I took a long, slow sip of my coffee. I wanted to find a way to ask about Cooper without seeming like some crazy, overeager fan girl.
“Brighton is a good boss, though. You don’t have to worry about that. He takes very good care of his employees,” Parker continued.
Oh, I know he can take care of me…that’s the problem.
“I heard you worked at Spotlight. Is that true?”
“Unfortunately, yes.”
Parker laughed. “Don’t tell me you had to work for the dragon, Rita.”
I couldn’t help but laugh, snorting slightly as some of my coffee threatened to escape my lips.
“Sadly, that is also true.”
He groaned and shook his head. “Cooper won’t let me go over there and give her a piece of my mind, but believe me, I’d rip her a new one if given the chance.”
“She’s a monster,” I agreed. I couldn’t tell if it was the painkiller/coffee cocktail making me feel better or if it was the energy of our mutual disdain for Rita, but I was warming to Parker and almost sad when we arrived back at the office.
“Well, I’m glad you’re here now,” Parker said as we stepped onto an elevator.
I smiled. “Me, too.”
“What would you say to dinner, with me?” he asked as the elevator doors slid closed.
A rush of heat filled my cheeks and I found myself speechless. Parker was a handsome man, who genuinely seemed like a nice guy. There wasn’t really any logical reason to decline, but there was something clutching at my guts, making it hard to know how to answer.
Almost on cue, the elevator slowed and the doors opened.
I automatically glanced left and sucked in a breath.
Cooper was standing there, waiting for the elevator.
Shit. Shit. Shit.
“Allison,” he said, staring at me as if I was the only occupant of the suddenly-small-feeling, metal box.
My heart thumped against my chest and I couldn’t tear my eyes away from him. Just seeing him had me completely undone. Lust, anger, frustration, desire, and sadness all flooding through me faster than I could even register every emotion. It was all a tangled mess, wrapping around my heart.
“Good morning, Cooper.” Parker’s voice floated over my shoulder.
Cooper’s eyes left me, only for a second, to flick over to Parker. When his dark stare returned to me, his eyes were narrowed slightly as if he could read what had just been discussed.
“Good morning,” he answered. “Allison, I was actually coming to see you.”
“Oh.” That was it. That was all I could say. I stepped back as Cooper boarded the elevator and the doors slid shut again, trapping the three of us inside like some kind of cosmic joke.
It was the most awkward, tension-charged thirty seconds of my life.
When we arrived at the floor that housed the IT department, I finally exhaled, realizing I’d been holding my breath the entire ride.
“Well, I’ll catch up with you later, Allison. Let me know about tonight,” Parker said before giving Cooper a cordial nod and heading off in the other direction.
Cooper tensed and gripped my arm. “Tonight?” he growled under his breath.
Fuck my life.
Chapter Two