Her Favorite Rival by Sarah Mayberry Page A

stake. The report. Their jobs. Their future career prospects.
    There had been rumblings around the office lately, rumors that Whitman had been meeting with outside personnel consultants. That could only mean one thing—layoffs. Only an absolute idiot would put his head in the noose by having a hot and heavy affair with a colleague.
    Still, what a way to go...
    He started as the passenger door opened and Audrey slid into the seat.
    “They gave us a free serve of roti bread.”
    She was clearly delighted by the gesture.
    “Someone’s won a customer.”
    “Yep. I freely admit that I am a sucker for the unsolicited extra portion.”
    The conversation remained light as they returned to Makers and grabbed cutlery from the staff room, although he was aware that they were both working at it, thanks to his stupid energy-to-spare line. Back in the meeting room, Audrey passed him a napkin and slid his noodles toward him.
    “May the best man win,” she said.
    Even though he was starving, he didn’t immediately start eating. Instead, he watched as she peeled her lid off and wound her first mouthful around her fork. Even though the extra workload had been the exact opposite of fun, he was suddenly fiercely glad Gary had chosen her to be his coauthor on the report. And not only because it gave him a chance to strut his stuff for Whitman. For months he’d watched Audrey laugh with everyone else instead of him. It was good to be on the receiving end of one of her smiles. Good to know that he could make her laugh. Good to get to know some of what went on behind her golden-brown eyes.
    She glanced up and caught him staring. “What?”
    “Just waiting for you to be the first one to spill something down your shirt. Lets me off the hook,” he said easily.
    She tilted her head ever so slightly to one side and he knew she didn’t believe him. Not entirely. But she wasn’t about to call him on it, for the same reason he wasn’t about to be honest.
    They both had too much to lose.
    * * *
    A UDREY WORKED FROM home the following morning, answering emails and taking calls in between packing for the conference. She also managed to put on a load of washing—a miracle—and empty the decomposing matter from the bottom of her crisper. It was hard to tell for certain, but she thought it might have once been a packet of carrots and a bunch of celery. Martha Stewart she was not.
    She was more than happy to be busy, because it stopped her from dwelling too much on what had happened with Zach last night: the moment in his car when he’d made that sexy little comment about energy not being a problem, then that moment later when she’d caught him watching her so closely.
    There had definitely been a vibe there. An intense, very adult vibe that had robbed her of several hours’ sleep last night as she tossed and turned and tried not to think about what she was thinking about.
    Zach’s body.
    Zach’s mouth.
    Zach’s hands.
    At twelve she shut down her laptop, tucked it into its travel bag and called a cab. She was at the airport by one-thirty, perfect timing for her two-thirty flight, since she wasn’t one of those travelers who got a buzz out of running down the concourse screaming for the attendants to hold the gate.
    She off-loaded her luggage, bought herself a giant latte and went in search of her departure gate. She caught sight of Megan when she arrived, and waved before making her way to her side.
    “Bring on the pain,” Megan said drily as Audrey dropped into the seat her friend had been saving.
    “Three days of sucking-up opportunities, remember?”
    Megan pulled a face before delving into her handbag and producing a muesli bar. “You want one? I came prepared for bad airline food.”
    “I just ate lunch, thanks.”
    “Me, too. But I could eat my own head I’m so hungry. I don’t know what’s wrong with me at the moment—I can’t stop eating.”
    Audrey narrowed her eyes. “You said that the other day. Are you sure you’re