When Stars Collide (Light in the Dark #2) - Micalea Smeltzer Page 0,15

need your proposal for the Hammel account by this afternoon.”

“I’ll have it done,” I assure him. In fact, it’s already done, but I don’t feel like going over it right now. My mind is too all over the place to focus on work.

He presses his lips together, and I know he’s contemplating saying more, but after a moment, he leaves and heads down the hall to his much bigger office.

I sigh and lean back in my chair, crossing my hands behind my head.

“Get your shit together,” I mutter to myself, and let out a disgusted breath.

I rub my eyes and reach for the stack of papers on my desk.

Time to get to work.

“I thought you might want this.” Thea holds out a cup of coffee from one of our favorite places across the street. “You left so early I figured you forgot to get any.” She shrugs like it’s no big deal.

I smile and take it from her. “Thanks—and you’re right, I did forget.”

She laughs and the twinkling sound washes over me. “Is there anything you need me to do?”

I set the coffee aside and finally look at her—and fuck me, she’s wearing this tight black skirt thing and a loose pink blouse. Her light-brown hair hangs in waves past her shoulders and I remember distinctly wrapping my fingers in it that night and tugging and—

“Xander?” she prompts with a raised brow, and I nearly choke when I realize I was basically having a full on fantasy while she stared at me.

Only, it wasn’t a fantasy. It was real. And I wanted it to happen again.

I clear my throat. “Um, yeah, here—I need you to run these down to Sherry.” I thrust a stack of papers that were lying on the side of my desk into her waiting hands.

She looks from the papers to me. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah.” And of course, my fucking voice cracks. Traitor.

She eyes me for a moment longer in disbelief before turning and leaving the room, her high heels clacking on the floor.

I let out a pent-up breath.

Day one of working together post-marriage so far is not a success.

Today might go down in the record books as the most awkward of my entire life.

Xander and I barely spoke, and when we did, it was stilted and not at all like us. I can’t for the life of me figure out what’s going on in his head. It was only this morning that he whispered that one word—please. I thought he meant to please give him a chance, but maybe he meant please can we forget this ever happened? I can’t imagine him changing his mind like that, since he’s been pro-marriage since we woke up yesterday morning, but who knows?

“Do you want to go get dinner?” I ask, closing out my computer and shutting it down.

Xander lifts his gaze away from the computer and looks at the clock. His head immediately whips back, and he jumps from his seat.

“Fuck, I’m late,” he curses, bustling around to grab his backpack, knocking the chair over in the process.

I stand. “Xander?”

“I can’t talk right now, Thea,” he says roughly and starts for the door. He must realize how his tone was because he halts his steps and looks at me with an apologetic expression. “I’m sorry,” he whispers. “I’ll see you tonight. We can start Charmed.”

Before I can respond, he’s out the door and gone.

His behavior is so off-putting that I can’t even be excited that he said he’d finally watch Charmed with me. I’ve been begging him for months to start that one.

Since Xander left in such a hurry, I pick up the fallen chair, turn off the lights, and lock up.

He’s been running off a lot like that lately—so I know at least that has nothing to do with me and I take comfort in it.

I head down the hall to Cade’s office and knock on the door before poking my head inside. “Hey, loser.” I crack a grin as he looks up from a paper. “Time to go.”

He glances at the clock. “I didn’t realize the time.”

“Want to pick up a pizza on the way home?” I ask hopefully. I’m starving.

He shakes his head. “No can do. Rae and I are going out.”

Why am I not surprised?

“Oh, okay then. More pizza for me.”

More pizza is never a bad thing.

Cade packs up and we head out to the parking garage. The drive home is quiet, and for that, I’m thankful. If I had to force conversation with