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CHAPTER SIXTEEN
The law firm’s annual Christmas Eve Party started right on schedule. John Griffin stood behind the podium for his holiday announcement. He always gave a short speech to let everyone know how good a year they had and what to expect for the next year. Looking sharp in a tuxedo, he waited for his wife to join him before he spoke. Everyone—senior partners, junior partners, associates, paralegals, interns, and their dates—were all dressed in formal wear including Anna.
Because they thought she was a future member of the Griffin family she needed to make a good impression. She changed outfits seven times before choosing a slinky pink evening gown that she’d been told made her skin glow. Sleeveless, the material completely covered her front with a halter top that tied around her neck. The front of the dress made her look sweet, virginal even, but the back was sexy to the extreme. If the back plunged down another inch, it would be indecent. She couldn’t wear undergarments without showing an inch of the material, but no one could tell she was going commando.
Feeling sexy and a little naughty, she considered whispering her secret into Skylar’s ear while they danced in the banquet room.
“As you know, I have retired to spend more time with this lovely lady,” John said while Joann beamed at his side. He blotted his sweaty forehead with a handkerchief square. “This will be my last Christmas Eve party with you, so let me congratulate you all on a profitable year and thank you all for your hard work.” He raised his champagne flute. “I hope you will work just as hard for my son.”
He paused until the applause died down.
“I would also like to welcome the lovely Anna Burkhart to our family. My son has found a partner in her, and equal in every way, and I couldn’t be more pleased. We’re hoping the wedding will be soon.” He winked at her. “Not to rush you or anything, but we are all looking forward to making you an official Griffin.”
People murmured, their smiles bright.
Anna’s cheeks burned with guilt over her deception.
John gestured for Anna and Skylar to join him behind the podium. She froze on the spot. Skylar applied gentle pressure to her back and walked her to his father. John kissed her on the cheek. In front of everyone she worked with and their significant others John said, “My wife told me what happened to your father. When Becca got married, I walked her down the aisle. It would be my great honor if you would allow me to do the same for you.”
Her eyes filled with tears, and a tremor shook through her slender frame making her feel like a reed blowing in the wind. Not trusting her voice to emerge from her dry throat, she threw her arms around John’s neck and gave him a quick hug. Then she placed a kiss on his cheek. His skin felt hot, but she didn’t think much of it. Some people were human heaters. She could barely think straight. His sweet gesture meant so much to her that it robbed her of speech.
Skylar stepped in. “Thanks, Dad. That means a lot to both of us.”
He hugged his father, and John clapped him on the back.
John raised his glass a final time. “Just one more thing. I want you all to enjoy this evening. You deserve it.”
They applauded.
Skylar took Anna by the arm and steered her to the elevators. Warmth spread through her at the sight of ‘their’ elevator. She blushed. Her nerve endings tingled, and her heartbeat quickened. Unlike the last time he pushed her into one, she completely trusted him and didn’t feel the need to ask questions. Wherever he wanted to take her, that was fine with her.
To her surprise, Skylar took her to her own office. Her breath caught in her throat. He’d filled the room with bunches of lilies inside a variety of vases. Once again tears of happiness came to her eyes. What had she done to deserve so many wonderful people in her life? Doubts and fear of the unknown pushed to the front of her mind, but she quickly dismissed them. No man would buy a woman a roomful of lilies only to walk away.
“I brought you up here to give you a present,” he said. “I got you something special.”
A flash of their fake-proposal story came to mind. Hadn’t he told her he would fill her office with flowers before getting down on one knee and offering her a diamond ring? Of course, she already had his mother’s ring on her finger. But he could ask her to remove it so he could propose properly.
Half-teasing, she said, “I hope it isn’t another ring. I’ve already had two. Most girls just get one.”
She put her arms behind her back to hide her trembling hands, and she concentrated on her breathing. In and out. Nice and slow. If she freaked out, he might not go through with it.
And she suddenly realized she wanted to be his wife more than anything.
He went behind her desk, bent over, and returned with a square package. Wrapped in a lovely red paper that sparkled with a gold bow on top, the box was a perfect cube the size of a small toaster perhaps. She steeled her facial features to keep from showing disappointment if she didn’t like the gift. She was quite sure there wasn’t anything romantic inside. It had been sweet of him to buy her a gift, whatever it was, so she should at least be grateful for the gesture.
“Do you want me to open it now?” she asked.
Grinning, he nodded. “That’s why I brought you up here. Believe me. You are going to want to open this without my family watching.”
Her heart fell to her stomach. Did that mean it was something naughty, something he would enjoy more than her? She hated it when men used holidays as an excuse to buy skimpy costumes or sex toys for their women.
Her cheeks warmed at the thought: his woman. Was she his woman? Did he think of her that way?
She gently pulled on the bow until the ribbon slid off the package.
“There you are!” Joann shouted from the doorway. “It’s your father! Becca called 9-1-1. Hurry! We need you.”
Skylar raced from the room with his mother, and Anna nearly dropped her present. The blood drained from her face. The same feeling she’d experienced at hearing her family had died in a car crash hit her again like a sledgehammer. John had become a stand-in father for her. If he died, the loss would be close to unbearable.
