“Was Carrie in on the bet?” she asked tentatively, as if she knew the mere mention of her name would rile me up.  It was nice she was trying to be sensitive with me… it gave me hope that all was not over between us just yet.

“Yes,” I frowned, “she was… and it made me so angry that she’d do that to you – that she’d reel you in and let you think she was your friend when all along she planned to do that to you.”

“And you can honestly say you never had the same intention?” she challenged, sounding desperate to hear me affirm her question.

“I swear on everything I have that I’m telling you the truth when I say that I’ve never wanted to go along with this,” I said as slowly and as clearly as I could, making sure I didn’t once break eye contact with her, not even to blink.  “That’s why I’ve held back – not because I don’t want you, but because I was terrified of hurting you or losing you if you found out about all this.”

“So why are you telling me?”

“Because I don’t want you to think that I’m stringing you along, or that I’m using you, or that I’ve been dishonest to you, or that I don’t want you…” I listed, and could have continued but felt I’d made my point, “because I want you more than anything I’ve ever wanted in my whole life, and that will never change.”

She fell quiet again, contemplating my words as she watched me as I watched her.  I realised that whatever she said next would pretty much dictate our future… if we had one.  There was something in her eyes, though, that gave me hope, and as the silent seconds ticked on and became what felt like hours, I had a strong feeling that all would be right.  In some weird, twisted way everything would turn out for the best.  I felt a smile begin to play on my lips as her head tilted to one side yet again, but in an innocent way, a non-challenging, non-judgemental way.

“So, if we slept with each other, you wouldn’t claim the money?” she eventually asked me as I felt us gravitate towards each other from virtually the opposite sides of the room.

“I wasn’t planning on sleeping with you,” I said playfully.

“But, hypothetically, if we did…?” she left the question hanging, and despite the lighter tone of our conversation I still felt it very necessary to be serious with my reply.

“No, I wouldn’t claim the money,” I insisted.  “I couldn’t give a fuck about the money!  I want you, not the cash.  To me, you’re the prize – not the 20 fucking grand.”

She smiled, and I knew I’d said what she wanted to hear.

“So long as you don’t claim, then I don’t feel used,” she concluded, making one last final step towards me, placing us directly in front of one another.

“I’d never use you,” I told her, reaching out to tuck a rogue strand of hair behind her little ear.  She smiled and leaned towards my touch, her eyes glancing down my face and twinkling under the office strip lights.

“I’m glad you told me about the bet,” she said softly, bringing a hand up to cup my cheek. “However delayed it is, and however angry it made me.  It’s just… it’s disgusting and should be stopped.  Does Julian know about it?”

“He’s in on it, I believe,” I sighed, “as are most of DJC.”

“So all of those gifts and cards, chocolates, wine, et-cetera, were all a bid to get me into bed?” she laughed.

“Yeah,” I sighed, practically whispering as her fingertips stroked my cheek.  My eyes fluttered slightly when I felt her hot breath on my lips.

“Guys are so unimaginative,” she whispered, gazing into my eyes as she brought her body flush against my own.

“Yeah,” I muttered, at a loss for words.  My mind just didn’t work when she was that close to me, doing those things to me with her eyes and her fingers.

“Kiss me,” she sighed.

“What?” I asked incredulously, thinking my ears were playing tricks on me.

“You heard.”