The Intern (The Dalton Family #4)(61)

She shifted in her seat, crossing her legs to the other side.

They were perfect, toned and tanned.

The only way they’d look better was if my face was buried between them.

“I stayed up most of the night, reading over the material again.”

“Yeah?” I questioned. “Well, I can’t have you tired and yawning, like Jenner, during the meeting.”

She cocked her head to the side. “Are you really questioning my professionalism? I think I’m far past proving that to you.”

Her spicy side had come out to play.

“I’m not questioning, Hannah. I’m just warning—that’s all.”

“Well, I don’t need a warning.”

My eyes narrowed as I took her in. “As long as you’re my intern, you’re going to get one.”

She pulled the laptop against her chest like it was a shield. “Would you treat any intern this way? Or just me?”

There had been a shift.

I didn’t know where it had come from.

But I didn’t like it.

“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?” I demanded.

“I get that you’re in charge. I get that you’re the one who gets to make all the decisions here regardless of what I want. I don’t need the reminder.”

I laughed, taken aback by her reaction, but now, I knew where the attitude was coming from. “That’s not what I was doing.”

“Then, what are you doing, Declan?”

We weren’t talking about Walter anymore.

We were talking about us.

“Why don’t you just tell me what’s bothering you, so we can skip the theatrics and get to the point?”

She licked across her lips.

I didn’t think, in this moment, she’d intentionally tried to make that look sexy, but Hannah looked sexy when she was simply breathing.

“It’s upsetting and quite honestly disappointing that what’s happened between us means nothing to you.”

“Who said that?” My brows pulled together. “Because those words never left my mouth.”

“They didn’t have to. Your actions have done all the talking for you.”

If we had been alone without a flight attendant and Jenner in the back bedroom, my voice would have risen. I was doing everything in my goddamn power to keep it low, but the anger was certainly coming through.

“I’ve treated you like an employee these past couple of days. Have I mentioned what happened between us? No. Have I hauled you into my office to fuck you? No, I haven’t done that either. So, what actions are you talking about?”

“That’s the whole thing—you’ve done nothing. How do you think that makes me feel?”

I’d told her to give this time. When I’d asked if she could do that, she’d nodded.

Now, she was changing her opinion?

“Hannah, this isn’t easy—”

“You keep saying that.” She leaned forward in her seat, as though she were trying to get closer. “And you said to give this time.” When she paused, I swore she could see right into my thoughts. “But, Declan, why isn’t this easy? What the hell are you going to do with more time?” She moved the laptop to the seat next to her, her free hands now holding her knees. “Are you going to contemplate whether you like me? Whether I’m worth it? Whether you can handle—”

“Whether I’m willing to risk it all to be with you.”

Her face scrunched up, like I’d just taken all the air out of her lungs. “Then, why do you keep trying to fuck me? Is that all I’m good for? A body, nothing else. You know I won’t say anything to my cousins, so you’re safe. You can have your cake—or brownies—and eat it too.”

“It’s not like that.”

“What’s it like, then, Declan?”

Fuck, she was going to make a strong litigator.

She had more power in her voice now than when I’d mentored her in the classroom.

“I’ve more or less been single for thirty-two years, Hannah. Relationships aren’t something I’m good at. I was warned by Dominick to basically stay the fuck away from you. I have a very serious position at your family’s firm, and it wouldn’t bode well for me if they found out I was fucking my intern—someone who shares the same last name as them. I’m trying to become partner, not get my ass fired. Like I said before, this isn’t easy.”

“Dominick warned you?”

I glanced out the window as the plane hit a patch of rough air. “Yes.”

“What did he say?”

“He wants you to be successful, and he doesn’t want anything or anyone to wreck those plans.”

“Interesting.” She sat back in her seat, her posture erect. “That doesn’t change anything. What my cousin wants and what I want don’t have to align.”

“When he’s my boss, it absolutely does.”

“So, you’re going to let Dominick dictate where we stand?”

My hand went to my hair, and I didn’t know if I should slide my fingers through it or tear it from the fucking roots. “No, I’m not. But when I told you this needs time, I need you to respect that. So, this drama”—I pointed between us—“doesn’t need to happen.”