The Intern: Enemies To Lovers

Directly at me.

God, timing hated me.

He looked so handsome this morning in his dark gray suit and black striped tie, his scruff a bit thicker than yesterday, his hair perfectly gelled-unlike the way it had looked when he left my apartment last night.

What he couldn’t hide were the bags under his eyes, showing he’d gotten the same amount of sleep as me.

As he got closer, I expected hardness in his expression.

Anger in his stare.

A fight in his posture.

Remnants of all three were present.

But there was something else too. Something I couldn’t pinpoint.

He came to a stop a few feet from me, the movement sending me a delicious wave of his cologne. That spicy aroma-oh God, I’d missed smelling it while I was getting ready for work this morning.

“Hi,” I whispered.

He towered over me in this tight space, making me feel tiny and wanted.

“Hannah …” His gaze moved across my face, taking me in. “What were you doing in Dominick’s office?”Ccontent © exclusive by Nô/vel(D)ra/ma.Org.

My lungs felt so tight as I took a breath, this nervous energy fluttering through my whole body.

I just wanted to wrap my arms around him.

I just wanted to press my lips against his.

“Telling him the truth.”

His head cocked to the side. “About?”

“Us.” I licked across my mouth. “About the night we met and how my lie caused things to be a bit rocky between us, especially at the beginning. You shouldn’t have to tackle the repercussions of my lie, so I made sure Dominick heard the truth-from my lips.” I held the coffee against my chest, the only shield I had in my possession. “Why are you going in to speak to him?”

He glanced toward Dominick’s door and then back at me. It took that movement for me to see what I couldn’t read before. The softness that rimmed his eyelids, the affection that poured out from his emerald irises.

“The same reason,” he said. “But I wasn’t going to mention the lie.”

“You were just going to tell him about … us?”

“Yes.”

Was there even an us at this point?

Before Declan had left last night, he’d asked for time to sort through his thoughts. Pushing him wasn’t going to make him move any faster.

He knew how I felt, and he knew where I stood.

I fingered the end of his tie as I said, “You look so tired.”

His hands were at his sides, and as he lifted one, it briefly grazed my waist. The touch was light. If I hadn’t been paying attention, I probably would have missed it. His hand continued up to his face, his palm landing on his forehead, lowering to his nose, mouth, and off his chin.

“I am.”

That was all it took, and I could barely breathe.

“If you need anything, I’ll be at my desk.”

He didn’t respond.

He just stared into my eyes.

But there was emotion that passed between us, lasting for several seconds before he broke our eye contact and walked to Dominick’s door.

I didn’t turn around to look at him.

I just headed in the opposite direction, and when I went by Ford’s office and saw that he was inside, I stepped in and closed the door, pressing my back against it.

He glanced up from his desk. “Are you all right?”

“No.” I shook my head. “Yes.” I finally brought the coffee up to my mouth and took a long drink. “No.”

He pointed at a chair. “Sit.”

I fell into the seat and set the coffee on his desk, freeing my hands so I could wrap my arms around me. “Convo with Dominick-check. Running into Declan immediately after leaving Dominick’s office”-I tried to fill my lungs, but I was breathless-“also check.”

Since Oaklyn had been at a work event last night and couldn’t answer my call, I’d phoned Ford right after I set up the meeting with Dominick.

He knew everything now.

Every. Single. Gritty. Detail.

“This distance between us … it hurts.” My arms squeezed. “I just want to kiss him.”

He was smiling. I couldn’t imagine why.

“What’s with the grin?” I found myself glaring at him. “I’m practically dying over here, and you’re all smiley, like Everly when she talks about the color pink.”

He rested his chin on his knuckles. “You’re in love with him.”

I’d admitted that to Dominick just a few minutes ago, and that was the first time I’d said the words out loud.

It had hit me then, but it was hitting me even harder now.

“Yes.” I felt pressure against my chest and realized my hand had moved there. “Yes, I love him.”

The feeling behind my fingers wasn’t an electrical shock; it was more of a slow, burning simmer.

“Does he know that?”

“Not unless he’s a mind reader. The thing is, he kind of is.” I sank deeper into the chair. “Ford …” I reached for the coffee. “God, I wish this were wine,” I said before I took a sip. “What if he decides this is all too much? What if I walk out the door on Friday and we don’t talk again until much later this year, when I come back here to work as a clerk? What if we’re done?”

“Hannah …” I went to stand up, deciding pacing would feel much better than sitting when I heard, “The man is in love with you,” and it rocked me so hard that I couldn’t move.

“How do you know that?”

His smile grew. “Because I talked to him last night.”

I felt my eyes bug out of my head. “You … did?”

“He called me after you and I spoke.”

“And you didn’t tell me? You’re the worst bestie cousin in the entire universe, you know that?”

He laughed. “Listen, after Declan and I hung up, Eve needed to be put to bed, and then I found myself in the middle of something.”

“Ahhh, Sydney. Enough said.” When he didn’t respond, I added, “No need to say more about the Sydney part. You need to tell me everything about your conversation with Declan.”

“Do I, huh?” He winked.

“Ford-”

“All right, all right.” He grabbed his coffee and came around to my side of his desk, sitting in the chair next to mine. “He explained that he intended to wait until your internship was over before the two of you got a bit more serious, but things just didn’t play out that way. I think he was feeling guilty that he’d had a conversation with Jenner in Wyoming and he hadn’t said anything yet to me, knowing how close the two of us are.”

“He was being respectful. I like that.” My heart was thumping out of my chest. “What did you say to him?”