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

Chapter 18

-Peter-

This conversation was supposed to have happened with us on opposite sides of the room.

This conversation was supposed to have happened over the course of an hour.

This conversation was supposed to have led me to understand Jessica better.

The past few days had done nothing but tug me closer to this amazing woman in my arms.

I hadn’t planned on getting physically close, but now I was loathe to move even a millimeter away from her.

I’d just admitted to her that she made me happy.

How was she going to react? I hadn’t planned this far ahead, but there was only one way to go from here, and that was forward.

My lips felt as if they were moving on their own, slowly taking in each inch of her bare shoulder and then the side of her neck. Her fruity lotion (or was it perfume?) had invaded my senses, and all I wanted was more.

How long had it been since I’d said she made me happy? She hadn’t replied. I lifted my head, and a wave of panic ran through me. “Do you want me to stop?”

Stupid. I should have asked her if I could kiss her before I’d started.

“Yes,” Jessica said in a breathless voice.

Had I read her wrong? Was I wrong about all of this? I immediately let her go and stepped away, embarrassment and shame flooding through me.

Jessica turned, and I wondered if she would be angry. Her gaze was intense, and I was about to apologize, but then she came for me.

I’d seen her be assertive at work, but when she grabbed my shirt by the collar and yanked me down to her, I yelped in surprise.

I’m not proud of it, but there it is.

When she kissed me, I froze in shock.

My mind took in everything, including the ferocity of her lips on mine, her free hand weaving through the back of my hair, and the heat of her body against me.

Obviously, she was fine with me kissing her, so I wrapped my arms around her and committed to the action enthusiastically.

I’d never imagined a person could replicate the calm I felt when I arranged flowers. Not that I was feeling calm at the moment, but Jessica didn’t drain me like everyone else. Instead, she energized me. She helped me see things in a new light. She helped me see myself in a new light.

She helped me see the man I could be. A better version of Peter Kim.

I couldn’t picture being alone anymore. I didn’t want to be alone ever again, not if she was near.

I wondered how she felt about me beyond some level of attraction, but I gently pushed the need to analyze the situation aside and stayed in the moment.

Jessica felt perfect in my arms. Soft but strong. Energizing and calming at the same time. We simply worked, like the flowers I arranged. I didn’t know why or how, but she belonged with me.

I belonged with her, if she would have me.

After a few minutes of frantic exploration, I slowed the pace between us. I kissed her deliberately, then went back to her neck.

Jessica giggled at the contact from my lips, and I smiled. “Do you want me to stop?” I said between kisses.

“Nope.” Then she sighed and pulled away from me. “But we have a lot to do.”

I stared into her beautiful eyes, then my gaze dropped back to her lips.

She kissed me once, then said, “I tell you what, we can take a break when we’re halfway done with these baskets.”

I growled. “Halfway?”

She grinned. “We need to get them finished by midnight.”

“Or what, you turn into a pumpkin?” I mused as I grazed my lips along her shoulder.

“No, you turn into a pumpkin.” Her fingers laced into my hair, and she let out a long sigh of contentment.

Unfortunately, she was correct. I would be next to worthless tomorrow for our activity if I didn’t get at least six hours of sleep. “You’re right,” I murmured.

“I know.”

This time, when she stepped away, I let her go. Her absence made my heart ache, and my arms twitched to drag her back, but we had work to do.

“Do we need to talk about this?” She gestured between us.

“Hopefully you understand my intentions at this point,” I said. “I want to get to know you better.” I reached out and took her hand. “I’m desperate to get to know you better.”

Jessica graced me with a wide smile, almost like the ones she gave her friends, but a little different. In this case, I was fairly certain that different was good. “I’m open to negotiations.”

I needed to distract myself, so I glared at the baskets. “Halfway?”

“Halfway.” Jessica gave me a knowing smirk that turned my knees to jelly.

“We’d better get started.” The sooner we finished, the better.

***

The rest of the evening went by in a blur of working and getting as close to Jessica as possible. We talked about our favorite activities and what theme we would adopt for a mini golf hole if we had to make one.

Jessica knew how to keep the conversation light, and as promised, we took a break when we reached the halfway point.

We took more than one break.

I couldn’t remember having ever been as attracted to any woman as I was to Jessica. It was so bad—or good—that I almost asked Jessica to take a selfie with me to send to Aunt Mei but decided to wait until after the retreat. While this felt as real as anything ever had in my life, it was still new, and new could be problematic.

We managed to get out of the building by midnight, and even though I was certain I’d never be able to sleep, as soon as my head hit my pillow, I fell into a deep slumber.

I wouldn’t describe my state as I walked into the hotel the next morning with Jessica’s coffee in one hand and a huge duffle bag of golf clubs in the other as amenable, but I was awake enough to get through the day.

I hoped.

As long as Jessica was around.

She’d sent me two messages on my way in.

Jessica: Morning, sunshine, are you ready for this?

