First Love

by Lena Hart

  Something warm flashed in his eyes and he leaned forward her, his gaze fixed on her lips. Sabrina held her breath. The anticipation of his mouth over hers again made her heart quiver. She knew she should pull away, should demand to know what he was doing, but she stayed right where she was and waited…

  Except the kiss she’d eagerly awaited never came.

  Instead, Jake leaned close to her ear, his lips lightly brushing the sensitive lobe, and whispered, “I’ve missed you too, babe.”

  He pulled away and there was a wicked gleam dancing in eyes. Sabrina released her breath with a small chuckle, her amusement overriding her disappointment. “Tease,” she muttered.

  “What was that?” he asked too loudly.

  Sabrina shook her head and returned her attention to her premade salad. She glanced up from the onions and celery she had discarded to the side to find Jake watching her.

  “What?”

  He chuckled and nodded toward her lunch. “For a second there, I almost forgot about your…preferences.”

  “You make it sound like it’s a bad thing.”

  “It can be.”

  “There’s nothing wrong with having choices. And I choose not to eat onions. Or celery.” She emphasized her point by shoving another celery to the side.

  Jake sat back in his seat and studied her. “Okay. What if you had a choice between eating a fried egg, wrapped in iceberg lettuce and covered in buffalo sauce, or destroying the world, what would you choose? And starving is not an option,” he quickly added.

  “Those are not good options.”

  He shrugged. “But you have to choose. You can save the world by simply exploring the unknown or… you can let the world die and save your stomach the experience of eating a fried egg lettuce wrap with buffalo sauce. Which, by the way, could turn out to be quite delicious.”

  Sabrina stared at him searchingly, trying to gauge whether he was joking or asking a trick question. “I don’t know,” she said truthfully. “What if I’ve already had a fried egg lettuce wrap before and know exactly how it’s going to taste? And what it’ll do to my stomach.”

  His gaze piercing. “But no two wraps are made the same.”

  Sabrina turned away from him and stared out the large window overlooking the city. She suddenly knew exactly what he was asking her. Was she willing to let go of her hang-ups and give a relationship with him a try?

  “I chose the wrap once, Jake. And you know what? It turned out bitter and disgusting.”

  He was silent for a moment. “What happened?”

  Sabrina sighed. “I had this internship I started while I was finishing up my last year in grad school. It was at MacArthur, Murphy and Company, one of the best consulting firms in the state. And one of the hardest to get into. With a lot of hard work, though, I managed to get in.” Sabrina leaned her elbow on the table and rested her chin on her hand, lost in the memory of that time. “About four months into my internship, one of the newly promoted executives took notice of me. At first I thought it was just professionally, but then it became obvious that he was interested in me romantically as well. He was good looking, smart, and ambitious. And I figured we had a lot in common.”

  “Yeah, I get it,” Jake cut in. “He was dreamy. So then what happened?”

  Sabrina glanced at him, startled then quickly stifled a smile at his jealous outburst. “Anyway, I only went on a few dates with him, but the next thing I knew, there were these nasty rumors going around that we were having sex in the office and that I didn’t have to work so hard because I was really there to keep him happy.”

  “Sounds like you worked with some real idiots.”

  “Yeah, well he was the grandson to one of the partners so people were buying it. And it only got worst because like an idiot, I didn’t know he was engaged. He was the one who came on to me but I was the one branded a home-wrecker.” He cursed and she took comfort in knowing he was indignant on her behalf. “Eventually, the rumors got so bad that the company decided to let me go. They claimed that it was because my supervisors didn’t find me fit for the position, but I knew it was because of the rumors. Though all the whispering and looks got to me, it was nothing compared to being fired for something I had no control over.”

  “You didn’t try to fight it?”

  “Even if I had, it wouldn’t have changed anything. They were dead set on getting rid of me and putting an end to the rumors. It was easier to just get rid of me, and they did. And all my hard work went down the drain.”

  Jake said nothing for a while, and she wasn’t particularly eager to see his reaction to how stupid she’d been.

  “I’m sorry you were forced to go through that. The double standard can be a real bitch sometimes. But I could never hurt you, Sabrina. And I never would. I want us to have a real chance to develop something here, without any of the baggage. I would never lie to you and I never want you to lie to me.”

  “That goes without saying, Jake. I would never hurt or lie to you either.”

  Jake nodded, silent for a moment before he asked, “Then what’s it going to be? The egg wrap or the end of the world?”

  Sabrina studied him closely. She certainly wanted him to be in her life, even if it was just as friends. Eventually, though, that wouldn’t be enough. It wasn’t enough now. But did she dare let go of her inhibitions once and risk her career again?

  “So, if I choose the wrap, I save the world?”

  His eyes were intense and he took her hand in his, slowly rubbing the pad of his thumb over her knuckles. “You save us.”

  She held his gaze, letting her reserves and uncertainty melt away. She chose to trust him.

  She chose him.

  “Okay. I’ll eat the wrap.”

  Chapter Eight

  “Jake, it’s against company protocol to reassign company equipment without proper authorization. You know that, right?”

