Forbidden Touch: A Best Friends To Lovers Romance - Iona Rose (free ebook reader .txt) 📗

we truly had no secrets. I forced my mind back to work before I realized I was dozing as I stared at the computer. I needed to go home and rest since I wasn’t getting a lot done.

My email blinked with a notification as I was about to turn off my computer. It was from Mason. He wanted to see me in his office. We were working on transferring our processes to a new updated system and I assumed he wanted to see me about that.

I hurried down the hallway to his office.

His door was slightly opened and when he heard my footsteps, he called for me to enter. He looked up and as usual, his simmering gaze moved over my body lingering at my breasts.

I suppressed a shudder.

“Please close the door and sit down,” he said in a casual voice.

I did as he asked and stared at him while I sat perched on the spare chair.

He smiled, a smile that did not reach his eyes. When Mason smiled, the only thing moving was his lips. “I wanted to say thank you. Your hard work has not gone unnoticed.”

“Thank you,” I said wondering where the conversation was headed. With Mason, compliments were always followed by something else.

“I’m more than grateful, especially at this time,” he said, his voice taking on a sad tone.

“Are you okay?” Despite my feelings for him, my heart lurched. As much as I disliked Mason, I wouldn’t really wish him any harm.

“I haven’t told anyone as it’s rather private, but you and I are friends,” he said.

Friends? Had he lost his mind? We were not friends but maybe Mason understood the word differently than I.

“My wife and I are going through a nasty divorce,” he confessed.

I tried to recapture the compassion I’d felt for him a few seconds earlier when I’d thought he was ill, and failed. His wife had been a saint as far as I was concerned. “I’m sorry about that.”

“Yes, no one wants their marriage to break up,” he said and dropped his gaze to my body again. “You look beautiful today, as always.”

I didn’t know what to say at the sudden change of topic and unwelcome compliment. “Thank you.”

He let out a laugh. “I’m going to have to take another cold shower tonight. I do that a lot.”

Nausea rose up my throat.

Mason leaned on his desk. “I know how ambitious you are and I can understand it because I was that way too. I can be useful to your career if you let me.” He stared at me, his meaning clear.

It was on the tip of my tongue to tell him, no thank you. But I knew if I told him that, I would lose my chance of being promoted.

“A passionate woman such as yourself needs a strong man to take care of all her needs,” he said and licked his lips.

I fought down feelings of revulsion. I would never have sex with Mason or any other man to advance myself at work. I had morals and a conscience. I also firmly believed in karma. Do good and it comes back to you tenfold. Do nasty stuff and the same thing happens.

“Don’t give me an answer now,” Mason said and stood up. “Take your time, think about it.”

I stood up and plastered a fake smile on my face.

He went around his desk and came to stand right in front of me. “Thank you again Brooke for working so hard.” This time, his smile seemed genuine.

Despite his lewd proposal, I knew he meant the compliment. It always felt good to have your hard work noticed and appreciated.

He held out his arms in an invitation to hug.

I hesitated. I really didn’t want any physical contact with Mason. He made the decision for me by closing the gap between us and slipping his hands around my waist.

Panic rose up my throat as he pulled me closer. Breathe, I said to myself. I limply placed my hands on his shoulders and braced myself to push him away.

Luckily, it was not necessary as he let go of me seconds later. “Have a nice evening,” he said politely.

“You too,” I said and fled the office.

The whole conversation replayed in my mind on my way home. Had my boss just subtly proposed an affair with me in exchange for favors at work? I shook my head, feeling as if I’d dreamed up the whole thing.

It was insane. He was insane.

At home, I made straight for my bedroom for a change of clothes. There were two hours or so before dinner. I changed into my DIY overalls and headed upstairs to Blaze’s apartment. The progress wasn’t bad, considering Blaze and I were spending an inordinate amount of time in bed.

I heard him as soon as I entered and all thoughts of Mason left my mind. “There you are,” I said, finding him in the master bedroom.

He placed the hammer he was holding on the floor and opened his arms.

I ran into them and he folded them around me. I sighed deeply as I inhaled his masculine scents.

“I missed you,” Blaze murmured into my ear.

“Me too,” I said and raised my head to kiss him.

His mouth was deliciously hot and his lips sweetly cool. I threaded my fingers through his hair with one hand and with the other, I caressed his shoulders. I couldn’t get enough of Blaze and neither could he, judging the frantic movements of his hands on my body.

“I hate overalls,” Blaze said minutes later.

Laughter burst out of me. “Why?”

“I can’t reach anything,” he complained “Women should be banned from wearing them.”

I kissed him lightly on the mouth and stepped back, still chuckling. “What are we doing today?” I asked, looking around the room.

Blaze had been putting up wall molding along the window. We’d chosen a simple modern molding that matched the downstairs apartment. He explained the plans for the evening and the days that followed.

I was pretty good with molding and we agreed I would work on