Page 19 of Midnight Heat

"Do you want me to talk to him?" I offer.

"No, he'll come back and talk to me. Which is what I'm dreading."

I go to him and stand behind his office chair. I hug him from behind and place a kiss on the side of his head.

"I have to work late tonight."

"I'll wait for you, kitten. Then we can go home together."

I hug him again and move to the side to give him a proper kiss. It only lasts for a few seconds before he tenses and ends it, and I'm left with that feeling of dread once again. I bid him goodbye and go to my office, where Erik is sitting, waiting for me.

"Hey, Erik," I say cautiously.

"Anne. We need to talk."

"Sure."

I sit on the couch next to him and wait patiently for him to start talking.

"Anne, you need to be careful."

"Erik, I know it’s inappropriate to date my boss, but it started before we knew we were working together."

"I didn't know that. But you still need to take care. Max doesn't really do relationships."

"You think he's using me?"

"I don't know what to think, and believe me, I will be asking him about that."

"If you need me to resign, I will. I think there's something between Max and I, and I want to find out where it goes."

"I don't need you to do that, but I wouldn't have such high expectations of this relationship."

"Is this because of the person he lost?"

"Who told you about that?" He frowned.

"People talk. Look, I'll be careful, okay?"

He nods and stands up, leaving the room abruptly. I'm left wondering what this whole conversation was about because it didn't make one bit of sense to me.

Maxwell

There's a knock at the door, and I know exactly who it is and what he wants. Once I give the go-ahead, he enters the room and stalks toward one of the chairs in front of my desk. He steers away from the one where Anne was sitting when he burst into my office. He stares at me for a few minutes in silence. I guess I'll have to be the one to start the conversation—a conversation I really don't want to have.

"What?"

"I knew there was something weird when you kept going every day into her office to get those 'reports.'"

"And?"

"What's going on, Max?"

I'm not sure I want to confide in Erik. We've been friends and business partners for years, but voicing how I've been feeling towards Anne to him might make it real—in a way I'm not ready to handle.

"She told me it started before she began work here?"

"Yes."