Warm On a Cold Night ★ JENLISA

Chapter 17

The line at the hotel's breakfast buffet is surprisingly long and not so surprisingly filled with other attorneys Jennie recognizes from the conference. It's been a long four days away from home and everyone looks just about as tired as Jennie feels.

The fact that she doesn't remember much of her facetime conversation last night with Lisa because she was more than half asleep at the time is more than embarrassing and has never happened before. But the big hotel bed was too empty for her to wake up feeling rested. They may not have been officially together for long, but Jennie is not too proud to admit that she hates sleeping alone.

And so, with a yawn, and a nod hello to Tyler, she grabs a warm plate from the end of the breakfast bar and begins the slow trudge through the complimentary breakfast station. They have one morning session left before a quick flight home.

And she has plans tonight, oh she has plans.

Her phone buzzes in her hands and a brilliant burst of warmth floods through her when she sees those two initials that make her head swim. Although she has a sneaking suspicion that after the good morning text she gets back in reply to her own sent a half hour ago, she will find nothing but teasing on her tired state from last night.

Except that when she opens it, it's not.

It's definitely not.

She gulps and the empty plate slides from her hands to the floor, narrowly missing her feet. Embarrassed, she picks it up and excuses herself from the line, moving to a more secluded corner.

Because when she opened her text from Lisa, she was not met with a good morning or a good-natured ribbing on her exhaustion. No.

Oh no.

She was met with a picture.

A picture of Lisa from the chin down. Her neck, her collarbones, her chest filling the frame. Her pressed oxford unbuttoned and a new, definitely new, definitely too racy for work, lace bra peeking out from the shirt.

And Jennie's knees are shaking.

The poor excuse for a bra barely covers her. Sheer and low, oh god it's so low, with the hint of pink behind a well placed black flower.

The flimsy excuse for fabric enticing, hardly covering the soft swell of her.

The caption comes before Jennie has even processed the image.

LM: Looking forward to later…

And yep, yeah, uh huh, Jennie definitely short circuits.

Her eyes can't stop staring at the stretch of pale skin, perfectly soft and ready for her lips. Her hands. Her teeth.

Another text comes through while the window is still open.

LM: Polis. 7PM.

Jennie gulps.

Breaks out in a sweat.

"Hey, Jennie, you alright…" Tyler draws her attention away from the phone with a kind smile. "Everything okay?"

"Yeah-" her voice is shaky, she clears her throat. "Yeah, sorry. Shit, I didn't get food." She floods with embarrassment, still recovering from Lisa and now having to do so in front of her new boss.

"I grabbed you a danish," he signals to the wrapped pastry in his hand. "If we leave now we can hit that Starbucks across the street. I've had enough of the swill here."

"Right, okay, yeah." She shakes the lusty thoughts from her brain and works on getting through the next twelve hours.

"Just one more session, Kim. Then home." He offers cheerily, mistaking her deep dive into lust for lack of excitement.