No Kissing Allowed (No Kissing Allowed #1)(55)

Before he could continue, I rose onto my toes and crushed my lips to his, unsure of anything else, but I couldn’t stay away from him another second. I missed him too much to stay away. His smell, his laugh, the feel of his warm body against mine. And before either of us could think better of it, the kiss turned frenzied, his hands in my hair, my body flush against his, all thought and reason gone except for us and this moment.

Which was why I didn’t hear the elevator ping open. Or the sound of someone clearing her throat from just outside its doors. We flew apart like two teenagers caught by their parents, smiles on our lips, until we caught sight of the person before us, and the smiles quickly turned to horror.

Alexa stood outside the elevator doors, her eyebrows drawn together in a glare, her arms crossed. “Well, I guess this explains why you’ve been doing so well,” she spit out. “It’s easy to succeed when you’re in bed with the boss.”

I sucked in a sharp breath. “No—it’s not—we’re not—”

“Save it,” she said, seething. “I’ve worked my ass off for a year now, only to be passed over again and again. And you? You come in here, win everyone over, and now I find out you’re screwing Aidan, too? I can’t even look at you. I’ll get my coat tomorrow.” She spun around and started for the main doors, me rushing after her.

“Alexa, listen. Stop. Stop!”

But she was already outside, grabbing a cab, and then gone. Finally she had the juice she needed to get someone fired. I just never thought that someone would be me.

…

“Stop worrying,” Aidan said.

“I’m not worrying.”

“Then why won’t you look at me?”

I glanced up at him from where I sat on the floor of his apartment, a makeshift plate of Chinese takeout on the coffee table in front of me. The smells, which had always made my stomach rumble in delight, were now nauseating. How could I eat right now?

“How are you eating?” I asked, unable to hide the bite in my tone.

“Easy.” Aidan lifted his chopsticks slowly to his mouth, making a show of chewing. “Like this. The question is, why aren’t you?”

I jumped to my feet, my frustration bubbling over. “Alexa knows! She knows. And now I’m going to be fired and you’re going to be fired and we’re going to be unable to get new jobs at agencies because of our non-competes and— Oh my God. You’re going to have to go work for your dad, and—”

Aidan was to me now, taking my hands in his. “Shh. Calm down.” He kissed my lips easily and then leaned down so we were eye to eye. “I won’t work for my dad no matter what. But it doesn’t matter, because we aren’t going to be fired. Alexa won’t say anything. You can talk to her tomorrow. Explain. She’s supposed to be your friend. She’ll understand.”

I shook my head. “You heard her. She’s angry. And she’s been talking about getting an AM fired for weeks now.”

He opened his mouth, and then his expression softened. “Then so be it.”

My eyes snapped up. “What did you say?”

“You’re more important to me than the job. If she tells the partners and they decide to act, then okay. I can deal with that. I can find another job.” He leaned into me, his forehead pressed against mine. “I can’t find another you.”

“I hate when you say things like that.”

He gently touched my lips with his. “You love it. I want to be with you, openly. If there are consequences, so be it.”

A smile tugged at my lips. “Openly?”

Aidan walked over to the kitchen counter and pulled something out of the basket he kept there, then returned and held out his palm to reveal a silver key. “I’ve been thinking all weekend long, I barely slept, and it occurred to me that I’m doing the one thing I promised myself I would never do—I’m letting my father control me. In an indirect way, but I’ve been so afraid that I’d become him that I shut down things I want in my life to prevent it from happening. But I’m not afraid anymore. Of him or of losing my job. The only thing I’m afraid of losing…is you.”

My smile widened, unable to be contained now. “And that’s…?”

“A key to my apartment. Take it or don’t, the choice is yours, but it’s an open invitation. I’m serious about us and our future. I want you and only you, Cameron. Tell me you want this, too.”

I crushed my lips to his in answer, relief pouring out of me. Maybe everything would be okay. Maybe Alexa wouldn’t say anything, and Aidan could talk to the partners. Maybe they wouldn’t care.

Pulling away, I kissed him softly once more, then asked, “You really don’t think she’ll say anything?”

He nuzzled his nose against my neck, breathing me in. “I promise you, there’s nothing to worry about.”





Chapter Twenty-Nine


There are moments in life that seem to play out in song. You can hear the drumbeats when something exciting is about to happen. The slow song when you finally make eye contact with the guy of your dreams. And the horror music when you’re walking to your doom.

I should have called in sick. Should have claimed to have the flu or pneumonia or the freaking West Nile virus. Instead, I took Alexa’s smiley face reply to my text as a sign that everything was fine. But no, the little yellow emoticon wasn’t smiling at me—he was laughing the wicked laugh of the evil. Evil who went by the name Alexa.