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“He must get his brains from his mother,” I said.
“Oh, stop it,” Ann said, blushing.
“Beauty and brains from what I’ve seen,” I continued.
“Really?” Ann asked, looking up.
“Hell yeah, you looked really hot in that dress last night. Super sexy. I really should have been more appreciative of the beauty sitting right beside me,” I said turning up the smolder.
Ann blushed a furious pink, looking away, unable to say anything. She looked stunningly sexy when she did that, and I was happy to have made her blush.
Suddenly, I found myself wanting more with Ann than the fake relationship arrangement. Getting to know her made me want her in every way I could. Not just in terms of sex, which would, of course, be awesome, but I was also beginning to think that we could actually have a relationship.
I hadn’t really thought about such things for the past few years. What happened with Carly’s mom had really had an effect on me and I’d had a little girl to raise, not leaving much time for anything other than work. I just really wasn’t sure what effect this would have on Carly.
It had taken her a while to get used to Kimberly at first and I was really trying to give her a sense of security. I didn’t know what it would do to her to suddenly have a new mother figure, if not stepmom, if things got that far.
And what if it didn’t work? That could well be even worse. Not least in terms of Carly’s social stability. She might only be three, but she was really smart and seemed to know what was going on. It didn’t seem right to bring a new person into our already fragile dynamic only to have them disappear. There was no way that would be good.
It really was best if Ann and I kept things formal, professional, at least for the time being. No matter how much I might want her. In my experience, spontaneous or libido-based decisions didn’t usually turn out too well.
The meal went off without a hitch, my focus on Ann the entire time, doing my best to make up for the Blue Room fiasco. There were no sudden calls, though Ann did seem to be a bit on edge about this. Once bitten twice shy, I suppose.
“Are you sure you don’t want me to pay?” Ann asked when the check came.
“You paid last time,” I said, trying to make a joke at my expense.
“Fair enough,” she said, putting her purse back down.
We kissed goodbye, and I headed out into the warm night, feeling a lot more positive about the wedding and our fake fiancé plan.
Chapter Eleven
Ann
I felt better than I had in years.
I’d never really been brimming with confidence, not even when I was young and knew everything. Even in the army I was more of a follower than a leader, with no real thoughts or designs on advancement. I was always doing the best I could on whatever job I was given.
The only place I really felt myself was in the courtroom — fighting the good fight when I had all the facts I could marshal on my side. Even though the system was meant to be adversarial, it never really felt that way to me. No matter how much the opposition tried to psych me out. It was a satisfaction I refused to give them. Now I was starting to feel confident in my romantic life too. I knew that the relationship between Russ and me was supposed to be fake, for the benefit of my family. Though part of me couldn’t shake the fact that it was starting to feel real. Or at least that I wanted it to be.
I was still a bit sore that he had left The Blue Room so quickly. Not so much that he did it, but when it had happened. Leaving me alone with the proposal photos and boxes of food, right when everyone was paying the most attention. It was really embarrassing. My only real conciliation was that the cheesecake was really good. Confusing things even more was that since our successful date two nights before, I couldn’t stop thinking about him. Not the least because we had been flirting shamelessly. Not just with words. There was a lot of that too, particularly on Russ’s end. The hottie being quite the wordsmith when called upon. He could have a successful career in limericks if the law ever fell through.
In addition to the words, there was also the touching. Kissing for example. Lots of kissing when no one was around. Some quick and soft, some long and passionate, all with gentle caresses to my cheek that made me vibrate.
A bit rarer but no less arousing were the strokes down my back when passing in the halls and gentle squeezes on my ass when coming up behind me in the break room. Russ’s strong, warm hand making me so wet I would have to take a break to touch myself in my office. It was all getting to be too much to be honest and if I didn’t do something soon there was a distinct possibility I might go insane with lust.
