Chapter Twenty-Four: Caught in the Act
The morning after kiss lessons, Jay walked into the office with a smile she couldn't wipe off her face.
Keifer had dropped her off with a kiss that made passing cars honk. He'd whispered something in her ear that made her blush all the way to her desk.
Now she sat there, attempting to focus on spreadsheets, while her brain replayed every moment of the past twenty-four hours.
The flour fight. The kiss lessons. The way Keiran had caught them. The way Keifer had looked at her afterward like she was the only woman in the world.
"Earth to Jay."
She blinked. Yuri stood at her desk, phone raised.
"What?"
"You've been staring at the same cell for five minutes. It's a zero. You can't stare at a zero that long."
"I can stare at whatever I want."
"Sure. But Keif's been watching you from his cabin for ten minutes. Also staring. Also not working." Yuri glanced back. "You two are disgusting. I love it."
Jay threw a paperclip at him. He dodged, laughing.
---
The morning dragged.
Meetings. Calls. Emails. The usual chaos of running a billion-dollar company.
But every time Jay looked up, Keifer was there.
Walking past her desk. Bringing her coffee. Finding excuses to touch her shoulder, her hand, her cheek.
By lunchtime, she was wound tight.
Her phone buzzed.
Keifer: My cabin. Now.
Jay: I have work.
Keifer: I'm the boss. I'm giving you a new assignment.
Jay: What assignment?
Keifer: Me.
She laughed out loud, earning strange looks from nearby coworkers.
She stood, grabbed her tablet (for cover), and walked toward his cabin with as much professionalism as she could muster.
---
The moment the door closed behind her, she was in his arms.
"Finally," he growled against her lips.
"Keif—people will notice—"
"Don't care."
He kissed her—deep, desperate, like they'd been apart for weeks instead of hours.
She melted into him, tablet dropping forgotten to the floor.
"I've been thinking about this all morning," he breathed between kisses.
"Me too."
"Every time you bent over your desk—"
"Keif!"
"What? I'm honest."
She laughed, pulling him closer. "You're impossible."
"Your impossible."
---
They made it to the couch somehow.
Not that the couch was far. But the kissing started at the door, continued against the wall, stumbled past the desk, and finally collapsed onto the leather cushions.
"This is a bad idea," she murmured against his lips.
"The worst."
"Someone could walk in."
"No one walks in without knocking."
"Yuri walks in without knocking."
"Yuri will die if he walks in."
She laughed, and he swallowed the sound with another kiss.
His hands explored—her waist, her hips, the curve of her back. Hers tangled in his hair, pulling him closer.
"I love you," he whispered.
"I love you too. Now stop talking."
He grinned. "Bossy."
"Your bossy."
---
The door opened.
"KEIF, I NEED—"
Yuri froze.
Keifer and Jay froze.
Three seconds of absolute silence.
Then Yuri slowly raised his phone.
"Don't you dare," Keifer growled.
"I'm not filming. I'm just... savoring the moment."
"YURI."
"This is going in the group chat."
"YURI, I WILL END YOU."
But Yuri was already backing out, phone still raised, expression of pure evil glee on his face.
The door closed.
Silence.
Jay buried her face in Keifer's chest. "He filmed us."
"He didn't film. He just... savored."
"Same thing!"
"Different thing."
She looked up. "Your face is red."
"Your face is red."
"We're both red."
"We're both doomed."
---
Thirty seconds later, Jay's phone exploded.
Percy: YURI SENT A PHOTO. YOU TWO ON THE COUCH. KEIF'S HAND—
Jay: DON'T FINISH THAT SENTENCE.
Percy: TOO LATE. I FINISHED IT. WE ALL FINISHED IT. THE GROUP CHAT IS WILD.
Ella: Girl. The couch? Really?
Honey: At least use the desk next time. More professional.
Rakii: I NEED DETAILS. FOR DOCUMENTATION.
C.N.: Baby girl. I'm happy for you. But also traumatized.
David: KEIF'S FACE. I CAN'T. THIS IS THE BEST DAY.
Felix: I'm just going to pretend I didn't see this.
Bridget: Felix, you're smiling. I can tell.
Felix: I'm not.
Bridget: You absolutely are.
Mica: COUCH SEX IN THE OFFICE. ICONIC.
Freya: Mica. They weren't—
Mica: They were STARTING. Same thing.
Calix: I'm staying out of this.
Aries: Keif. My sister. In your office. On the couch. Explain.
Keifer: I can explain—
Percy: HE CAN'T. THERE'S NO EXPLANATION. WE HAVE PHOTOS.
Yuri: I have video.
Everyone: YURI NO.
Yuri: YURI YES.
---
Jay looked at Keifer. "We're never living this down."
"Never."
"Our children will hear about this."
"Probably."
"Our grandchildren."
"Definitely."
She sighed, then started laughing. He joined her.
Soon they were both collapsed on the couch, laughing until tears streamed down their faces.
"What's so funny?" Yuri's voice came through the door.
"GO AWAY, YURI."
"I have popcorn!"
"GO AWAY WITH YOUR POPCORN!"
---
They did eventually leave the cabin.
Separately. With ten-minute intervals. To avoid suspicion.
It didn't work.
Every person they passed smiled knowingly. Whispered behind hands. Glanced toward the cabin with new respect.
Jay's desk had a sticky note from Yuri: Next time, lock the door. Rookie mistake.
She crumpled it, face red.
Keifer's phone buzzed constantly. He ignored all of them.
By five o'clock, they were both ready to escape.
---
The car ride home was quiet.
Then Keifer started laughing.
"Stop," Jay warned.
"Can't."
"It's not funny."
"It's a little funny."
"Yuri has VIDEO."
"Of us making out. Not the other thing. We weren't doing the other thing."
"Yet."
He glanced at her. "Yet?"
She shrugged, smiling. "We were interrupted."
He pulled the car over.
"Keif—"
"Yuri can wait. The group chat can wait. Everyone can wait." He turned to her. "I love you. I want you. And I'm not waiting until we get home."
"Right here? On the side of the road?"
"Desperate times."
She laughed, pulling him close. "You're insane."
"Your insane."
"Always."
---
They made it home eventually.
Much later than expected.
Yuri had sent approximately seven hundred messages. Percy had started a betting pool on when they'd actually "seal the deal" (his words). Aries had threatened violence. C.N. had demanded they get a room (and lock it this time).
Keiran greeted them at the door. "Mamma! Pappa! You're late! Keigan said you were doing grown-up stuff!"
Keigan, behind him, mouthed I'm so sorry.
Jay scooped up Keiran. "Grown-up stuff is boring, baby. Tell me about your day."
"My day was GOOD. Rex and I had adventures. We fought dragons. We won."
"That's amazing. Tell me everything."
She carried him inside, leaving Keifer in the doorway.
He watched her go—this woman who'd become the center of his world—and smiled.
His phone buzzed.
Yuri: You're welcome for the footage.
Keifer: I'm going to kill you.
Yuri: Worth it.
---
That night, after Keiran was asleep and Keigan had retreated, Jay and Keifer stood on the patio.
"Today was ridiculous," she said.
"The best kind of ridiculous."
"Yuri has video."
"I'll buy his silence."
"He'll never sell."
"I'll threaten him."
"He'll never stop."
She sighed. "We're doomed."
"Completely." He pulled her close. "But we're doomed together."
"Together," she agreed.
He kissed her—soft, sweet, no interruptions.
And somewhere, Yuri was probably filming through a telescope.
They didn't care.
---
End of Chapter Twenty-Four