The Guy Who Became My Grumpy Boss (Curvy Girl Crew #7)

Chapter 17

-Jessica-

The only thing that hadn’t gone wrong with the company retreat was that I got the chance to spend time with Danger Zone.

Thursday I’d had to cancel the meeting with the Curvy Girl Crew, because the catering company that Patrice and Dan had booked tried to triple their prices at the last minute, and Danger Zone wasn’t having any of that, so we’d spent the evening finding a different agency to do it.

Friday, there was an uproar with three of the teams who were openly fighting in the office. One girl threw a punch and would have knocked a guy out if he’d been an inch shorter. Granted, considering the guys from the IT department had refused to help because they were too important to participate in a fifteen-minute meeting, I didn’t blame her. Danger Zone had been on the brink of strangling someone, so I’d sent him away for two hours and had called in Tyrell and Catherine to handle it.

No one dared argue with a raging woman in her sixties who was fed up with the whining, but it had taken me half of my day to deal with it.

That night I’d left Brooke and William on their own to taste-test wedding cakes.

Saturday, the entire committee had gathered to help make the baskets, and as soon as people had seen the unique company swag, the whining recommenced.

That’s when I’d started yelling at the employees about being entitled babies, and Danger Zone had sent me out to get myself ice cream and read a book for an hour.

I’d gotten pie, of course, but his sentiment had been appreciated.

We’d both been in and out of the office the whole weekend. Neither of us had been home for more than a few hours at a time, and we’d spent Sunday morning getting all the supplies for mini golf into the ballroom at the hotel.

Somehow, actually buying golf balls hadn’t made it onto anyone’s list, and I’d called all the nearby stores to get enough sets in different colors. Most of them would be delivered on Monday morning.

By the time Anna finally dropped off the stuffed animals Sunday at eight o’clock in the evening, I was ready to collapse.

If Danger Zone hadn’t been right there with me most of the time, I might have actually quit my job.

But he had been there, and through adversity, we’d grown closer.

He now used my name all the time, asked how I was doing, and brought me coffee in the morning. We sat close enough to touch, although not when anyone else was around. I watched him and made sure he had enough emotional energy left for what we needed to do, and if he didn’t, I made sure he took some time to recharge.

I could tell by the way his face never left a category three grouchy mode that he was getting short on pretty much everything, but he told me he was determined to see this through.

Then he was going to take a week off.

He’d offered me the same, and I was still thinking about it. I could certainly use the time with him out of the office to catch up on a few things, but I could also use some time away from my job.

And if he wasn’t at work, and I wasn’t at work, maybe we could hang out.

I hadn’t brought that up with him, but I kept thinking it.

Each time what Marissa had said about him not liking curvy women paraded through my mind, I drowned it out with all the ways Danger Zone had served me and all the times he’d touched me.

It was always subtle, but when he greeted me, his fingers grazed my arm or my back. He held the door for me and walked me to my car or the train. I’d almost gone in for a hug Saturday night, but Danger Zone had looked a little too haggard for that.

Imagining his arms around me was becoming my own personal sport, and I wanted to win it.

We’d had a quick dinner of sushi—not my favorite, but he’d seemed excited about it—then we’d unpacked the stuffed animals. We also had to add the water bottles and then put the cellophane around the baskets and tie them with bows.

The committee had cut the cellophane and made the bows so it would be easier for us tonight, but we had a long road ahead of us.

We stood in the doorway, peering into the room.

“Are you sure you don’t want to call a few people in?” I asked as I surveyed the area. Someone had rolled in wire shelves for us, and every inch of available space was packed with baskets, water bottles, and stuffed animals.

“We can do this.” Danger Zone always touched my back in exactly the same place. I knew, because the skin under my shirt felt raw from the electrical current that kept passing between us. He gave me a little push, and I entered the room first.

I’d almost called Ashely in, but a tiny part of me wanted this time with Danger Zone. He’d started to open up a little, and I was desperate to see where that went.

“Do you want to put the items in or wrap the stuff up?” I asked.

Danger Zone frowned. “Let me arrange the items.”

“You sure?” He didn’t sound confident.

He nodded and moved to the other side of the room to grab some baskets to put on the table.

I wasn’t the best at packaging things, but I should be able to handle cellophane and the simple twist ties on the end of a bow to close everything up.

Danger Zone started assembling, and I did my best not to stare. Today was the first time I’d ever seen him wear anything besides a suit.

Don’t get me wrong, I liked him in a suit, but the dark red T-shirt and jogger pants left very little to the imagination.

The guy did indeed have wiry, muscular arms, and I didn’t want to admit that I’d watched carefully when he’d bent over to get something off the floor. I felt a little naughty basically drooling over my boss, but he obviously worked hard to stay in shape, and I was more than happy to admire the results.

Besides, I’d caught him staring at me more than once. I may or may not have worn an off-the-shoulder shirt on purpose, and Danger Zone obviously approved.

“Can I ask you about something?” Danger Zone said as he handed me the first finished basket.

I blinked. We’d mostly been working in silence, but I gladly took the bait. “Sure.”

“Do you enjoy opening storage units with your friends?”

My fingers froze halfway through bundling the cellophane above one of the baskets.

“You’ve seen our channel?” That, in and of itself, was strange. I’d never pictured him spending time on anything so silly.

“I have.” Danger Zone kept assembling as he waited for my answer.

I gathered the wrapping above the basket and twisted. The sound of crinkling plastic filled the air and gave me a minute to come up with my answer. “I do.”

“Why?”

“Why do I like it?” I asked.

“Yes.” He set another completed basket on the table.

