She’s facing the printer, her back rigid. She doesn’t turn.
I clear my throat. “Mya?—”
“Save it, Worth.”
“I didn’t mean what you heard.”
She whirls on me. “Oh, no? Because this is the second time I’ve overheard you say you don’t want me here. So what is it, Mr. Miller? Because you’re giving me whiplash.” Her tone drips with anger, but underneath it, I hear the hurt. “You literally asked me tomarryyou a few days ago.”
I move towards her slowly, raking a hand through my hair. “I—fuck. I don’t know, Mya.”
She exhales hard, shoulders drooping. “I’m just trying to do my job, Worth.” Her voice cracks, and it guts me. “I was actually even considering accepting your proposal. I’m such a fool.”
My chest grows tight. “I’m sorry. For everything.”
For a beat, neither of us speaks.
Her eyes search mine, wary. “Sorry doesn’t justify why you keep making me feel like I don’t belong here.”
I grit my teeth, fighting the instinct to tell her the truth—that she doesn’t just belong here, she’s one of the best employees we’ve had, and the company is already better for it. That she’s lodged under my fucking skin, that I want her near me all the time, and I don’t know what to do about it.
Instead, I step closer, close enough that I can smell the faint trace of her shampoo. My hand twitches at my side, aching to touch her, to prove the opposite of every cold word I’ve thrown at her.
“Mya…” I rasp, voice low. “You deserve to be here. More than most of them out there. That’s the problem.”
Her lips part, but I don’t give her the chance to speak.
“You’ve invaded my mind these last couple of months. I can’t fucking shake you. One second I want to push you away, the next I—” I break off, dragging a hand down my jaw. “I’ve been taking it out on you. It’s cruel and I know it. I’m aware of every goddamn second of it.”
Mya blinks at me, wide-eyed.
“I don’t know how to act around you,” I finish.
Her breath hitches, the smallest sound.
I close the distance and cup her face. When she doesn’t move out of my grip, and starts to lean forward, it’s enough to snap the last thread of my restraint, and I crash my mouth onto hers.
It’s reckless. The one thing I told myself I wouldn’t do. But the second Mya’s soft lips meet mine, every ounce of logic I’ve been clinging to goes up in flames.
She gasps against me, and for a heartbeat I think she’ll shove me away. But then she kisses me back.
Her mouth is sweet, her lips pliant, the kiss hungry.
My hand fists in her curly hair, tugging her closer until her body is flush against mine. The other finds her hip, sliding around to grip the curve of her ass. Mya fits against me like a glove, like she was meant to drive me fucking mad.
I groan into her mouth when her tongue brushes mine. My cock hardens instantly, straining against my slacks, pressing into her stomach. Her sharp inhale tells me she feels it.
She doesn’t pull away.
Instead, she grabs at my suit jacket, fingers digging into the lapels, tugging me closer.
I taste coffee and mint on her tongue, and it’s addictive. My pulse pounds in my ears, drowning out everything but the feel of her. Her curves, the little whimper catching in her throat, her body arching into mine like she’s just as desperate as I am.
My hands roam lower, memorizing every line, every curve. I want to bend her over the damn printer and sink into her until she’s screaming my name. The image flashes through my mind so vividly I almost groan aloud.
But then—too soon—Mya tears her mouth from mine, panting. Her lips are swollen, her eyes wide, chest heaving.
Reality slams back into me like a freight train.