Total pages in book: 73
Estimated words: 67973 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 340(@200wpm)___ 272(@250wpm)___ 227(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 67973 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 340(@200wpm)___ 272(@250wpm)___ 227(@300wpm)
Because whatever was happening between us wasn’t fading. It was temptation in a tailored suit, and resisting him was starting to feel impossible, even knowing that giving in might mean setting myself up for potential heartbreak.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Liam
When my good friend Henry texted me to join him for dinner and a night out, I didn’t hesitate. After the week I’d had—long hours at GalvaTech, pretending not to be distracted by Morgan every time she walked past my office, nearly kissing her in a moment I still couldn’t stop replaying in my mind—a couple of drinks in a loud nightclub sounded appealing. I needed something uncomplicated. Something that wasn’t her.
And then Henry suggested sushi for dinner. My thoughts went straight to Morgan. Of course they did. To the way her eyes lit up when she’d mentioned this little place that she loved that was two blocks from the office.
Which was exactly how Henry and I ended up walking into that sushi restaurant on Saturday night.
The restaurant wasn’t large, and most of the seating was around a horseshoe-shaped counter that took up the center of the space. A conveyor belt ran the length of the counter, carrying plates of various types of sushi that customers could grab at will. Chefs worked behind the counter replenishing trays and clearing empty plates with practiced skill and speed.
“Damn,” Henry muttered beside me. “This place is slammed.”
It was. Every stool was filled and for a second, I thought we’d have to leave or wait a ridiculously long time for a table.
“There—two spots,” Henry said, pointing to the only empty seats at the counter. They were right at the start of the conveyor belt—prime real estate for the freshest plates.
We hurried over, and I pulled back the stool before sliding into place while Henry sat to my left. I didn’t think to look at who was on my right until I was already settled.
When I glanced that way I saw familiar dark hair. Pink glossy lips. Wide, startled green eyes already locked on mine.
Well, shit.
“Are you stalking me or something?” Morgan asked, lips pursed tight.
I almost laughed at the accusation. “Are you serious?”
She lifted a shoulder, striving for casual, but I didn’t miss the slight flush on her cheeks. “What am I supposed to think? Of all the restaurants in New York, you just happen to come into the one I’m at?”
“If I were stalking you, trust me, I’d be a hell of a lot smoother about it.” I scanned the conveyor, then glanced back at her with a grin meant to ease the tension between us. “Running into you was pure luck. Or terrible timing, depending on how you feel about me tonight.”
The corner of Morgan’s mouth twitched with a smile, exactly what I’d been aiming for. “Seriously, though, there must be hundreds of sushi places in the city.”
“Actually, there are approximately seven hundred forty-five of them,” a woman sitting on Morgan’s other side chimed in.
I recognized her from the night at the bar. She was the friend that checked in with Morgan before leaving.
I tipped my head curiously. “How do you know that?”
“Whitney is always sharing random facts,” Morgan said, reaching for a plate with a dragon roll. “It’s a whole thing with her. Never go up against her in a game of Trivial Pursuit.”
“Noted.” I snagged an Alaska roll for myself. “You told me about this place when I was setting up my office,” I reminded her.
“Oh, right,” she said, almost impishly.
“So, you two know each other?” Henry asked, his curious gaze bouncing between the two of us.
Morgan’s eyes cut toward me, a silent warning to keep my reply G-rated.
“Oh, yeah,” I drawled playfully. “We’re old friends.”
Morgan rolled her eyes. “We’re coworkers,” she explained.
Henry frowned at me. “Coworkers?”
“This is Morgan,” I said, introducing her. “I’m working with her family’s company.”
“Ahh,” he said, understanding that I meant I’d invested in their business. He shifted his attention to Morgan’s friend. “And do you already know Liam?”
“Not exactly.” She looked at me in a slightly disapproving way that told me she remembered me from that night at the bar, and was now judging me based on whatever Morgan had told her. “I’m Whitney.”
“A beautiful name for a beautiful woman,” Henry said smoothly.
Seriously? He’s going to flirt with her while Morgan and I sat between them?
“You must be the charming one of this duo,” Whitney said, flirting right back.
I wasn’t sure if that was an insult or not, but Morgan snorted softly as she reached for another plate.
“I like to think that’s the case,” Henry replied, and I recognized that low, smooth-talking tone of voice he used when he zeroed in on a woman that he was interested in taking home.
That seemed like a terrible idea, considering her connection to Morgan. Things were complicated enough between us already, and I didn’t want to risk more friction if our friends hooked up and someone got their feelings hurt. But I couldn’t figure out a way to convey to him that Whitney should be off-limits.