Julie patted Rachel on the back while Jason’s advertising team funneled out of the room.

“Progressive thinking.” Gerald stood in front of him, cutting off the view of the two women whispering.

“You said the new blood we’d hired was coming to us with innovative ideas,” Jason said.

“Rachel knows her stuff.”

“How do you know her?” Glen asked Jason.

Jason looked around Gerald, wanting to catch Rachel before she left the room. “Long story.”

Glen chuckled. “Great, you can tell me over lunch.”

Gerald and Glen left the conference room together.

Julie and Rachel started toward the door. “If I can have a minute,” Jason said.

Julie looked between them, muttered something, and left them alone.

Rachel set her laptop down. “Why didn’t you tell me you were Jason Fairchild?”

“It wasn’t intentional.”

“You’re my boss.”

“Technically, Gerald is your boss.”

“You own the company.”

“It doesn’t change anything.”

She looked at him as if he had an IQ of five. “It changes everything. I can’t have my boss texting me for personal reasons.”

“Gerald’s married.”

Did she just growl at him?

“Dating the man who signs my checks is the fastest way to lose my job.”

“Glen is married, too. Technically he signs your checks.”

“This isn’t a joke, Jason.”

He knew it put a ripple in his plans, but that wasn’t going to stop him. “I like complicated, remember.”

She waved a finger between the two of them. “This can’t happen. I need this job. I need to make things work here for Owen. Sleeping with the boss is never a good idea.”

So she was already picturing him in bed.

He liked that.

“Stop smiling.” She raised her voice.

“Did you see a doctor for that?” He purposely changed the subject.

“No. It’s just a bump.”

“It’s a knot, and it should be checked.”

“I’m pretty sure if it were serious, I would know by now.”

“Do you have a headache?”

She rolled her eyes. “Of course. There is a golf ball under my skin.”

“Are you eating?”

“Are you my mother?”

Her evasion of his question gave him the answer. “I’m your boss, as you keep trying to point out. And if you’re not well enough to be at work, you should be at home, resting . . . after you’ve seen a doctor.”

“Would you be telling me this if my cell number wasn’t in your phone?”

He didn’t answer.

“Exactly. Which is why we can’t date.”

“We can date.”

She tried to smile, huffed out a breath. “I’m sorry. I’m flattered, really, I am. I’m attracted, obviously, or I wouldn’t have . . . but I’m not stupid—”

Yeah, well . . . that made one of them.

Jason took a step toward her and stopped her rant with his lips.

He could almost taste her simmering anger as it softened. Rachel gasped but didn’t pull away. He touched her cheek and held her close. Oh yeah, this was going to happen. When was the last time he’d had butterflies when he’d kissed a woman? When was the last time one had reluctantly melted in his arms?

She opened her lips, and her tongue dipped inside his.

All the blood in his system dumped south before Rachel pulled away.

Her face was flushed, her breathing too quick.

Accomplishment settled in his system.

She stared at him without words.

“Rachel . . .”

She pressed a finger to his lips before gathering her computer and walking out the door.

The inquisition began the moment Rachel returned to her desk.

Julie rolled her chair over, ducked her head. “How do you know Jason Fairchild?”

“He’s Stranded Car Guy.”

“The guy you ran off the road?”

“I didn’t run him off the road, he tried to go around. In an Audi.” A really nice Audi, if she remembered.

“He acted a little familiar for a guy you helped stay out of the cold,” Julie said.

Rachel glanced over Julie’s head, didn’t see anyone watching them.

“We’ve been texting all weekend. He left chains for my car at the house on Friday. He was going to help Owen and me get our Christmas tree on Wednesday, since he has a truck,” she whispered.

Julie squealed.

Rachel shushed her. “Stop it. That can’t happen now.”

“Why not?”

“He’s my boss. I can’t date my boss.”

“Every great soap opera has a chick doing her boss.”

Rachel glared, whispered harshly, “I’m not doing anyone!”

“Rachel?”

She swung her head up too quickly, winced at the pain behind her eye.

Gerald stood a few feet away, his expression unreadable.

“Yes?” How much of their conversation had he heard? This wasn’t good.

“Good job today.”

“Thank you.”

He looked at her forehead. “That looks like it hurts.”

“It does, which is why I got off to a shaky start. I promise my delivery is smoother than what you saw.”

“It appeared there was more than one reason for that wobbly start.”

She wasn’t sure how to respond.

Gerald was. “Cussing at the owner of the company probably didn’t help.”

“I cussed?” Seeing Jason there blocked her common sense.

“You did,” Julie said.

Rachel closed her eyes, tried to replay what happened. “It won’t happen again.” Not in public, anyway.

“That’s probably for the best,” Gerald told her. “Now why don’t you celebrate by going home early and nursing that black eye?”

“It’s okay, I’m—”

“That wasn’t a request, Rachel.”

She stopped talking, and Gerald returned to his office.

“I cussed?” she asked herself again.

Julie just laughed.

Chapter Six

“You ended up in a ditch?”

Jason knew he would never hear the end of this. He managed to get out of lunch with his brother, but that didn’t stop the man from showing up in his office after two.

“I’m not proud.”

Glen leaned back in the chair he offered himself when he walked in.

“Are you dating this woman?”

Jason flipped through the work on his desk, wondering how to answer that question. Was he dating her? No. Did he want to . . . yes. Did he want his brother to know?

“Maybe.”

Glen was obviously amused. “Well then, this should put Monica and Mary off the matchmaking campaign.”

Jason looked up. “There’s a campaign?”

“Not anymore.” Glen unfolded from the chair.

He knew his brothers’ wives were up to something.

“No blind dates, Glen. As if I need to say that aloud.”

“I told Mary that.”

Somehow Jason didn’t think she listened. Both of his brothers were hopelessly in love with their wives.

“Rachel does have some great ideas for pushing the company forward.”

“I thought so, too.”

“She’s obviously dedicated . . . coming to work with that shiner.”