Still, Allison knew that neither one of them was in the market for a relationship. She was supposed to be going on a date with James soon, anyway. Oh, it was barely a date, but still. She shouldn’t get too attached to Christopher.
She shouldn’t.
He was her boss, and...
Well, he was her boss.
“Come to the holiday party with me,” Christopher said, all of a sudden. It was as though he’d read her mind and chosen to ask her the most horrible question that she didn’t want to be asked.
“What?” Allison was shocked. She’d wanted him to ask her so many times, and he hadn’t. She didn’t know what to do. Her entire body felt like it was hot and cold at the same time.
“The party is next week,” he said. “Be my date.” Christopher looked up at Allison hopefully, and she felt a pool of anxiety washing around inside of her. Should she tell him the truth? She’d asked James to accompany her. Oh, she’d made it clear that she wasn’t interested in him as anything more than friends, but still, they’d planned to go.
She could blow off James, and she wanted to, but what kind of message would that send? He was a project manager now, and while Christopher didn’t have to work directly with him, Allison did. She didn’t want James to think she was a dirty flip-flopper. No, she’d have to go. Otherwise, he’d view her as unreliable. That would come back to bite her in the ass in the future.
“I...I’m so sorry,” she whispered, unable to meet Christopher’s eyes.
“What is it, kitten?”
“I’m already going with someone.”
Christopher stilled.
“Do you have a boyfriend?” Allison didn’t have to be a shifter to know that Christopher was pissed. Shifters thought they were incredible because they could scent emotions, and while it was a wonderful gift, Allison didn’t need to be a shifter to know that Christopher was radiating anger and frustration. He was irritated with her. He was mad.
Apparently, he also thought she was a total cheater.
“No,” she said quickly, “nothing like that. I’m not dating anyone. This,” she gestured between them, “wasn’t cheating. It wasn’t.”
“Who are you going with?”
“I asked James to go.”
“The software project guy?” Christopher’s jaw dropped.
“Yeah, well, he’s new, and you obviously weren’t going to ask me, so I thought I’d be polite and ask him to come with me. He’s a good worker, right? I thought you’d be pleased, like it would be my way of welcoming him to the company.”
Christopher seemed so upset that Allison slid off of his lap and stood in front of him. Was he...jealous? Was that what was happening? She’d never seen him like this before, and to be honest, she wasn’t quite sure why he was acting like this now. Christopher had never been the jealous type, and there wasn’t really anything for him to be jealous of. James was just her date to the Christmas party. That meant they’d arrive at the same time, they’d hang out together, and they’d have a few drinks. That was it.
Allison wasn’t going to kiss James. She wasn’t going to sleep with him. She definitely wasn’t going to ask him for a second date. She was just being polite. That was it.
Only, Christopher didn’t seem to think her choice had been very polite. He didn’t seem to like the idea of her being with another man. He seemed anxious and pissed, and if she was hearing him correctly, he was emitting sort of a low growl.
“Christopher?”
“You should go,” he whispered.
“Christopher, it’s just a friendship date. Really.”
She was worried now that Christopher wasn’t going to believe her. Was he going to think that Allison and James were dating? Was Christopher going to think that kiss had been her cheating? It wasn’t. She’d never cheated on anyone. Honestly, she probably should just tell James she was no longer interested, that she was seeing someone now. Only, it would make things awkward at work, and she really, really didn’t need awkward.
Christopher didn’t say another word. Instead, he stood up and started taking off his clothes. Allison stood silently as he practically tore off the suit, and his socks and shoes, and then finally, his boxers. She tried not to look at his cock, but that was an impossible task. Then he strode to the glass door behind his desk that led to a little balcony. He walked out there, completely nude, and he jumped off the ledge. Allison waited just a moment, and then he appeared again: a beautiful dragon. He’d shifted mid-air, as dragons were known to do, and then he was gone.
And she was alone.
Chapter 7
He was a fool for wanting her.