Free Changing His Game (Gamers #1) by Megan Erickson Page A

that technically this isn’t breaking any company rules, but I can’t afford for my coworkers to find out anything that would make them question my performance.” She took a shaky breath and gestured between them and then around the room. “I can’t do this. You make me…forget myself.”
    He got that. This was reckless. And ironic, in that he would tell Grant to fire any employees caught having sex in the office. His face burned. “Is that good or bad that I make you forget yourself?”
    She bit her lip and eyed him. Then she took a step forward, the tie dangling in her hand. “It’s good. It’s so incredibly good. And that’s why it’s bad.”
    He cupped her cheek and she leaned into it, closing her eyes for a moment. “This job is everything to me. I worked so hard to get where I am. My team respects me and my boss respects me. And I’m applying for a big promotion. I can’t let anything get in the way of that. I can’t let them find a reason to not give it to me.”
    He rubbed his thumb along her cheekbone. “You work hard.”
    She nodded. “I do. I work really hard. And I love my job.”
    He lowered his hand and tugged her waist so she stepped closer. He wanted to feel her against his body again. He needed it like air, especially knowing this would be it. He’d cut himself off, cold turkey. He could already feel the phantom withdrawals. “What do you love most about your job?”
    She smiled and ran her finger over a button on his shirt. “Well, I love video games. Been playing since I got my first game system—A Nintendo SNES—when I was a little girl. My brother and I used to play Mario Brothers.”
    He nodded because he remembered it. His dad couldn’t afford a Nintendo but he’d played at friend’s houses.
    “And,” she continued. “I love helping consumers. Sorting out which game is best. We receive emails all the time from kids who save every penny they make mowing lawns. At the end of the summer, they can afford one game, and our magazine helps them choose.”
    Austin huffed out a breath. He’d been one of those kids who mowed lawns.
    “The assistant editor is leaving and I have a chance to take his place.” She lowered her voice to a whisper. “I want it. I want that job so badly, I can taste it.”
    Austin hadn’t known Bradley was leaving. This was even worse than she knew. Because now if anyone found out about them, Marley could be accused of using alternative means to get the job and Austin could be sued for sexual harassment.
    Fuck.
    Marley wasn’t staying in that neat little compartment he’d placed her in. He found his control slipping around her, with every touch of her hand, every laugh that echoed in his ears. He’d come there with the intention of fulfilling her fantasies as well as his own, and he ended up becoming enraptured by her. Her beauty and ambition. Her strength in putting all her trust in him when he touched her. God, what would it feel like to trust someone that much?
    She made him want… She made him want more.
    And that was how he knew he had to stay away from her, because he was having trouble detaching. Normally, he was able to maintain a distance during sex, so that afterward, leaving was only a matter of buttoning his shirt.
    With Marley, he wanted to drag her back home and spend all day in bed, hearing that laugh and feeling that smooth skin beneath his palms. He wanted to wring those whimpers from her until she was hoarse.
    And hearing her talk about her career… Well, it made him admire her even more, and also cemented his decision to let her go. This wasn’t just about him. This was also about her. He would never forgive himself if he messed up the career that she so loved.
    As if her mind was heading down the same path—although with much less information—she took one step back, her hand slipping from his chest. Another step and they were no longer connected. No part of her touched him. All he felt was cool air. And he hated it. The loss