She stands up from her desk, and walks over to me, embracing me in a hug. I wish I could extend the embrace—her smell fills my brain, and the way her warm breasts press against my chest drives me wild. I can feel my pulse race at her touch.
"I thought I'd surprise you," I say.
"Well, you and Logan both," she says, pointing to the other side of the office, and then I see him.
Logan's already here, and sitting in a chair, in the corner of the room.
What the fuck?
That bastard.
Do you see what I mean? The guy doesn't know when to quit.
Lana continues. "I'm just surprised that all of a sudden, both of you want to be involved in my dark romance. I mean, one minute, it's a manuscript nobody wants to touch, and now you two seem to be competing over it."
"You shouldn't be surprised," I say. "The Virgin Market is good. It has a lot of potential."
"But it's not finished yet," Lana says. "I still have a bit of work to do."
"I can help you with that," Logan jumps in. "I have an idea. How about you and I slip out of here for a little brainstorming session? What do you say? Maybe over dinner and drinks?"
"Here's a better idea," I say, cutting in. "How about you and I talk about the manuscript for a bit and brainstorm what you still need. I'm confident that I can help you bring it over the finish line. After all, I've actually read it. I have ideas forming in my mind already."
"What makes you think I haven't read it?" Logan says, standing up from his chair in the corner and walking toward me.
I can feel the air around us thicken with a sudden tension.
It's like dark clouds forming on a horizon, threatening to turn into a full-fledged storm.
"I find that hard to believe," I say, a smirk forming on my lips.
"What's so funny?" Logan growls, closing the distance between us.
"Everything," I shrug. "Look around. You coming in here and suggesting that you can help Lana with this book is hilarious."
"Fuck off, Anders," Logan says.
I feel my pulse pick up and my face redden. The urge to slam my fist into the middle of his face returns, and I fight to suppress it.
"You know what—" I begin to say, but Lana cuts me off.
"Enough!" Lana shouts. "Both of you. I'm tired of this. It's so exhausting—the fighting, the bickering, the one upping and shit talking. So, now I'm ordering both of you to follow me. Now."
Neither of us moves. Logan and I are speechless at Lana's request, and frozen in place.
"C'mon," she says again, motioning us forward.
We both start walking, following her out to God knows where.
As we move, we walk down the hall and past Abby's office. Lana pokes her head in.
"I'm going to borrow the conference room, if that's okay," she says.
"Sure, that's fine," Abby replies. "I'll let everyone know the conference room is occupied."
Lana thanks her, and then turns back to Logan and I. "Keep following me down the hall. We're almost there," she says.
Once we finally reach the conference room, she closes the door behind us, and orders us to sit down.