Kai: …and you’re going to have to wait until Friday to find out :-)
Me: UGH
Me: I thought one of your rules was that we have to lay out everything we do ahead of time. Like a script.
Kai: Yes, but have you considered that it’s a lot more fun to tease you about it?
Me: I don’t like this game.
Kai: Think about my face buried between your legs. Think about my tongue swirling around your pussy, devouring you.
Kai: And maybe later in the week I’ll tell you some more. Have a good night, Ginny ;-)
I was frustrated with the teasing… but alsoincrediblyturned on. Picturing his face between my legs was enough to make me want to run off to August’s expensive bathroom and get myself off.
It’s just a professional relationship, I reminded myself.He explicitly told me not to catch feels.
But his fun flirting made it tough to think of him that way.
I saw August through the crowd, talking to a group of men who were laughing at something he’d said. He was wearing a gray suit with a vest underneath, and silver cufflinks. He ran a hand through his dark hair and flashed a charming smile to the men.He’s striking,I thought.He reminds me of Bruce Wayne. But with a better sense of humor.
I wandered through the party until I found Michael again. He was talking to a middle-aged woman with tan skin and gorgeous blonde hair running down her back. Michael’s eyes lit up when he saw me approach.
“Candice, I want you to meet the newest member of the NMCF family: Ginny Hanover. Candice is the one who started this charity.”
“That’s wonderful!” I said, realizing I didn’t actually know what this was all for. “You must be so proud.”
“I’m proud to have a lot of people in my corner helping,” she said. “Like Michael. He’s gone to bat for us year after year to make sure donors know about us, and include us in their grant requests.”
“It’s easy when the cause is so worthwhile,” Michael said.
Candice looked touched for a moment, then threw herself into his arms. She hugged him tightly, and even when she pulled away her fingertips lingered on his biceps.
“If you ever need anything, you need only ask,” she told him. “Anything.” She flashed me a smile and then went to flag down one of the other donors by name.
As soon as she was out of earshot, I lightly touched Michael’s arm. “Oh, Michael. I’ll doanythingfor you. And I do mean anything.” I winked a few dramatic times to get the point across.
“Candice and I have worked together since I started at the foundation. She’s naturally touchy-feely.”
“I bet I know what kind of touching and feeling she wants to do.”
He sputtered a laugh. “She’s several decades my senior!”
I poked him in the chest. It was like prodding a brick wall. “That just means she’s experienced.”
Michael rolled his eyes. “You sound like August. I had the exact same conversation with him ten minutes ago.”
“Then why not ask her out?”
“Well, for one thing, it’s weird,” he replied. “She says I remind her of her husband. Who is dead, by the way.”
I gasped. “Really?”
“That’s what this whole event is for. Scholarships for the children of firefighters who have died in the line of duty. Did you not know that, or are you pulling my leg?”
“August told me this was a cocktail hour with a bunch of snooty rich people. I didn’t know the context.” I glanced up at Michael, whose icy gaze was unreadable. “What’s the other thing?”
“Huh?”