I’d sent her a thumbs up.

Then, a few minutes later.

Jessica: I called the committee in early.

That had roused a frown from me, but Jessica knew what she was doing, and the more hands we had, the easier things would be.

Two committee members rushed past me pushing the hotel’s luggage cart piled high with baskets. Seeing them brought back vivid memories from the night before, and I felt heat rising on my cheeks.

Who knew that the very memory of Jessica could elicit a blush?

“Hey, Peter,” Dan said as he came by with more baskets.

“Morning,” I grunted.

I was still essentially the same person I’d been the week before. The less peopling I had to do this morning the better.

The flow of employees from the office led me to the ballroom, where I found Jessica directing people like the conductor of an orchestra.

“Each team needs these items.” She pointed first at a whiteboard where she’d made a list complete with pictures held up by magnets. “Put a whole set in each square on the floor, which should be labeled by team.”

We’d gone over this part of the plan, but I blinked, trying to keep up.

Jessica spotted me, and her lips twitched into a smile for a brief moment, then settled back into her bossy mode. “We’ve got an hour and a half. Plenty of time.” She waved at the gathered crowd. “Let’s do this.”

My speech would have been much less inspiring, and I took a moment to admire the woman I had fallen so hard for.

She was dressed in less revealing clothes today, but even in jeans and a T-shirt with the bits of hair that had escaped her ponytail plastered to her head by sweat, I couldn’t keep my eyes off her.

If I got too close, I might not be able to keep my hands off her either.

But I had her coffee, so I found the pile of golf clubs, added my duffle bag to it, then moved to Jessica, who was giving last minute instructions to the food team. As soon as they walked away, I moved in, with my arm outstretched.

Jessica snatched the cup out of my hand. “You’re a lifesaver.”

“Happy to help.”

She eyed me as she took a few sips of her drink, then she lowered the cup and studied me. “You okay?”

“I am now,” I assured her.

Jessica stepped closer to me. “You brought the clubs?”

I moved toward her. “Already delivered.” She was inches away from me, and it was a struggle to keep my eyes off her lips.

“Do you need to be alone for a while before we start?” she asked.

No one was close to us, so I said, “I could use some time alone with you before we start.”

Jessica grinned. “I know just the place.”

I’d never kissed anyone in a random hotel closet before, but a few minutes later, and despite the questionable smell coming from the shelves, I was keen to repeat the experience. Jessica left me with one last toe-curling press of her lips to mine and told me to find a place to chill out for at least thirty minutes.

We’d agreed that she would handle most of the beforehand issues, while I would step in and take the reins for the remainder of the day. She’d promised to stay close, and I was clinging to that promise.

The hotel, although located in a less desirable section of the city, turned out to be quite nice. I found a small library filled with books that I’d never heard of and decided to hide there until it was almost time to start.

As soon as I sat, I got a text.

Jessica: Are you chilling?

I sent her a picture of the room.

Peter: As ordered.

Jessica: Good job!

I chuckled. It had been ages since I’d laughed more than once or twice in a week, but Jessica brought out the light in me. Suddenly, thirty minutes seemed like a very long time.

My phone buzzed again. I opened it, expecting to see Jessica’s name, but instead it was a message from Marissa.

Marissa: I’m here.

My stomach clenched. Did she mean here at the hotel? Or did she mean on the video call?

Peter: The call isn’t scheduled to start for another hour.

Marissa’s answer came swiftly.

Marissa: I decided video wasn’t enough, so I’m here. At the hotel!

A picture came through of her in a wheelchair with her leg sticking straight out in a cast. I recognized the carpet and drapes from the lobby.

She was here? Now? My thoughts halted, and it took me a moment to get them going again.

I searched in my mind for how I should react and what I should say, but the video call had been Marissa’s idea. I had assumed she would stick with her own plan.

Why had she changed it?

I felt my heartbeat speeding up, so I closed my eyes and forced myself to breathe.

What should I do? How should I handle this?

My first coherent thought was that I should tell Jessica, but as I was typing a message to her, I stopped myself.

Marissa being here wasn’t an emergency. It was an inconvenience. Mostly for me.

Did it have to be?

I explored that question. Should I go and greet Marissa? Yes. Did I have to be the one to entertain her and take her around? No. She had other people she was close to at the office. Other people from her department. I would ask one of them to take care of her. I had an entire day of miniature golf to run, and she would be a big distraction.

Marissa knew me; she would understand.

As soon as I’d decided this, my chest loosened, and my heart slowed down. I had a solution. It would work.

All I had to do was figure out who should be on Marissa duty and the issue would be completely solved.

My phone buzzed again.

Marissa: Where are you?

I quickly scrolled through the company directory, found three people in Marissa’s department that I knew she hung out with and crafted a message to send to them.

Unfortunately, I doubted any of them would be here early, which meant I would need to entertain Marissa for at least an hour.

The tightness in my chest returned, but I stood and took a deep breath.

I could do this.