PRESENT DAY

The three sharp raps on my door have my head reluctantly raising from the screen of my laptop. I already know who I’ll find standing just inside my office.

Is it pathetic to admit I recognize his knocks?

But after three years of employment at WCW and nearly twice weekly visits from Jesse, it’s hard not to notice details about him; mostly things I don’t want to think about. It’s irritating to have so much knowledge about someone you spend most of your time trying to avoid. Like the way his light eyes shimmer almost a silvery color when he flirts with me and turn to a darker hue of gray when he’s angry. His dimple pops in and out of his cheek when he’s teasing, and he rakes his hand through his hair when he’s frustrated.

And then at night when I lie in bed, I replay all our interactions on a continuous loop making it damn near impossible to forget anything he says or all the sweet gestures he makes.

Frowning, I feel the crease between my brows pressing deep into my skin, wrinkling like a raisin. Tracing a finger over the lines, I try to smooth them away, but this always happens when I’m in Jesse’s presence. “What are you doing here?” My tone is cool and clipped as it has to be. If I’m too nice he takes it as an invitation to flirt.

“I just wanted to stop by and bring you an afternoon snack.” His natural athleticism shows in his stride as he moves toward my desk. Placing a chocolate bar down in front of me, he slides his hip onto the edge of my desk.

I smile despite my plan to continually frown when he’s near, but it’s chocolate and he knows it’s a weakness of mine.

He fights dirty.

He slips from the desk, standing at his impressive full height. “Okay, you smiled. I got what I came for.” He flashes me a quick grin. Unfortunately, it’s too fast to get a look at his dimple, one of the countless things I find attractive about him.

“Thank you for the candy. I can sure use this today,” I reply, my cool demeanor warming from his kind gesture.

“Rough day?”

“Yeah.” I pick up the brown, rectangular package. “This helps.”

“Want to repay me?”

My eyes narrow. “Sure, I’ll bring you a candy bar sometime.”

“That’s not what I had in mind.”

“Why am I not surprised?”

“Come on. After three years you know how this goes - you know the drill.”

Leaning back in my chair I cross my arms over my chest and wait for it…

“When are you going to let me take you out on a date?” His question is an ongoing joke between us, one he asks twice weekly. I never give him a real answer.

“When world peace is achieved.”

“That’s a new one.” Placing his palms on my desk, he leans toward me and I know what he’ll ask before he says anything. “Why haven’t we had sex?”

“Because I have too much ironing to do.”

“I thought you hated ironing?”

“I do, but someone has to get the wrinkles out of my clothes.”

“Ouch, turn down number two hundred and eighty-nine.”

“You could always stop asking.”

“Nope, not gonna happen, Lilah. You and me we’re destined to be. There’s a reason why we met on your first day.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know. As you pointed out, I’ve heard this tale before, two hundred and eighty-nine times to be exact.”

To his credit he doesn’t react negatively to my biting reply. “Then take some pity on me and say yes.”

“Jesse, all kidding aside, I have a lot of work to do.”

“I figured as much. I’ll see you soon. You must be running low on excuses. Better start thinking of what rejection number two hundred and ninety will be.” He winks before ambling off like he doesn’t have a care in the world.

* * *

Flopping down on my best friend’s couch I groan and rest my head back.

“What’s wrong with you?” Carly asks as she plops down on the other end. She grabs one of the purple pillows and holds it in front of her.

“I had a shit day all around.”

“Wanna tell me about it?”

“Work was busy, and my father was in one of his moods.”

“What was it this time?”

“Ugh. Nothing anyone does is good enough for him and there’s always a better way. It’s annoying as fuck. Frustrating too.”

“What else happened?”

“Jesse stopped by to see me.”

“Ooh, tell me more,” she urges, her golden-brown eyes sparkling with interest.

“He brought me a candy bar for an afternoon snack, then left a few minutes later.”

“What happened in those few minutes?”

“We screwed on my desk.”

She scrunches her nose up. “In three minutes? That’s disappointing.”

“I’m just kidding. He asked me the same two questions he always does.”

“Damn. You gotta give that man credit for being so persistent. I think it’s safe to say he’s interested in you.”

“After three years, ya think?”

“Give the poor guy a kiss or something.”

“Carly,” I scold. “You know I can’t go anywhere near him. One kiss would never be enough.”

“I know in theory you can’t, but fuck.” She fans her face. “He’s so hot; how do you resist? Don’t you want to grab his gun?”

I shake my head in disgust. “Can we drop this subject? It’s not like he isn’t tempting enough; you want to remind me what I’m missing out on too?”

“Can you introduce me to Alex Kid Colt?” She questions, mentioning another male wrestler who works for WCW.

“How do you know who Alex is?”

“I’ve got eyes. I’ve seen him on tv and he’s all over social media.”

