watched me eye-fuck him all the way over here. “Mhmm.” I clear my throat and look back at my computer screen. “I’m good.”
“You sure?” He rests a hip on the edge of my desk. “Lookin’ pretty hungry…”
I glance at the teasing slant of his lips, and my eyes get stuck. He winks, sending a rush of heat to my face. Ass .
With an eye roll, I snatch the bag from him. “Yeah. I am hungry. Pregnant here, remember?”
“Well, don’t let me stop you.” The amused twinkle in his eye holds me hostage as he bends to my eye level, plucks the sandwich from the bag, and hands it to me.
His minty breath fans over my face. “Eat up, Willa.” My chest seizes, breath gurgling in my throat as my gaze dips to avoid his stare, landing right back on his mouth.
That ’ s worse . I’m consumed by the vibrations humming through my body, unable to look away while he walks to the front desk for a chair.
I try to keep my eyes to myself; I really do.
But I take just a little peek at his barely laced work boots, and my gaze travels up to his ass in those jeans right as he looks over his shoulder, catching me in the act.
Chuckling, he shakes his head while wheeling the chair over. “I meant eat the food , Jim. Sheesh .”
That ’ ll do it . Jim breaks the spell, but I leave it alone. “Whatever.” I hand him his sandwich. “Thanks for bringing me lunch.”
“Thanks for letting me.” We eat in silence for a solid minute before he clears his throat. “Can I have a little moment of insecurity?” he asks, looking down at his food.
“Umm.” My voice is still husky, so I take a sip from my water bottle, expecting him to bring up the blatant simmering attraction between us. “Sure. What’s up? ”
“Uh…” He squeezes his eyes closed tightly, rubbing fingers across his forehead. He ’ s nervous ? “Do you hate me?”
What the hell ? That’s not even close to what I thought he was going to say. “Uh…no? Why would I hate you?”
He drags a hand down his face, shielding him from view. “I got you pregnant, for one. I’m pretty sure I bothered the hell out of you before then, and I just wouldn’t be surprised if you hate me now. That night kinda changed the entire trajectory of your life.”
“You’re acting like I had no say in this.
” I take a bite of my sandwich and chew thoroughly before continuing, gathering my thoughts.
I know I’ve been frosty , but he really thinks I hate him ?
“Wasn’t I the one who told you to take me to your room that night?
I’m the one who decided to keep this little gummy bear, and I’m actively choosing to change my own life.
I don’t hate you, Trevor, and I never have.
I’ve made my own choices with all of this. ”
“Okay…but you don’t like me.”
“It’s not that I don’t like you.” I sigh. “You’re just…too nice.”
“That’s not a thing.”
“It very much is a thing.” I laugh, knocking my water off the edge of my desk to prove a point. He reaches over and grabs it right before it hits the floor. “See? Too nice. You’re like a superhero-boy-scout hybrid, and it just bothered me. I’m half convinced you stash a cape in your car.”
“Let me get this straight. I’m too nice to you, and you hate me for it?”
“I don’t hate you! You were just annoying.”
He squints, but the smile teasing his lips gives him away before he laughs. “You’re using past tense, which I’m going to assume is a good sign.”
“Oh, you’re still annoying.” I nudge his foot and grin. “But I’m getting used to the ‘nice’ part. It’s an adjustment.”
“Yeah, well, buckle up, Jim.” He misses my sneer at his use of Jim as he digs for the buzzing in his pocket, furrowing his brow when he sees the screen.
“I’m just getting started…” he says distractedly.
“Be right back.” Pressing the phone to his ear, he struts to the front desk.
I try to focus on my half-eaten sandwich, but whatever’s happening sounds intense and keeps pulling my attention to him.
“Well.” He sighs, striding back to me. “A pipe burst at the hotel I reserved. I don’t want to be rude, but I need to scroll on my phone for a bit to find an alternative.
” He rubs a hand over his auburn fade and plops in the chair, staring at his screen with the same stressed look from when he asked if I hate him.
Seeing a tense Trevor unsettles me. I’m surprised by how much I don’t like it. He’s always so sure of himself. Easygoing and calm. And he’s already done so much for me. It ’ s the least I can do . “You could stay with me…”
“No.” His eyes jump to mine, and he shakes his head emphatically. “You don’t have to do that. I know you like your space. I’ll be fi?—”
“I want you to.”
“You…do?”
“Why do you look so surprised?”
“I just found out you don’t hate me five minutes ago. Gimme a minute to adjust,” he teases.
I expect him to refuse, to pull his superhuman I-can-handle-anything bullshit. Instead, he rubs the back of his neck and nods. “Okay. I’ll stay with you tonight. But I’m finding a hotel for tomorrow.”