“And you think Ozzie being in your house right now on a sleepover is fate too?”
“I don’t know. That’s why I called you.”
“You want me to tell you if Ozzie being there is fate?”
“Kind of.”
“You’re thinking about sleeping with him, aren’t you?” Her tone loses some of its angry edge. “You little slut.”
“Stop. This isn’t funny.”
“No, you’re right, it’s not. He’s your boss. He’s there to make sure no one hurts you.”
“So, you’re saying I shouldn’t sleep with him, then.”
“No, I’m not saying that. I’m just saying what I’m saying.”
“You’re saying what you’re saying. That makes no sense at all.”
“I’m saying that it’s complicated.”
My hand flies up and waves around the room. “Hence my phone call to you!”
Felix looks up at me, concerned. I pat him on the back, and he goes back to napping, resting his head on my thigh.
“Okay. Fine. Let’s analyze.”
“Yes.” I’m filled with relief. “Let’s.”
“He’s your boss.”
My eyes roll to the ceiling. “We already covered that.”
“He’s hot.”
“Very.” I smile. He is so, so, so, so cute. If I were sixteen again, I’d write his name all over my notebooks.
“He’s willing, I assume?”
“He’s already kissed me twice. Or did once and almost did a second time.”
“Who stopped the second attempt?”
“I did.”
“Good.”
“Why is that good?”
“It gives you the upper hand in his mind. Okay, so what else?”
“I don’t know.” I’m depressed now. This is so messed up. “I can’t think straight where he’s concerned. Yes, he’s my boss, and yes, he’s here for professional reasons, and no, I don’t want to get my heart broken. That’s all I can think of.”
“What about the sex? Have you thought about that?”
“Not really.” My face flushes at the very idea. “I mean, I’m completely attracted to him, but every time I get near him, I get so flustered I say stupid things, and then I have to get away so I can think straight.”
“Wow. Geez. You’ve got it bad.”
“I know!” I whine, collapsing back onto my bed. I stare at the ceiling while Felix climbs up to lie down on my chest. “He’s smart and tough and hot and sexy, and he cooks like a professional chef, and . . .”
“And he’s your boss.”
I fall down to earth, crashing from my high to a very low low. “Yes. And he’s my boss.”
“So what’s the worst thing that could happen? If you slept with him, I mean.”
I think about it for a few seconds. “I guess we could end up not working out and then it would be awkward, and I’d have to quit my new job.”
“And you’d be right back where you were before: no harm, no foul.”
“But I like my new job.”
“Sure, but I’m just saying, the worst-case scenario doesn’t make you worse off than you were before you met him.”
“Except for the broken heart part.”
“Meh, hearts heal. Trust me.”
“I could also lose the respect of my coworkers.”
“Who you don’t even really know, and once they get to know you, they’ll forgive you. Besides, maybe they’d like to see their boss in a relationship.”
“What do you mean?”
“Everyone knows bosses who are getting laid regularly are much more reasonable.”
“Everyone knows that?”
“Yes.”
“I didn’t.”
“Well, you’re young.”
“You’re only thirty-two!”
“I’m wise beyond my years.”
“Okay, so are you telling me I should have sex with him, then?”
“I’m saying you should follow your heart, because if it doesn’t work out, you’ll be fine, and if it does work out, you’ll be finer.”
I grin from ear to ear. “I love you, Jenny. You’re so smart.”
She sighs. “You were going to sleep with him anyway, no matter what I said.”
“That’s not true. I value your opinion.”
“Yeah, but you’re hot for him. No amount of common sense is going to stop that train from running down the sexy track. Just go and get it over with. I predict you’ll be glad you did.”
I’m suddenly filled with the urge to see Ozzie. “Okay. I’ve gotta go.”
She laughs. “So quickly? Don’t you want to discuss the new computer program I’m working on? It’s very exciting.”
“Sure it is.” She works for a company that makes calorie-counting applications for phones. “I’ll hear about it this weekend.”
“We’ll be seeing you this weekend? Sure you won’t be too busy having all kinds of dirty sex with your new boyfriend?”
“He’s not my boyfriend.”
“Not yet.”
“Jen, stop! You’re putting pressure on it now!”
“Okay, fine. I’ll stop. I love you. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”
“But you’re a total ho-bag.”
“Once upon a time, I was! Have fun!” she trills before disconnecting the call.
I sigh with happiness as I let the phone fall to my side. My sister has green-lighted this affair. My sister and The Fates have spoken. It’s time to tell Ozzie how I feel.
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
I find Ozzie in my living room, hovering over his computer. He’s put a blanket that used to be on the back of my couch up over the windows. Sahara is sleeping in the hallway. Felix joins her there, taking up residence on her paws. She makes room for him to settle in, and my heart melts just a little more toward her. She is now permitted to toot in my living room.
“What’s going on?” I ask, taking a seat near Ozzie. I pick up a magazine to show how cool and relaxed I am. He’ll never know I’m burning up inside, imagining telling him that I want his body against mine. I hate that Britney Spears is singing in my head right now.
To distract my overly busy brain, I practice casual pickup lines in my head as I wait for his answer:
Yo u look hot in that shirt. Maybe you should take it off.
Do you have a girlfriend? Do you want one?
I was wrong, Ozzie. So wrong. Take me to bed now.
Do you come here often?
Sex. I want some. Rawr.
“Nothing much,” he says, oblivious to my mania, “just checking various cameras we have set up around town.” He swivels the laptop in my direction. There are several windows open on his screen. When I recognize the houses in one of them, I point.
“Hey! That’s our target from today!”
“Yeah.” He makes the window bigger. “Looks like we’re getting some activity.”
There are two cars parked outside and one just arriving. The images aren’t great quality, the individuals walking around lit by streetlights only, but they’re good enough for one thing.
“That’s that guy!” I say, getting up so I can kneel by the computer. “Right there. That’s baldie.” I point to the screen.
“Yes, it is,” Ozzie says, typing something out really fast on his keyboard. The image gets bigger, as if the camera on the drone is focusing.
“Whoa,” I say. “That’s seriously cool.”
“Not nearly as cool as what you’re about to see.” He shares a quick gleeful smile with me and then flicks over to another screen. To his right on my desk is a joystick I hadn’t noticed before, plugged into the USB slot of his computer.