The Boss Project by Vi Keeland

“He…ripped your dress?”

“Oh, I thought you knew. He said he was going to text you to let you know we were going to be late. I was all dressed and ready, but I needed to use the bathroom before we left. My zipper was stuck, so I asked Will to see if he could get it. He did, but he tore the zipper right from the seam. I only had this dress with me at my sister’s, since the majority of my clothes are still in a storage unit. So I had to wait for her to come home and sew it for me. I don’t have a clue how to sew, especially not the fabric of a dress. Then when she finally got me fixed up, and we were about to leave, one of my contacts popped out.” She shook her head. “So it worked out well that you asked Will to pick me up. Otherwise, I would’ve made you late, too.”

“I asked Will to pick you up?”

Hearing the question within my question, Evie paused to study me. Her brows drew together. “He said you had to come early, so we’d meet you here.”

I was missing something. First she’d said I invited her, and now she thought I’d arranged to have Will pick her up. Something was off, but I’d been hanging out with Will for too long to not know that the best way to handle it was to go along with things.

So I nodded. “Right. Some of the sponsors come early to work the door, greeting people with the staff of Home Start.”

When the second song ended, Evie excused herself to go to the ladies’ room. Will walked back over to the table a minute later. He sat in Evie’s chair next to me, rather than his own, and leaned down to speak quietly next to my ear. “I’m going to duck out early.”

“What the hell are you talking about?”

He motioned over his shoulder to the woman he’d been dancing with. She was already standing with her purse in her hand. “Carly suggested we go in the other room, so we don’t have to talk over the music. I suggested we go to my apartment instead. She’s in, so I’m out.”

“What about your date?”

“What date?”

“You came with Evie, didn’t you?”

Will smiled. “Bros before hoes for life, man. Do you really think I would date the woman you’re hot for?”

“What the hell are you talking about? She just told me you picked her up, and I saw you walk in together.”

“I told Evie you invited her.” He shrugged. “That all the executives attended, and you asked me to share a car and introduce her around since you had to come early.”

“Why would you do that?”

“Because you’re a damn idiot and weren’t going to ask her yourself.”

“Did you ever think that’s because I didn’t want to ask her?”

“Not for a second. You like her, and we both know it. You just think it’s a bad idea because she works for your company.”

“Maybe that’s because it is a bad idea.”

“Some of the best times in life start off as bad ideas, my friend.”

Will slapped his knee before standing. “Speak of the devil.” He held out a hand to Evie, whom I hadn’t seen coming. “I’m going to ditch this place. Merrick will give you a ride home.”

“Oh, okay. Though it’s fine. I can call an Uber later.”

Will smirked in my direction. “I’m sure the boss will insist. You two have fun.”

Evie looked confused by the sudden turn of events, yet not bothered by Will’s departure in the least. She laughed. “You, too, Will. And thanks for breaking my dress.”

He winked at her before taking off. “Anytime, gorgeous.”





CHAPTER 12

Evie



I didn’t even realize I’d been staring until a slow, sexy smile spread across Merrick’s face.

He was halfway across the room, talking to two men. In my defense, he was almost directly in my line of sight, so how could I not look at him? It had nothing to do with how good he looked in his black tuxedo, or the way he slipped one hand into his trouser pocket, his thumb staying casually hooked on the outside. And it definitely had nothing to do with how broad his shoulders looked in the suit, or the way his shirt tapered down to a narrow waist. Nope. He was just standing right where I happened to be looking. At least he had been, anyway, because now he was walking right toward me.

He put a hand on the back of Will’s empty chair. “You haven’t danced all evening.”

“I didn’t see you out there either.”

He held out a hand. “Fix both of those right now?”

I hesitated but then realized I was being ridiculous. Colleagues had been dancing together all night. This was a work function, not a date. So I put my hand in his and smiled. “Sure.”

Merrick led me to the dance floor and pulled me close. Suddenly I realized he was the first man I’d danced with since the night of my wedding fiasco. I’d had to dance with Christian at the reception when we’d been announced—ten minutes before all hell broke loose.

Merrick must’ve noticed my face. He loosened his grip and pulled back. “We don’t have to dance.”

“No, no.” I shook my head. “I want to dance. My head was just somewhere else.”

He looked into my eyes. “You sure?”

I nodded. “Positive.”

I didn’t get the feeling he believed me, but he nodded, nonetheless, and we went back to dancing. After a minute of awkward silence, I sighed.