  Jake clenched his teeth as he endured the reprimand from the IT director. He was having one shitty week, and this one took the cake. No harm had been done by setting up Sabrina with the new equipment the department had lying around. The new system he’d set her up with hadn’t even been assigned to anyone, which was why he’d set it up for her to begin with. Hell, he’d even told his manager about what he’d done. Yet, instead of being grateful that one of the company’s employees was now working on reliable equipment, they felt the need to slap his hand for breaking some stupid company policy. It was a damn joke. He really needed to start looking for a new gig.

  “This is the second notice I’ve received about you reassigning equipment,” Ray continued. “Both times for Sabrina Monroe?”

  Jake frowned at the older man. Was he referring to the old piece of shit he’d swapped out on her first day? How the hell did he know about that?

  “She needed a new computer. Hers had died, and she had an urgent meeting to prepare for.” He might be stretching the truth, but Sabrina had been desperate to get to work and he had only wanted to help.

  “I understand that,” the willowy thin man said. “Which is why we hadn’t confronted you about it sooner, though in hindsight, perhaps we should have. Now, this makes it twice that you’ve gone against company policy and, unfortunately, we’re going to have to set an example that things like this cannot be tolerated.”

  Jake gaped at the older man, the muscles in his gut clenching. It suddenly dawned on him what must have happened.

  Fucking Dale Connors.

  Jake knew without a doubt that he was behind this. The man’s taunting words rang clearly in his head. Or you’ll do what? Break my computer? Or swap it with a broken one? Don’t you think you’ve done enough of that?

  Dale must have told Ray about the computer-swapping Jake had done for Sabrina on her first day. The only other person who had known about it had been Sabrina. It made sense that she would confide in the bastard.

  “So, am I fired?” Jake asked though he already knew the answer.

  Ray sighed. “We appreciate al
l the work you’ve done here, Jake. And you’re more than welcome to use me as reference, but unfortunately, we’re going to have to terminate your contract early. Tomorrow will be your last day.”

  With that, Jake was dismissed. It burned him to think that he’d wasted his time in a company like this. If he had his way, he’d tell them where they could shove their policies and walk the hell out of there. But he wouldn’t be stupid and burn the last bridge he had at this company. Ray’s reference could come in handy in the future.

  He’d been contacted by a few headhunters, though he hadn’t seriously considered any of them, thinking he would make his start someplace else. Now that he had one good reason to stay in Chicago, Jake began to seriously contemplate accepting the last offer he’d been presented with. It was with a small start-up, and the pay wasn’t great, but the opportunity for more autonomy and growth was there. He could make it work.

  Instead of heading back to the IT room, Jake headed to the elevators and up to the marketing department. He thought of leaving a note when he didn’t find Sabrina at her desk, but decided against it. He had an idea of where she probably was and headed to the small conference room her team often used. Since tomorrow was his last day at the company, he would steal whatever time he could to be with her tonight.

  Jake hadn’t meant to eavesdrop, but when he heard Sabrina’s next words, he hesitated before going into the conference room.

  “I’m sort of…seeing someone right now.”

  “Is it that guy in IT?”

  Jake tried to dial down his irritation at Dale’s question, but failed. There was a moment of silence, and Jake assumed she must have nodded because Dale’s next question sounded equally annoyed. “Is it serious?”

  There was another brief pause before Sabrina replied, “Not yet.”

  Jake smiled at the small note of impatience in her tone.

  “Good,” Dale said. “That means I’ve still got a chance.”

  Jake quickly lost his smile. He was really getting tired of the guy. Dale’s obvious attraction to Sabrina not only annoyed him, but the man’s ploy to get rid of him had also been the last straw. He officially lost his last shred of patience with the bastard.

  Jake entered the conference room just as the two were gathering their work. Sabrina looked up and her eyes widened with surprised delight. Jake walked over to her, virtually ignoring the other man. Jake had initially expected to lose his cool at the sight of the man, but he was surprised by the indifference he felt toward him. Jake still hated the idea of Sabrina spending so much time with the bastard, but knew it was his possessiveness of her that played a large factor in the way he felt. He knew he had nothing to worry about.

  If he’d been so inclined, Jake would have thanked the man for forcing him to jumpstart his stalled career, and allowing him to move his casual relationship with Sabrina into something more serious.

  Jake, however, wasn’t inclined to say shit to the guy.

  “Hey, how late were you staying tonight?”

  Sabrina’s face broke out into a wide smile. “Tonight’s my lucky night. We finished early, so I get to go home and have a proper meal.”

  Jake found her delight contagious, and was grinning like a fool. “I have a better idea. How about I take you to Josie’s? You’ll love it.”

  Dale closed the lid of his computer with a sharp snap and left the conference room. Sabrina frowned after him, but Jake barely spared the other man a glance. Since Jake couldn’t prove that the man had been behind getting him fired, Jake wouldn’t bother confronting him about it—or mention it to Sabrina. Nothing good would come out of it and it would only be a waste of time. So instead of letting the other man take up anymore of his energy, Jake focused on the beautiful woman in front of him.

  “So what do you say? Josie’s. Tonight. Sound good, babe?”