“Yeah, because he’s all about a good time and nothing more.”

“Well that works perfectly because I’m long overdue for some fun.”

“You deserve better than him.”

“You mean someone considerate and caring.” She taps her lip with her index finger. “Someone like...Jesse?”

Grabbing the pillow next to me, I throw it at her head, but it zips by without making contact. Dammit. “Stop mentioning him. It’s hard enough to keep saying no as it is.”

“Did you ever think about saying yes?”

“I’ve thought about it plenty, but rules are there for a reason - to be followed. My father made it very clear from the start that dating a coworker wouldn’t fly. I love my job, and Jesse doesn’t seem to grasp what the consequences of dating me would mean for him. He’s on the fast track to becoming one of the biggest names in WCW. What option does that leave me, but to continue resisting for both our sakes?”

“What if he does give up? How will you feel if he meets someone else and you miss out on the guy who you’re supposed to be with?”

“Pfft. If that happens then it’s not meant to be,” I answer with more bravado than I feel. “Besides, he’s not sitting home alone pining for me. He’s got women around him all the time. Have you seen his social media accounts?”

“No, but I’m sure you have.”

“Of course I have. It’s part of my job.”

“Your job? Okay, I’ll let you have that one, but I’m not going to ask you how many times you check those accounts.”

“Remind me why I came over here?”

* * *

My heels sink into the black mats surrounding the ring as I take pictures of the wrestlers for social media while they practice. One man in particular repeatedly makes an appearance on my screen and no matter how many times I move away, I somehow find myself panning back over.

It was only yesterday when he stopped by my office, but it seems like longer. I missed him. Shit. How have I let myself get in this position?

Jesse Gunn is a thorn in my side or should I say a thorn in my heart? He’s patiently needled his way in and I’m only left with two options - one, I can give in to my feelings and say screw the rules or two, I can yank that thorn out and avoid Jesse at all costs. Not ready to embrace either option, I’ve decided to forgo thinking about it for now. It never hurts to take your time when contemplating life changes. And there’s one thing I’ve come to realize, being with Jesse Gunn would be life changing in more ways than one.

“Lilah,” he calls my name, strolling to the edge of the ring as if he owns the place.

“Jesse.” Staring up at him, he looks like a sweaty, bare chested giant leaning on the top rope, peering down at me. He slips from the ring to stand next to me.

“How’s your day going?” he asks.

“Busy, but no complaints. What about you?”

“I’m just finishing up here and then I’m done.”

Is that supposed to be a hint of some sort?

“Enjoy the rest of your day. Duty calls.” I hold up my phone. “I should finish taking pics. I still need to get them uploaded to the website before I call it a day.”

“I’ll catch you soon then.”

I nod, as he walks away. Turning back to the ring, I snap pictures of each wrestler and move to the other side for varying angles. I finish up in no time without Jesse there to distract me and hurry outside. I already have an idea of how I’m going to display them on our website and social media platforms. When I get to my parking space, I find Jesse nonchalantly leaning back against my car. Shit.

“Want to grab an early dinner with me?”

“I would, but I have dishes to wash.”

“Lilah,” he teases. “You need to eat and so do I. We might as well enjoy a quick bite together. I’ll even stay on the other side of the table. You don’t want to turn me down for the two hundred and ninetieth time.”

“You know we can’t.”

“I enjoy your company. I don’t see anything wrong with two friends sharing a meal.”

“But would it be that?”

He uncrosses his ankles, straightening to his full height. My gaze skims his muscular calves before flicking up to his striking face as he edges closer. “What do you think?”

Glancing up at him, I answer honestly. “I think we both know it wouldn’t just be two friends dining together.”

“What are you saying Lilah? Did you just admit you have feelings for me?” His voice is a deep rumble and his eyes flare with an emotion gone too quickly for me to discern.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I deny then add, “don’t make this more difficult than it already is.”

“What about sex? We could go to my place and no one would see us together.”

“Really? That’s your solution? I’ll still be doing dishes.”

“Hey, it was worth a shot.” He shrugs, a crooked grin twisting his lips. “Why don’t we start out as friends and see where the future takes us?”

He makes it sound so much easier than it seems in my head. Am I making this a bigger deal than it has to be?

“I need to get back to work,” I mention, avoiding his question. He steps aside, opening my door for me. “Thank you,” I murmur, sliding onto the seat.

“Have a good night,” he says, closing me inside. Shoving my key in the ignition, I start the engine and release a shaky sigh of relief, thankful to have a barrier between us.

He knocks on the window and I fight the urge to lock my doors to keep him out. I crack the window enough to hear what he has to say. He knocks again. Reluctantly, I turn my head to find him making a ridiculous face at me. A sharp laugh rings from my lips.

He winks. “I wanted to see your smile one more time.”