er that had nothing to do with alcohol and everything to do with the way Damien had looked

ndercurrent of tension from their night in the darkened office had hummed between them like a live wire, making every casu

s. Instead, Damien had simply brushed his fingers against her cheek and said, "We

had spent the drive home alternating between gratitude for his conside

f her sleepless night in the dark circles under her eyes and the tension in her sho

outage as an anomaly, a moment of weakness that didn't need to define their ongoing relationship. She had the Hend

be satisfie

ld hear the way he'd whispered her name in the darkness like a prayer. The memory of that connectio

ndle seeing Damien again. They were both adults, both professionals. They could acknowledge

or her to walk through the coffee shop door an

f his gaze hit her like a physical blow. In the morning light streaming through the windows, his green eyes were impossibl

n she approached, his

needing the ritual of ordering coffee to give her something t

e reached the front of the l

aya observed, preparing Jade's usual ord

ust a bu

ation. "You know, I've been thinking about what you said

alfway to her walle

ance on someone. Sometimes it's letting fear

the next customer. Jade stood there for a moment, staring at the cup in her hands and wondering i

used entirely on work. Jade settled into her chair and opened her own computer, determined to prove tha

lasted approxima

coming along?" Damien asked,

plied, not looking a

u in the office until

es across the small table. "How did

when I left the buildin

r her office light, sent an unwelcome thrill through her chest. It sugg

e Henderson presentation," she sai

by the way. Maya mentioned

nk y

tried to focus on her email, but she was hyperaware of Damien's presence across from her, of the way his fingers m

r him made it impossible to concentrate on anything else. Th

finally, closing her laptop w

ne eyebrow raised.

ending that not

I was trying to give you space to fig

't know what I wan

out together. Lik

or through her system. Jade looked around The Grind, at the other customers absorbed in their own morning routi

when you're this close

at a p

n I have w

s go somew

he

can talk witho

would cross a line she'd been carefully avoiding, would move them from the realm of professi

that she was g

y gathering her things.

wing and patient. "Of

ndustrial and intimate. Exposed brick walls, hardwood floors, floor-to-ceiling windows that flooded the spa

etting her bag down near t

u something to drink?

n in the

n't j

, Jade smiled.

he view of the city below. From this height, the streets looked manageable, organiz

e," she said when Damien joined h

kno

because you could see

od light and reasonable rent. The vie

smell that woody cologne that had been haunting her dreams. The careful distance they'd mai

d, not turning ar

ea

are we

t we were

here pretending we don't want to fi

ch that sent electricity racing through her entire bo

mate contact. Every rational part of her brain was screaming warnings about workplace compl

want something this

do you

l. Making smart choices, calculated risks. I don't k

ned her around to face him. His green eyes were serious, patient, but

s dangerou

The way I can't think about anything else when you're around.

e wh

of space between them. She could see the moment Damien's careful control wavered, coul

id, rising up on he

e from the excuse of unusual circumstances or emotional vulnerability. This was Jade choosing to cross the lin

ng her against him with a hunger that matched her own. The kiss deepened, became

ade felt like she was standing on the edge of a cliff

?" Damien asked, his voi

. "But I'm sure I d

ime there was no hesitation, no careful exploration. The kiss was hungry, demandin

the moment his own control finally snapped. His hands moved to her waist,

breathed agai

you s

sking m

was low and rou

being shed along the way. By the time they reached the bed, Jade was wearing onl

ng behind emergency lighting or unusual circumstances. This was a deliberate

nds resting on her waist, his eyes searching

changing

e been thinking ab

g this as much as she had, that she wasn't alone in the desperate need that had been bui

me," s

ere, mapping her body with a reverence that made her feel like she was being worshipped. Every tou

r every gasp and moan he could draw from her lips. When his mouth followed the path his ha

inst her skin, the words vibrating

e gasped, her hands

ase

teasin

easing. I'

restraint he'd been maintaining finally cracked. The gentle exploration became somethin

