Friction(24)

"Of course he does." She casts one more look past my shoulder then grabs her phone from the table, probably to text Bella. "These next several months are going to be interesting."

That is most certainly a damn understatement.





Eight





Lucy





Despite my determination to show up at work at nine AM on the dot the next morning, I park my Jeep in front of EXtreme Effects at eight-forty—just as Daisy is propping open the front door. She shields her hand over her eyes and a shit-eating grin crosses her delicate features. Dammit. Knowing Jace, he made some sort of bet that I'd be super early. I've gone and inadvertently proved him right.

She walks down the sidewalk, and when she taps lightly on the passenger window, I grudgingly let it down. "I’m early again. Sorry," I mutter. And unlike the day of my interview, this time I really am. She shrugs off my apology.

"You’re an odd one, Sunshine. Who says sorry for being early to work? Have you eaten yet?" When I say I haven't, she motions to the open front door. "Jace is an asshole on Mondays, so I always pick up coffee and doughnuts. Makes him easier to deal with."

It’s not hard to imagine Jace—in all his sarcastic, cocky glory—with a heavy dose of irritability thrown in. “Coffee and doughnuts,” I repeat. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

"Smart girl. Are you getting out or do you plan on sitting in here all morning, listening to—" She presses one ear inside my Jeep but immediately recoils. "Oh, sweetie, no. John Mayer? I'm going to have to call and cancel your satellite radio until you find a better station."

"This song is a classic," I grumble as I follow her inside. While she rattles off why my choice of music is heinous and gathers papers from the printer, I grab a glazed doughnut and a cup of coffee.

"He said he's already had you sign the NDA, which is, like, his big thing. The guy fucking hates cell phones and cameras with a passion. Just give me back the rest later today or tomorrow." She hands the paperwork over to me, and I leaf through them between bites of my doughnut. "Payday falls every other Friday.”

"Sounds perfect."

"Theo and Griff are working on getting your office ready, but it shouldn't take much longer. Jace thought you'd be in later." Parking herself in her rolling chair, she brings her knees up to her chest and drums her fingertips against her leggings, right over a yellow smiley emoji. "You look a little ... out of it."

"Yes, well—" I inhale deeply and filter my fingers through my hair before pinning the jet-black strands behind either ear. "He told you about the other night, didn't he?"

Her lips curl toward her nose like she smells something awful. Which is probably the stench of my anxiety. "I can say he didn't if it will make you feel better.” When I let out a throaty groan and sink down in one of the chairs beside her desk, she lowers her feet to the floor and shimmies herself closer. "Look, I thought he told you everything during the interview."

From her wide eyes and the hand placed firmly over her heart, I believe her. "Then he comes home Saturday night grinning like the cat that ate the canary, and—" When my body goes taut, she pauses, a frown forming on her face. "What's wrong, Sunshine?"

Jace had gone home to Daisy.

Right after he’d loosened my buttons. After he set my body aflame with that piercing blue stare and guarded smile. After he took me to a sex party. And even though I had a hunch they were together when I saw them together yesterday morning, my heart still lurches. Which is ridiculous. At the end of the day, it shouldn't matter to me at all who or what Jace Exley goes home to.

"It's nothing.” I smile tightly, but Daisy’s brows shoot up toward her platinum hairline.

"No, it's not. You look like I just punched you in the spleen and stole your lunch money.”

"I promise it's fine." And by fine, I mean I feel shitty for letting Jace get to me when he already has someone.

She stares at me unblinking for a moment, then a grin nudges her lips. "Jace isn't my boyfriend, Sunshine. I'm engaged to Theo—have been for what seems like for-e-ver because he's dragging his feet getting the show on the road. Jace spent the weekend with us while the painters were sprucing up his place."

"Oh."

"You're squishing your doughnut." She gestures to the remainder of the pastry in my fist. Checking the metal clock on her desk, she says, "We have another ten minutes before work officially starts, and since everything is fine and I don’t want to scare you off on your first day here, tell me about this amazing marketing plan you have. And, seriously, stop harassing that poor doughnut. It’s had enough, don’t you think?"

Nodding, I loosen my grip.

To be honest, my amazing marketing plan flew out the window the second I realized the nature of EXtreme’s business. I still plan to call my friend Andi who designs the best websites I've ever seen, but I’ll have to reevaluate other ways to promote the company. Something tells me the clock conventions I researched as soon as he offered me the job last weekend aren’t going to cut it.

"You have no idea, do you?" Daisy's voice cuts into my thoughts. "It's okay if you don't. I'd never owned a computer before I started working here."