Chapter Twenty-Six RUSSELL
Chapter Twenty-Six
RUSSELL
“What the hell was that about?” I asked once we were seated.
Rowan had already picked up the menu and didn't even answer. Chase, who’d arrived before us, glanced from him to me, shrugging lightly. “No clue.”
“You know Mae Townsend?” I asked.
Rowan looked up from his menu, wincing slightly. “I do.”
“How do you know her? She didn’t seem happy to see you,” I replied.
“Right. Look, I don’t actually know what happened. We were really good friends for a few years in college, and then we went on a few dates. She iced me out completely after that, and I never figured out what happened.”
“Did you know she was from Willow Brook when you took a job here?” I pressed.
Rowan winced again. “Uh, yeah. Although I didn’t even know she lived here. Last I knew, she was still in North Carolina.”
I absorbed that. “Hmm, well, she’s a friend.”
Rowan nodded. “I swear I have no idea why she hates me. If you need to punch me, can we at least take it outside?”
Chase chuckled. “Doesn’t seem like that’s necessary.”
“It’s not. Just wondering why she can’t stand you,” I offered.
“If you find out, let me know,” Rowan replied.
A waitress arrived to take our orders, and a few of the other guys showed up.
Conversation moved on. I half paid attention, but my mind couldn’t resist the detour of Paisley.
Hell, she was far more than a detour in my thoughts.
She was always there, dancing along the edges when I wasn't distracted.
Things were officially complicated enough that Graham saw fit to ask me if something was going on with us today.
Apparently, he noticed that I got a little concerned about her during a drop last week.
I had been concerned, but she'd been fine.
I tried to play it off with Graham and told him it was just the usual kind of concern.
Except I hadn't pulled that off. I'd felt his eyes measuring me and assessing. I knew I needed to let Paisley know even though I didn’t want to. She was already hypersensitive about the whole thing at work.
“Are you kidding me?” Paisley asked. She leaned her elbows on the counter and pressed the heels of her palms into her eyes. When she lifted her head again, she looked more than annoyed. She said something under her breath.
“What?” I prompted.
“Phoebe noticed that you were worried. You know, I can handle myself in the field.” She lifted her chin.
“I know you can. You're one of the best on our crew.”
“We said this couldn't get complicated,” Paisley said, her voice low.
“I know we did. It's not complicated,” I insisted, lying through my teeth.
I resorted to playing it off because I didn't know what else to say right now. I sure as hell didn’t know what to do about my feelings.
All of my efforts to keep things compartmentalized and uncomplicated weren’t working.
I kept remembering my father, remembering how devastated my mother had been when he died, and remembering the day I showed up at the rescue. Fuck.
“Maybe we should—” She began talking, but I shook my head sharply. “You don't even know what I was going to say.”
“Okay, fine. What were you about to say?”
“Maybe we should stop.”
“Stop what?” I knew what she meant, but I preferred to play stupid.
She took a deep breath. “What we're doing. Actually, what are we doing?” she pressed.
“Having a good time.” I tried to keep my tone light. “It's kept us from arguing at work.”
“But maybe we've gotten rid of the tension, and we're friends now,” she said, her voice sounding strained.
“The tension hasn’t gone anywhere,” I said flatly. “Do you think it has?”
We stared at each other. I thought for a minute she was going to try to lie about it, but she didn't. She shook her head slowly back and forth as pink stained her cheeks. “No.” The single word was a raspy whisper and sent a sizzle of heat through me.
I didn't realize my hands were gripping the countertop until I released them. I walked in a circle and opened the refrigerator for no reason before turning back to face her.
“Hungry?” she asked, her brows hitching up. I shook my head. “We have to be able to work together, Russell.”
“I know,” I said quickly. “I haven't been staring at your ass.” Another lie for the books, but I thought that was more of the white-lie variety. No big deal. Bullshit.
Paisley laughed softly. “According to Phoebe, you give me smoldery looks.”
I chuckled. “Ah, perhaps so. Apparently, I need to keep it together better at work.”
“It's not like it's really been a problem,” she offered.
It almost annoyed me that she was more contained than me at work.
But knowing how she kept everything so tight around her brother, I supposed that made sense.
I was falling for her and getting in over my head while she was busy keeping her distance.
I knew it wasn't just me. I knew how it felt when we were together, but none of that mattered right now. My resolve to tell her about Graham’s concern was waning. I forced myself to do it, though.
“Graham might’ve noticed something.”
“What?” she squeaked.
“Probably that I was worried about you out in the field. I told him it was nothing, and I think he bought it.” Actually, I was pretty sure he didn’t, but I wasn’t about to fess up to that.
I did the only thing I could think to do and rounded the counter, resting my hands on either side of her. She spun around on the stool and peered up at me. “Maybe we should—”
“Do this,” I said, dipping my head and fitting my mouth over hers. Our kiss flashed into a bonfire. She flexed into me, letting out a little moan. This was the one thing we did really well.
Maybe not the only thing, but at least I could forget about everything else while I lost myself in Paisley. In a hot second, we were tugging at each other's clothes, and I was lifting her in my arms as she curled her legs around my waist. I carried her upstairs to her bed.
I loved everything about her—the feel of her nipples ruching under my touch, her belly trembling when I dropped hot kisses over it, her channel convulsing around me as I sank my thick shaft inside.
She shuddered roughly around me. With each surge into her silky slick core, I watched as her eyes darkened and my own release yanked me over the edge.
Falling asleep beside her came easy as darkness cloaked us.