Shimmying my undies up, I turned around. His pants were already buttoned as he disposed of the condom in the trashcan. I reached for my top, and as I bent again, I was surprised by the amount of wetness between my thighs.
It had been a while since I’d had sex, but geez, that felt a wee bit ridiculous.
I dragged my top on, straightening out the hem. My gaze lifted to his, and he gave me the lopsided grin. “I don’t have words either,” I admitted.
“Looks like we’re still on the same page.” Snatching my jeans off the floor, he came to me, and much to my surprise, helped me put them on, his hands straying in the process. When he was finished, he stepped back. “It’s late.”
“It is. You good to drive?”
A flash of momentary surprise flickered across his face. “I think I got just enough brain cells left to make it home.”
“Fucking your brains out can be dangerous,” I replied. “I’m sure there’s an operating machinery and driving warning involved.”
Nick tipped his head back and laughed as he reached for his jacket, shrugging it on. “God, I really do like you.”
“Of course.”
Still grinning, he shook his head as he grabbed his helmet. “You’re welcome to what’s left of the beer.” He headed for the door while I slowly trailed after him. He opened the door and then turned to me. His gaze met mine, and the green of his was light and warm. “Tonight was . . .”
“Just tonight,” I finished for him. “I had fun.”
“Of course,” he mimicked, and I laughed.
“Be careful,” I told him.
Nick opened his mouth as if he were going to say something, but seemed to change his mind. He moved quickly, swooping down before I knew what he was up to. He pressed his lips to the corner of mine, the touch brief and yet entirely startling. It knocked me out of my bliss and forced my eyes wide as he lifted his head. “See you around.”
I didn’t respond, was totally incapable of it, as he turned around and walked out the door, closing it behind him. I don’t even know how long I stood there, but at some point I had lifted my hand to the corner of my lips. The skin tingled.
That was the closest any guy had gotten to kissing me in a long time.
Chapter 3
“I’m good. I’m great.” In the rearview mirror my blue eyes seemed way too wide as I clutched the steering wheel until my knuckles bleached white. “I got this. I totally got this.”
Ignoring my pep talk, my stomach churned uneasily. I let go of the steering wheel and reached over, grabbing my purse. Prying it open, I pulled out the small bottle of Tums and popped one. The last time I’d been this nervous was eight years ago, and I ended up hurling all over my best friend’s open-toed shoes.
I would not hurl today.
Not on my first official day of the rest of my life.
Okay. That was a bit overdramatic. Today was a big deal, though, as it was my first day as an executive assistant at Lima Academy. After all the education, I really had no idea what to expect. I could actually be doing the work I had spent years in college preparing for or I could be stuck with getting coffee and dry cleaning for my boss. If the latter was the case, it would suck, but I would do it. No matter what, you had to start somewhere. You had to put your time in.
Taking a deep breath, I snapped my purse closed and stepped out of my car. I smoothed my hand over my pencil skirt, drew in another shaky breath, and started across the parking garage, the clicking of my heels echoing my pounding heart.
Lima Academy was in a huge building downtown that had once been a factory but now was completely upgraded and converted into one of the premiere training facilities in the United States.
I’d already been to the building several times, during the interview process and then afterward, getting a basic layout. The first floor was a state of the art gym, equipped with practically every cardio and weight machine one could think of. On the second and third floors there were multiple rings, cages, and areas where mats covered the floor as far as the eye could see. Lima Academy didn’t just focus on mixed martial arts or cage fighting. They trained boxers, kick boxers, karate, Brazilian jujitsu, Krav Maga, and during the evening, on certain nights, they offered self-defense classes to the public. The fourth and fifth floors were currently under construction. Andrew Lima, the owner and founder of the academy, planned on adding more training rings. The offices were all on the sixth floor, with the exception of Lima’s office, which was the seventh.
At no point during the interview process did I meet the actual Andrew Lima or any of the members of his family, who apparently all worked for him at the academy. I’d only interviewed with Marcus Browser, whom I’d be assisting.