I put the bow in place, and twisted the tie in the back to cinch everything together. This isn’t something I’d thought about recently. “There are a few reasons. I like being with people, I love having friends, and I enjoy the mystery and excitement of opening a unit. We never know what we’re going to find, and that’s part of the fun.”

Or it had been. Now it seemed all I did was stress about it.

When Danger Zone saw the basket I’d just finished, he frowned.

“What?” I gave him a quizzical look.

He pursed his lips, as if deciding on his next course of action, then carefully picked his way through the obstacles on the floor to stand next to me. His fingers found that spot on my back, and I almost shivered. “You mangled it.”

I studied my first attempt and squinted. “Looks okay to me.”

He sighed and reached past me to rescue the basket. “Can I show you?”

“You know something about wrapping?” There was a hefty amount of sarcasm in my voice.

“I do,” he said simply as he untwisted the tie and handed the bow to me.

I took the bow and was trying to decide if I was going to be grumpy about this or not, when I accidentally met Danger Zone’s gaze.

His light brown eyes studied mine, and he furrowed his brows. “Is this okay?”

“Is what okay?” I asked, wondering if he was referring to his attempt to pin me to the wall with his eyes.

“Showing you an easier, faster, and prettier way to do this.” He gestured at the basket. “What you did was fine, but we have almost a hundred of these to do. Efficiency is going to be important.”

I nodded numbly, having no idea how to address anything he’d just said.

Danger Zone spread the clear plastic out again and smoothed it against the table. “You want to center the basket, like you did, but turn it so the cellophane isn’t wrinkled on the front.”

I watched as he took me through positioning the basket, pulling the covering up, and maneuvering it in place. My eyes were drawn to his hands and my ears to his voice. He brushed me multiple times with his arms, and I didn’t move.

“You can use tape here and here on the sides if needed, but if you fold it in right, you won’t have to.” Danger Zone held a perfect poof at the top, waiting for me to put the bow back on.

I leaned over and refastened the bow, and when he pushed the finished product away, I had to admit, it looked good and would be easier to do dozens of times.

“You try it.” He put a new basket on the pile of cellophane.

His movements had been sure, and I tried to emulate him. It took me three tries to get the darn thing centered. “You made this look easy,” I complained.

“Years of practice.” He chuckled and then moved behind me. “It’s probably easier if you’re a little taller.” Danger Zone reached around me. His arms slid along mine, and his fingers settled on the outside of my hands. “Let me show you.”

Every nerve in my body was on fire. My heart was in my throat and my knees weak. Did Danger Zone understand what he was doing to me right now? I could feel those lean muscles.

Like a puppet master, he guided my limbs to re-create what he’d shown me a few minutes earlier. I had no desire for him to stop and every desire to turn around and face him, but something told me he wasn’t ready for that yet.

“Hold it here,” he said as we folded the side in.

I did as he instructed, and he intertwined his fingers with mine.

We both froze, except for breathing hard. His chest rose and fell against my back, and I could feel his heartbeat going almost as fast as mine.

For a good minute, I didn’t blink. Neither of us spoke.

Was he stuck? Worried? Not sure what to do?

Did I need to make the next move?

I gathered my wits and said, “Why did you ask me about my friends?”

His answer came as a whisper in my ear. “Because I want to know what makes you happy.” His fingers squeezed mine. “I know you love coffee in the morning. You love a good joke. You seem to enjoy your work and appreciate finishing a difficult project.”

I didn’t dare breathe. Danger Zone had been more and more open with me, and while this conversation sounded somewhat rehearsed, it also felt raw and sincere.

He went on. “But that’s just at work. You’re different with your friends.”

“You really watch our channel?” I asked.

Danger Zone’s hands started to move again, going to the other side of the basket. I let him lead me. He chuckled, a sensation that rumbled through me. “More times than I care to admit.”

“Favorite episode?” I demanded.

“The one with the rat skeletons.”

I laughed. “That is a good one.”

At this point, we had the top of the plastic in a bundle over the basket. Danger Zone reached to get a bow while I held on. “What else makes you happy?” he murmured into my hair.

It was almost impossible to focus with him literally breathing down my neck, but his voice held a hint of desperation. I hated hearing that from him, so I cleared my throat as he started securing the bow. “New experiences make me happy. Not burning food when I cook makes me happy. Action movies.” I paused as he finished with the bow but didn’t move away. “Being with people I care about makes me happy.”

Danger Zone took a deep breath, and I couldn’t tell if he was content or frustrated. It felt like he needed something to hold on to, so I pulled his hands in and wrapped his arms around my waist. “What makes you happy, Peter?”

He sighed. “Precious little, I’m afraid.”

I turned my head as far as I could. “Tell me.”

Danger Zone lowered his chin to my bare shoulder and leaned his head against my neck. “You might laugh.”

He thought I would laugh? Right now? When my whole body was buzzing and all I wanted to do was turn enough to get his lips in my sight? “Try me.”

Another long breath proceeded his answer. “Being successful at work makes me happy.”

I could have guessed that one. “What else?”

“My aunt and uncle.”

Solid answer.

Danger Zone’s arms tightened around me. “Arranging flowers makes me happy.”

“Really?” My voice betrayed my surprise.

He nodded.

“Is that why you know how to work with cellophane?”

“It is.”

I smiled. “You’ll have to show me your flower skills sometime.”

“Really?” he asked.

“If you want to.”

I felt him relax a little. “One more thing makes me happy.”

“Just one?”

“One in particular.” Danger Zone lowered his head again, and his warm lips gently kissed my exposed shoulder.

I melted into him, and he pulled me closer.

“It’s you,” he murmured as he kissed me again, slowly making his way to my neck. “You make me happy.”