“Mr. Westgate, a Miss Dresden is here to see you.”
And then his heart just stopped in his chest at the sound of his receptionist saying Freya was here. Turning in his chair, he pressed down on the intercom.
“Send her in right away.” He stood, buttoned his suit jacket, and stared at the double doors of his office. She was here? She was really fucking here, and that made him feel like an even bigger asshole because she probably wouldn’t have shown up if he hadn’t avoided her.
A few seconds later, the doors opened, and Freya walked in. She held her bag, but looked around his office before she saw him standing there. After a moment, her gaze landed on his, and even from the distance, he saw her throat work and could practically feel her nerves. His receptionist shut the doors, sealing them in, but even having Freya right in front of him, he still couldn’t think of anything to say. But his mind kicked into gear when she took a step forward.
“I’m sorry, Freya.”
She stopped. “For what?” she asked genuinely.
He ran a hand through his hair, not caring that he was mussing the strands.
“For kissing me?” Freya asked softly.
“Never for kissing you,” Elijah said right away. He exhaled and sat down, not knowing where to begin, but figuring he might as well just let it all out. “Please, have a seat and we’ll talk.”
Freya moved to one of the chairs in front of his desk, and after a few moments, he finally spoke again. “I’m sorry if I rushed you, if me kissing you made you uncomfortable.”
“It didn’t,” she said instantly. “I wish you hadn’t run off and we could have talked about it. I wanted to explain that I didn’t want you to stop. It’s just that everything was confusing at that moment. I felt this wave of emotion, and it scared me a little, Elijah.”
“I shouldn’t have left like that, and I shouldn’t have avoided your calls.”
She looked at her hands in her lap and didn’t respond for a moment. When she finally lifted her head, he saw the truth and vulnerability in her face. “I want you, Elijah. I want you more than I should because of the history we have.”
“That was a long time ago.”
She nodded after he spoke. “But you were married to Meghan, my once stepmother.”
“I want you, Freya.” Leaning his forearms on the desk, he stared at her and hoped she could see the truth in his expression. He saw her throat work as she swallowed, saw her eyes widen a fraction, and he knew she could see all right. Pushing away from the desk, he stood and walked toward her. She tilted her head back to look up at him, her hands playing with the strap of her purse, her nerves clearly written on her face. He dropped to his haunches, took her hands in his, and gazed into her eyes.
“I know this all seems so fast, and it is, believe me. I didn’t expect to fall for a woman, even one I’ve known for years, just a week after she gets back into town.”
She licked her lips, her chest rising and falling a little harder and faster than normal.
“But I’m willing to go slow and take my time with you, with this, as long as you’re willing, Freya.”
She didn’t respond, didn’t even blink, but after several long, agonizing seconds, she finally inhaled and exhaled slowly.
“I’ll do whatever you want, Freya, as long as you think you can give this, us, a go,” he said, not wanting to beg. He didn’t want her to feel like he was pressuring her or putting her on the spot.
“I don’t know how things will go, but I know I’d like to spend more time with you and see where this takes us.”
He couldn’t help himself. Elijah leaned forward, cupped her face in his hands, and for one second didn’t do or say anything, just gave her a chance to stop him, if that was what she really wanted. She didn’t, so he leaned in and kissed her. At first, he just pressed his lips to hers, but when she moaned softly and leaned into his mouth more, he stroked his tongue along her bottom lip. When she opened for him and sucked his tongue into her mouth, he was tempted to push all his shit off the desk and lay her on it to feast on her body.
“I want you, Elijah, but can we take this slow?”
He smiled against her mouth, needing the slowness as well. “Of course we can. This isn’t something I want to rush, Freya.”
“Good, because neither do I.”
He just hoped he didn’t fuck this up because he knew Freya was something really damn special.11It was odd to know several weeks had passed already, but Freya felt like she was still getting to know Elijah, even if she technically did already know him.