  She turned back to him and gave him a brilliant smile. “Sounds great.”

  ****

  “Tomorrow’s my last day.”

  Sabrina turned to Jake, her eyes wide at the unexpected news.

  “What? Why?” They sat side-by-side in the plush, semi-circular booth at Josie’s. She didn’t regret taking the small leap of faith where he was concerned and was glad she had agreed to the impromptu dinner tonight at the new restaurant. It gave them a chance to spend more time together outside of work, but now he was leaving the company for good?

  “My contract ended early.” He fiddled with the napkin on the table, not looking at her. “But I have another offer lined up, and will start next week.”

  Sabrina stared back down at her unfinished dinner. That meant no more daily lunch breaks with him or little notes on her desk—the things she’d come to look forward to every day.

  “Are you excited about it?”

  Jake shrugged. “Sure. The pay’s okay and I’ll have more opportunity for growth there.”

  She should have been thrilled about the news since it would allow them to take their relationship further, without any scrutiny. Instead, Sabrina found that she already missed him.

  “Then I’m happy for you,” she murmured. “Congratulations.”

  Jake hooked his finger under her chin and turned her to face him. “Don’t look like that, baby. Just because I’m leaving, doesn’t mean this is the end for us. Hell, we can finally make it official.”

  To her delight, he leaned down and brushed his lips across hers. He lingered over her lips, letting her get a small taste of him. It wasn’t the same knee-buckling kiss he’d given her outside of her apartment, but it was still just as intoxicating. When he pulled away, she kept her eyes on him. He was certainly an attraction worth breaking all of her rules for.

  “So does this mean this is our first official date?”

  He grinned. “Yeah, I guess it is.”

  Sabrina took one quick look around the quiet restaurant, then turned and leaned toward him. She fitted her lips lightly against his before she placed her hands on his shoulder and deepened it. The kiss quickly turned hot and heavy. He slanted his lips over hers, devouring her until she could think of nothing and no one else. After all the times she’d wanted to feel his lips against hers again, Sabrina completely gave in to her desires.

  All she wanted in that moment was him.

  For the next few minutes, their meals were forgotten as they savored and sampled each other’s taste. Her heart thudded in her chest and her breath came out in short, unsteady pants. They finally broke away to catch their breath. She kept her eyes on him as she tried to compose herself.

  “What happens to us now?”

  Jake looped his arm around her shoulders and drew her close to his side. “Now, you get to tell all those idiots sniffing around the office that it’s official. That your jealous boyfriend is the only guy taking you out for dinner and wine.”

  Sabrina shook her head at him. She knew exactly who he was referring to. “What’s your problem with Dale, anyway?”

  “I don’t have a problem with him,” Jake said evenly. “I just don’t like the guy.”

  Sabrina brows pulled together. “That doesn’t make sense.”

  His arms tightened around her. “It doesn’t have to. As long as he knows you’re mine and stays away, I have no problem with him.”

  “I can’t avoid him, Jake. He’s on my team. We’re going to have to work late together from time to time, so you’re just going to have to trust me.”

  “I know. And I do trust you. It’s him I don’t trust.”

  Sabrina laced her fingers with his. “Well, he’s not part of this equation. It’s just you and me.”

  “I like the sound of that,” he murmured before leaning down for another kiss. “How about we make it official. How would you like to spend the weekend together?”

  She stared at him and wondered what he meant by that. Did he mean day and night? Was she ready to take their relationship that far?

  Jake tightened his hand around hers. “I don’t mean that. I’m not trying to rush that part of our re
lationship. I can wait.” She smiled and relaxed against him. “But I figured since I won’t get to see you during the weekday, that maybe we could spend the weekends together.”

  With a gently squeeze of his hand, she reluctantly shook her head. “I would love that, but I think Dee is planning something big for me this weekend. She told me to keep it open.”

  “Okay. How about the rest of tonight, then? It’s my turn to have you all to myself for a night.”

  Her smile widened. “I can make tonight work.” She wanted him all to herself, too. Away from the office and their work responsibilities. She waited to see if he was going to ask about her plans this weekend, but when he didn’t, she decided to inform him.

  “You know, this weekend is my—”

  “Birthday. I know.”

  She smiled. “You remembered?”

  “Of course I did. I remember everything about you. You’re…memorable.”

  Warmth spread through her at his words. He always had that effect on her, making her feel cherished and loved and the most important person in his world. “And you, Jacob Landon, are dangerous.”

  His brow pulled together slightly. “How so?”

  All traces of humor fell away, and Sabrina said thoughtfully, “Because I can see myself falling in love with you.”

  Jake’s expression softened and he pulled her to him. “Good,” he whispered into her ear. “Because I’ve already fallen hard for you.”

  Chapter Nine

  One month later…

  “Happy birthday, babe.” Sabrina handed Jake the small box, her heart thudding in her chest.

  Jake looked at her curiously, and then took it from her outstretched hand. “Another one? If you’re not careful, I’m going to get used to this.”

  Sabrina laughed and took the seat beside him. “Well, don’t. I just wanted to wait until everyone left.” She leaned against his arm and propped her chin on his shoulder.