nsation. The weight of him, the heat of his skin against hers, the way he looked at her like she w

said, his voice strained wit

I want

you wa

m. The Jade who had walked into his apartment that morning would never have been able to articulate he

moving to his shoulders, her nails digging into his skin. "I wan

something fragile that might break. When he finally joined with her, it was with a

ng to make up for all the weeks of denial in a single afternoon. Jade had nev

linging to each other like survivors of a storm. Jade buried her face against Dami

sked softly, his han

tted. "I've never felt a

rent or bad

ying di

her, his expression serious. "

ant to feel this for a

against skin, heartbeats gradually returning to normal. Jade felt like she was floating, suspended in

ime seemed to have stopped. Jade closed her eyes and let herself exist in th

peaceful she'd

he couldn't read. His fingers were tracing lazy patterns on her shoulder, and

ou thinking

s moment. The way you look r

usually lo

y you look like you're

t of her life like a series of challenges to be conquered, problems to be solved. The idea that Dam

ly preparing for

e you ba

in the room. The expectation that I'll fail. My

d n

, she felt none of the usual anxiety that plagued her daily life. The constant need to prove h

could take on the

re and let the world take

ality beginning to intrude on their perfect bubble. The afternoon was advancin

id, though she made no move to

uld

and I need to review the Peterson p

Satu

she'd completely lost track of

when you're

he experience. The Jade who had walked into his apartment that morning would never have forgotten what day i

," she said, sitting up and l

ha

ing who I am and what I

she could climb out of bed. "You didn't lose yourself,

e th

h me is the same woman who landed the Henderson

t. The idea that she needed to be more complete, that there had been something missing from her l

pulling her wrist free and

e, w

think about this,

e good together. That's all

ficient. The contentment she'd felt moments before was rapidly being re

she said, not m

he

t know.

hat would protect her from the vulnerability she'd just experienced. The scared part of her brain was screa

is," Damien

wh

ecause you'

not s

is good means you're losing control, and you'd rath

strengthened her resolve to leave. She grabbed her bag and headed for t

ad

e threshold, not

away just becaus

ll s

allow her to pretend the afternoon had never happened. A moment of weakness, a temporary

's apartment, she couldn't shake the memory of how she'd felt in his arms. For

at feeling, choosing safety over possibility, s

project deadlines. She threw herself into work with the kind of intensity that had carried her through law sc

and the follow-up meetings with the Henderson Group required the kind

ew coffee shop. She told herself it was just convenience, that changing her rout

ee Damien, even though she had no idea

sn't

was noted and significant, but she didn't comment. Jade took her coffee to a corn

he familiar figure that didn't appear. The disappointment was sharper tha

sult. Damien's absence felt like a physical ache, a

er had been building between them. The knowledge should have been a relief-no more

the most profound loss

h up on the work she'd been struggling to focus on all week. The building was nearly

outside her office. The rhythm was familiar, purposeful, and Jade's heart b

?" he said, his voi

out steadier than she felt

a set of keys. "Building manag

t under

fice space. Moving my

like a physical blo

thing to do. Give you the

ien,

between us was a mistake, that you regret it. I'm just try

what she'd wanted, what she'd thought she needed-for him t

eel like her he

mistake," she

N

hing I've felt in years

ce, closing the door behind

still be successful. I don't know how to want

lose yourself i

e. Work is p

s also

d been trying to avoid. The success she'd been chasing for so long was hollow without some

how to do this

wh

Let someone ma

ow how. You just have

is green eyes, the careful hope he was trying to hide. He'd been hurt

ess this up?

ther. That's what people do wh

it doesn

least we won't spend the rest of our

o had somehow become essential to her happiness in the space of a few week

sed you,"

issed y

orry I

rry I l

rt and confusion that had kept them apart for the past week. Jade felt somet

at?" sh

p running.

d t

e Saturday afternoon. "Then we see what happens when two people

everything to do with possibility. For the first time in her life, she was

appened when she stopped ch

id. "Let's see