10. Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten

Eric

“So, you seriously sliced your arm open?” Adam’s voice asks with disgust.

I adjust my phone on my shoulder. “Yeah, it was pretty brutal. The pain isn’t nearly as bad now, but it’s still hard to move my arm.”

“And you’re out for the entire week?”

I sigh, knowing that’s not realistic. “I’m supposed to relax and let it heal. I’m just going to work from home, though. I don’t have the time to take a week off. Not with this acquisition.”

“Alright, man. Let me know if I can do anything to help.”

“Will do. I’ll talk to you later.”

I put the phone down and try to type out an email with one hand. It’s been impossible to get shit done this morning with one hand, but I’m not going to be useless all week. There’s far too much work to get done, and my bosses would lose their shit if I told them I needed to rest for a week. I called my assistant Charlotte and let her know that I’ll be working from home for the week and she nearly choked on her coffee.

When lunch time hits, I make a sandwich and decide to take it outside onto the patio to enjoy some sunlight.

As soon as I sit down, I notice Mia on the far side of the patio in a sports bra and spandex leggings. She’s bending over, stretching. Her body is far better than I had realized. There’s something about it that is unlike what I’m used to, but makes my hands twitch with eagerness to touch her. Her cleavage is popping out of her bra. A groan escapes my throat, and she turns around.

“Oh, hey,” she stands up and walks over to me. “I didn’t see you there.”

Now I’m inches from her ample cleavage and round ass, both secure in her tight-fitting clothes. It should be illegal for her to wear those. At least for someone with her curves and snatched waist.

“What are you up to?” I ask as I grab my chips as a distraction.

“I’m just trying to keep myself busy. I think I want to try to get out of the house today.”

I sit up straight. “You think it’s safe to leave?”

She looks so fragile standing in front of me, worry etched on her face. “I don’t know, but I can’t just hide away my whole life. I don’t even know for sure if he’s out to get me. Maybe it’s all in my head.”

“Where do you want to go?”

“I was hoping a grocery store. I’d like to cook tonight.”

“I’ll go with you.” The words are out before I can take them back.

Spending any more time with her than necessary isn’t something I should be doing, not with how my body itches to have her. But I’m also damn sure I’m not going to let her go out alone.

“You will?” she asks. “Are you sure?”

I shrug my shoulders like it’s no big deal. “I’ve got nothing else to do.”

That’s a lie. I have a ton of work to get done. But I suddenly feel the need to make her feel safe…to make her smile. If that’s not a red flag that I’m walking into dangerous territory, I don’t know what is.

“Okay. Thank you.”

Without any permission from my brain, my eyes drag up her body as I appreciate every single inch of what I see. When I reach her eyes, I notice her throat bob as if she’s affected by my reaction.

“I’m ready whenever you are.”

“Okay,” she smiles. “I’m just going to go get a quick shower.”

She walks away and I’m left wondering how I got myself in this situation. I’m supposed to be in control of myself here. She isn’t the money grabbing opportunist that I thought she was, but that doesn’t mean that she can’t destroy my heart.

There’s always an ulterior motive. I’m only going with her because it’s my responsibility to keep her safe. It has nothing to do with my attraction to her, which is only physical anyways.

I’m sitting outside on the porch waiting for her when she comes outside in tight jeans and a cream sweater. She has sunglasses on and somehow manages to look sexy but sweet. I don’t know how she pulls it off.

My heart does something weird in my chest. I think the stress of all of this is getting to me.

“I’ll drive,” she smiles as she looks at my arm.

I nod my head and stand up. At least I know I’m not looking much like a man these days with my injured arm. Not sure how attractive it is that she’s had to help me change clothes and open jars like a child.

The car ride to the store is quiet, but I find that neither of us feel the need to fill the silence. It’s quite relaxing. She grabs a cart, and I follow her around as she picks things up.

“What are you thinking of making tonight?” I ask curiously.

“Gnocchi in a cream sauce.”

I hold my stomach. “Woman. You’re gonna make me fat with your cooking.”

“I highly doubt that’s going to happen. I’ve seen you without a shirt.”

I smile, then notice a blush that creeps over her face and goes all the way down her neck. She reaches for some potatoes, but I’m too transfixed on her reaction.

“Did you know that when you blush,” the back of my finger touches her cheek “it goes all the way down to here,” I say until my finger is resting at the top of her cleavage.

Her chest is rising and falling rapidly as she looks up at me with wide eyes. We’re both rooted in our place, unable to break away from the hold that this attraction seems to have on us. She shakes her head back and forth.

“It’s distracting,” my voice says with anger. Because that’s how I feel right now. Angry. Angry that she does this to me. That I can’t stop myself from wanting her this way.

“I’m sorry,” she whispers delicately.

What would it feel like to have those lips wrapped around my cock. My dick hardens in my jeans at the thought. I move my hand down to adjust myself in my pants, her eyes following my movement. She looks shocked, and I’m too full of rage to behave.

“That’s right, Mia. That’s what your blushing does to me. It makes my dick hard.”

Without another word, I grab the cart and start pushing it away.