“Please don’t force him to pull something out to prove how not pubescent he is. We don’t need that shit on the news.” Will groaned. Ha, he knew me well, because I’d been tempted.
“Nah.” I shot a smile to Piper. “No pulling out parts in front of a lady.”
Demetri laughed. “Bro, that’s because you’d go to jail.”
“He’s not wrong,” Alex chimed in.
I stole some of their fries and then ordered a cider when the waiter came, only to be shocked as hell when Piper ordered a beer.
The entire table fell silent, but she simply gave us all an innocent look and said, “What? I’m not under the cider rule, so I’m gonna enjoy a nice IPA.”
“Why does that sound like dirty talk?” I wondered out loud. “Anyone else feel affected by the word beer?”
All hands rose.
Piper grinned. “I think I like you guys.”
“We’re super likable, just ask our wives,” Zane said smoothly, earning a smack in the back of his head by Drew. “What?”
“You literally slept on the couch last night because you wouldn’t get your wife ice cream.”
“It was four a.m.!” Zane argued. “The store wasn’t even open, and then she said if I was a good husband, I would make some. To which I replied, ‘From what? The goat next door?’ She straight-up pointed to the door and said, ‘Come back with the goat milk or you’re sleeping on the couch.’” He shrugged. “I attempted to explain to the neighbor, but the goat’s a pet, and then you have to like”—he made a pinching motion with his fingers—“do this weird tug and pull. It felt very uncomfortable watching those YouTube videos, so I came back and took the couch.”
“I miss Nat being pregnant,” Alec said dreamily. “She had so much junk food in the house, it was heaven. Now we have kale and vegan butter.”
I made a face. “What the hell is that made of?”
“Not food!” Alec pounded his hand on the table.
“Hear, hear.” Will lifted his cider, and everyone cheered. Piper just sat there slack-jawed.
I elbowed her. “You’ll get used to them.”
Her face fell a bit. I wasn’t sure why, but it was like some of the light had left her eyes. I hated that my words made her feel that way.
The rest of the night went by in a blur. We laughed, we ate, we each had one cider, and as instructed, everyone got home at a decent hour.
Us included.
And just like that, we fell back into our nightly routine, moving around the house like we’d lived together for years. I put on my sweats, she put on her sexy sleep set, and we fell asleep in the living room.
Me with a smile on my face, holding her hand.
Her with a smile on her face, holding my heart.
Chapter Ten
Piper
I woke up smiling, a first for me. Braden was still sleeping soundly, so I tiptoed around him to grab my phone and frowned.
My boss had called six times.
Panicked, I quickly dialed the number.
He picked up on the first ring. “Piper.”
“Larry.” I cleared my throat. “What’s going on? Are you okay?”
“Piper, I think you should sit down.”
My heart was in my throat as I sat down on one of the bar stools. Braden stretched his arms over his head then shot me a curious look.
I mouthed, “Boss.”
He nodded and then started getting up and moving into the kitchen.
“I’m sitting,” I said in a weak voice.
“Have you seen the news recently?”
“No.” I frowned. “I’ve been working.”
“That’s the thing, though. You know how the media can be. Maybe you are working, but the world now has you pinned as Braden Connor’s new girlfriend. It’s all over social media, as is our company name and speculation that you were sent to help him only to snatch him up yourself.”
I gasped. “I would never—”
“There’s pictures. Of you two kissing.”
I couldn’t deny that, not when I’d participated. “Look, I can explain. Just let me finish up with him and—”
“You aren’t getting paid to flirt with the client or to kiss him. You’ve always followed the rules, Piper, and you’re damn good at your job. I honestly thought you could handle this. You’ve worked with A-list celebrities before. Been hit on numerous times. As your boss, I’m disappointed, but as your friend, I can somewhat understand how it would be easy to fall for someone. You’re a fixer. When something’s broken, you do whatever you can to make it better. That’s why you’re good. But we can’t have our name attached.” His loud sigh sounded like static in my ear. “I’m going to have to let you go.”
Tears welled in my eyes and then quickly spilled over. “I…I understand.”
“I’m sorry, Piper. Like I said, you’re damn good, but this is bad for business. And for any future clients. I’ll have your assistant pack up your desk. I did convince the CEO to give you a severance package, even though you’re being let go, on account of how many clients you’ve helped. But as of now, you no longer work for LC Corporations.”
I almost dropped the phone as tears slid down my cheeks. “Okay, thank you for letting me work for you for so long.”
He sighed again like he wanted to say more but then said, “Piper, as a friend who golfs with your dad and has watched you grow from an insecure teen to the woman you are now, it has to be said. I’ve never seen you look as happy as you do in the pictures circulating around. Maybe, just maybe, getting fired is the gift, not the punishment.”
I couldn’t speak for a few seconds and then said, “Thank you for saying that.”
“Anytime.”
“Goodbye.”
“Goodbye, Piper.”
I hung up the phone and stared at it.
Within seconds, Braden was in front of me, cupping my face and wiping my tears with his thumbs. He didn’t ask what was wrong, he didn’t even ask what had happened. All he did was pull me into his arms and whisper, “I’m here.”
It was exactly what I needed.
I wrapped my arms around him and cried. Cried because it was my own stupid fault, cried because the writing was on the wall. But mainly, I cried because, for the first time in my life, I had no vision. How was I supposed to help Braden if I couldn’t even help myself?
After about ten minutes of sniffling against his bare skin, I pulled back and blurted, “I got fired.”
“What?” he roared. “How? Why?”
“Pictures of us kissing.” I shrugged. “I overstepped. The company can’t associate with an employee who basically sets fire to the rules about client and employee relationships.”
His face fell. “I pushed you, I pushed this. It’s my fault.”
I slugged him in the arm. “Trust me, I was very willing.”
He pulled me in for a hug. “Please tell me you’ll stay anyways.”
I sobered. “I don’t know, Braden. Technically, I’m not your life coach anymore—”
He put a finger to my lips and whispered, “You’re right. Now I’m yours.”