Marcy walked into the office the following day feeling as if she’d gotten only about two hours of sleep. Which was probably because, well, she had gotten only two hours of sleep! The evil man had really messed with her mind last night. They’d gone home after that dance and he’d walked her to her door, just like the ultimate gentleman. But as she’d tried to unlock her door, he’d leaned his shoulder against the wall, watching her. Which only made her more nervous. Which had definitely messed with her coordination. When the keys had fallen to the floor, he’d stepped in and took them in his long fingers, easily opening the door for her.
“Until tomorrow,” he’d said smoothly. But then he’d dragged his fingers over her shoulder, making her gasp as a stab of sharp desire shot through her body. She glanced up at him, shocked and sucking in air as her body almost fell into her apartment.
In her bed last night, her body was trembling with need, awareness, lust, longing, and so many other emotions that she didn’t understand how to handle.
So here she was, grumbling and grouchy as she gulped coffee in an effort to get her mind functioning.
Thankfully, there were no witnesses to her smacking the files onto her desk, or when her coffee splattered across the files because she hadn’t realized how close her hand and mug were to the surface of her desk. She quickly cleaned it up and filled her mug up again, placing it a bit further away from her files this time around.
With a sigh, she fell onto the chair, her shoulders slumping as she stared at her coffee mug. It was almost too much effort to pick it up. If there were a way to teleport the caffeine into her system, she’d do it. Coffee was mighty delicious, but she wasn’t coordinated enough to drink it this morning.
To top everything off, she had an exam tomorrow morning, an exam that she wasn’t ready for. She was going to have to study all night tonight in order to prepare.
She bowed her head and tried to think. She wasn’t this person. She was organized, proactive. She’d never waited until the last minute to study for an exam and she’d never in her life had trouble sleeping. She loved sleeping! She loved mattresses and soft, comfortable pillows! She was a bed lover!
It was only because of THAT man, she thought with irritation. His touch, the way his fingers had run over the back of her neck right before he’d walked away from her last night. Oh! She’d really like to punch his stomach for that move!
She’d probably only hurt herself though. The man’s stomach was hard as a rock! She’d discovered that little fact last night while dancing and it had been a major factor in her sleepless night. In fact, all of his touches last night had been a factor.
“Good morning, Marcy,” Zeke said as he walked into the office a moment later. “You look tired. Did I keep you out too late last night?” he asked, tapping the newspaper against her desk.
Marcy glared up at him, trying to clear her mind and focus. “I’m fine,” she told him and looked back down. Darn it, he was wearing a charcoal suit with a crisp, white shirt and red tie. He looked amazing!
And she felt dumpy. She’d pulled on a pair of black slacks and a white blouse today. It buttoned up all the way to her neck with a little tie. When she’d first seen the shirt in the store, she’d thought it looked nice and professional. Now she just felt like a silly librarian. One that was going to age poorly because she kept fantasizing about her boss. She needed cats if she was going to pull that off, she thought, lots of cats.
Maybe the animal shelter was open during lunch. She should swing by. Her image would be complete if she could pick up five or six fluffy creatures.
“You okay?” he asked. His hand reached out, his thumb tracing a line against her jaw as he looked into her blue eyes. “You didn’t sleep well last night, did you?”
She sighed and pulled back, feeling that surge of excitement at his touch. Again. “I’m fine. I’m sorry I’m not my normal self today, but I’ll get on track.”
“Don’t you have an exam tomorrow?” he asked, not leaving her desk.
She was startled. He’d remembered?
“Yes. But I…”
“You mentioned last night that you needed to study for it. Why don’t you take today off and get ready for your test?”
Marcy’s mouth fell open with those words. “Take the day off?”
“Yes. You’ve caught up on everything here at the office, working a lot of extra hours to get this place organized. You deserve the day off. Why don’t you go home, grab your books and then head to the library for the day?”
She couldn’t even answer him. She was so stunned by his thoughtfulness. When she realized that he was waiting for an answer, she snapped her mouth closed. “I can’t…”
“Of course you can. Go. Now. I’ll see you Monday.”
She still started to shake her head but he stopped her. “Marcy, if any emergency comes up, I’ll call you, okay? But right now, nothing is happening. I’m even thinking of cutting out early myself. So go. Study and get ready for your test.”
With those words, he walked into his office and settled behind his desk.
Marcy looked at him and blushed when he winked at her. She wanted to laugh at his outrageous gesture but she couldn’t. A day off?
“What’s going on?” Teague asked as he stepped into the office.
Marcy’s head swung up. “I…uh….”
Teague almost laughed at her pretty blush. He knew there was something going on between the pretty brunette and his older brother and was one hundred percent on board with it. But if Zeke was being an ass again, they were going to have words. “You look tired. What’s he been doing?” Teague leaned over her desk, his green eyes so similar and yet, so completely different from his older brother’s.
“What the hell are you doing here, Teague?” Zeke called out from his office, fury rising in his mind as he watched his brother flirt with Marcy. Walking out of his office, he glared at his brother, every territorial instinct lighting up inside of him. “Leave Marcy alone,” he almost growled. Turning to look down at the woman who looked exhausted, he softened his tone. “Go, Marcy. I’ll see you back here on Monday.” He then turned back to face his brother. “She has an exam tomorrow. Whatever you need, it can wait until Monday.”
With those words, he walked back into his office, leaving a stunned Teague and a shy Marcy in his wake.
Teague looked down at Marcy, then at his brother. When he saw the dark circles under her eyes and the stiff tension in Zeke’s shoulders, he almost threw back his head and laughed. “Got it,” he said, smothering a chuckle because he didn’t think that either party would find this situation amusing. Granted, Teague found a lot of situations amusing. More so than most people but…
Hell, he knew exactly what Zeke was going through. Jealousy was racing through his body as well and he wondered what….
Nope, not going there, he reminded himself firmly! His woman was gone. She’d decided he wasn’t what she wanted for her life. No matter how…
Teague rubbed a hand over his face, almost as tense as Zeke’s now.
Forcing his mind back to the present and not on the lovely blonde that had tormented him for way too long now, he gently urged Marcy to follow Zeke’s orders. “Go home, Marcy. I know that you stress about these exams and Zeke’s right. You have put in plenty of extra hours and you’ve done an amazing job around here. Everything is back to normal. Maybe soon…”
“No!” Zeke roared from the inner office and Teague stifled his laughter once again. He’d known what his brother’s reaction would be, but it was a good test.
Teague’s eyebrows shot up with those words and he glanced down at Marcy, who was in turn glaring at the empty doorway.
He couldn’t stop the chuckle and shook his head. “Take the day off. Get some rest and then study.” With a wink, he walked into his brother’s office and closed the door.
Marcy stared at the door, not sure what to make of that interaction. Those four brothers were close, but something was…off today.
At this point though, she was too tired to muddle through the dynamics of the two extremely large, complex men. Normally, she would protest taking the day off. She loved her job and cringed at the idea of anything going on in the office that she couldn’t control.
But she was exhausted and it was all Zeke’s fault. Well, he didn’t know that it was his fault, nor would she actually tell him, but still….
Grabbing her purse, she ignored her cooling coffee and walked out of the office. After she closed the door to her apartment behind her, she fell onto her sofa and was asleep in less than thirty seconds.