Our Secret To Keep.

Chapter Thirteen - I Need To Stick to it.

Blythe

I left Kade's place at five-thirty this morning while he was still sound asleep. I am exhausted. We didn't get to sleep until two, but damn, it was so good. I just can't let it happen again, not now when we are business partners and my sister likes him. Yeah, yeah, I have said that before, but I really need to try to stick by it.

I have just pulled outside of the office a little earlier than planned. Since I was awake early, I decided to hit the gym and grab breakfast before I came. I am already on my second large coffee and probably have many more to go because I will need them. I am probably the first one here, well, except the receptionist.

I pull into my parking space, heading inside and straight to the floor.

Our receptionist, Adele, smiles when she sees me come in, "Good morning, Adele." I smile as I approach.

"Good morning, Blythe. Your sister is in your office." She replies.

I always tell my employees to address me by my first name. I prefer it that way.

"Emily?"

She shakes her head, "No, Bethany."

I sigh, thank her, and stroll towards my office. Why is she here? She never comes to my office, and I would rather not have to deal with her first thing.

I take a deep breath before entering, "Good morning, Bethany. What brings you here so early?" I ask politely.

She turned to face me, "I came to see Kade, but Adele wouldn't allow me in his office, so she told me to wait here."

It makes more sense now; she's here to see Kade, not me.

"I don't know when he will be in. Why come here? Can't you just call him?"

Memories of last night run through my head as I talk to my sister. A slight pang of guilt takes over me. I don't know why; I shouldn't be feeling guilty. I met Kade before she did; he isn't even interested in her.

"I will wait. I tried calling him last night, but he ignored my call."

Oh, Bethany, only if you knew what he was doing when you tried calling him. I stop from smirking at the thought.

"I am sure he was probably busy," I reply.

"Yes, I am sure."

I wonder what it will take for my sister to get the hint he is not interested.

Our conversation ended there. I sat at my desk to check my emails and my schedule. I can't really do much else until Kade and the rest of our team arrive. There is an awkwardness in the room. We have nothing to say to one another. I could make small talk, but it would be pointless because she would answer with one-word replies or just nod. It would be a waste of my time.

I see her keeping an eye out to see if Kade is coming. I stop from rolling my eyes. I really hope she doesn't start to act desperate because she is so much better than that. I shake my head and focus on my computer screen.

"Kade,"

The sound of my sister's excited voice makes me look up. Kade stands at my office door, looking confused.

"Hey, Bethany. What brings you here?" he asks.

"I wanted to see you." She grins and stands to go greet him with a hug.

He glances over at me with a what the fuck look on his face. I shrug and laugh, which makes him glare at me. If he wants her to back off, he needs to find a way to do that, which will make it stick because I am not getting involved.

I could tell he didn't know how to react to her, so he didn't say anything. When they parted from the hug, she smiled brightly at him.

"I am wondering if you wanted to grab lunch later?" she asks, resting her hand on his arm.

"I'm sorry, but I can't today. There is too much work," he replies.

Liar. He could take an hour for lunch.

"Oh, okay." She says, disappointed.

Kade sighs, "I am sorry."

"Maybe another time. Just let me know when you are free." She smiles.

He nods and smiles back. She says goodbye to him, completely ignoring me and leaves. Kade closes my office door and comes over to my desk.

"You couldn't have told me she was here?"

"No, I am not getting involved with all of that. Tell her straight rather than lying to her if you aren't interested. She isn't going to give up unless you are straight with her, Kade." I sigh and shake my head.

He groans, sitting down, "I know, but I don't want to upset her or do anything to make your dad get pissed at me."

"Well, it will be worse if you continue to lead her on and then reject her somewhere down the line. You are a grown-ass man, Kade, be honest with her."

He runs his fingers through his hair, "I will. I promise."

"Good."

"When did you leave this morning? Why didn't you wake me up?" he asks.

"I left at five thirty. I didn't wake you up because you were asleep, and I told you it was a one-night thing. I had no reason to stay longer or wake you up," I answer honestly.

He seemed disappointed with my reaction, but I was clear last night it would be a one-night thing.

"Yeah, I know, but a goodbye would have been nice."

I can hear the annoyance in his voice. What reason does he have to be annoyed? It isn't like we are together.

"Don't talk to be with that annoyed tone, Kade. I made it clear what was going on between us. You have no reason to get pissed at me."

If I had known this was how he was going to react, I would not have let anything happen between us last night.

"Whatever. I need coffee," he says, gets to his feet, and walks out of my office.

What the hell is his problem this morning? He is acting like I have done something wrong. I groan in frustration and get back to what I was doing. He better not continue to piss me off today. I am sure he will get over it soon enough. Last night was incredible, just like the times before, and it will be hard to stay away, but I need to. It is what is best for everyone. I don't need any distractions because this is an important project.

Hopefully, the day will get better.