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“Oh gosh, I’m sorry.” I quickly took the twenty-pound monster bag from his hands, ignoring the tingle that raced up my wrists again as we brushed up against each other.
“Thought you might need those. Especially since I just poured my life out into them.” He didn’t move from the door, and I realized how close I was, practically tucked under his chin as I settled my bag on my shoulders.
“And it'd be awfully hard to drive home otherwise.”
An awkward pause filled the miniscule space between us. Then he flashed me a smile, putting us both out of our misery. “Until next time.”
“Right. Next time. Goodbye Liam.”
His sharp eyes jumped to mine when I said his name; the bright color darkened as he took one last look at me before he closed the door with a slow nod.
My traitorous thighs shook as I stared after him, waiting until the last sliver of him had disappeared before I turned to the small waiting room. Fluorescent lights sang the song of their people, and a man a few chairs down gave me a cursory glance before my gaze landed back on his executive assistant. I found her watching me with a soft smile on her lips. She knew about my shaky thighs and my even shakier resolve. I could feel it.Eek.
I raised a hand, pointing to the door. “Um, well. Is he always so, always so…?” The right word, the socially acceptable word, vanished from my mind.
What I wanted to ask her: Was he always so devastatingly handsome? Or magnetic? Do his eyes always turn that shade of silver when he smiles?
I rolled my hands together, searching for the right word and finding nothing. I gave up, shoulders slumping as I turned to make my exit. The faster I got out of there, the better.
His assistant gave me a pitying smile, rising from behind her desk, revealing a neat red sheath dress and practical black flats.
“Is he always like that?” My hands gestured wildly around the last word, emphasizing it as the ultimate catch all.
“Not always, Miss Grove. He must like you.” She winked at me.
Well, that was just great. I sputtered, running a hand over the mess of my hair as I moved toward her desk.
She dropped back to her chair, manicured fingers falling over the keys as she prepared for whatever I might request of her. It was a motion born of habit and experience. I envied her easy comfortability with her job. I didn’t think I’d ever had that before. “Did Mr. Macklen want to schedule you a follow-up appointment? I’d be happy to set one up now if you’d like.”
“No, not yet. He’s going to think about it.” My voice must’ve revealed my rapidly diminishing hope, because she gave me another one of those soft, warm smiles before turning back to her screen.
“Thank you for the offer though,” I finished lamely. My mother would’ve been horrified at my lack of manners. I gave her the brightest smile I could manage. It wasn’t her fault that her boss was making me jump through hoops.
I kept my shoulders tall and my chin high as I marched down the hall, the visitor badge slapping against my thigh as if to remind me with every step that I would never be allowed back into this place. He’dthink about it. That was essentially a no. It was the same way that one sent a child from one parent to the other, hoping that someone would grow enough of a spine to shut them down.
In this metaphor, of course, I was the child, Liam Macklen was just an errant parent who didn’t want to be the one to tell me I wasn’t going to get what I wanted.
Damn him.
I was almost to the elevator when I heard my name. “Ms. Grove, Ms. Grove!”
The same executive assistant hurried up to my side. This time her face was flushed, her eyes shining as she reached me. I held the elevator door open, watching her. A grumpy-looking suit behind me cleared his throat meaningfully. Which I ignored.
“It’s just Ashlyn. Is everything okay?”
She smoothed her still perfect hair as she smiled at me. “Mr. Macklen wanted me to give you this. His personal contact info is on the back.”
I took the small rectangle from her. I’d already found his basic company info online, but this was far more detailed. And on the back, in a looping black script, was a note.
Liam’s personal cell, followed by a series of numbers. I blushed again. “Is this his home address? Thank you, but I—”
She cut me off with a quick pat on the arm. “Don’t overthink it, Ms. Grove. He’s a good man. I’ll be sure to remind him to reach out.”
“I don’t think you under—” I started, but she was gone, her jaunty steps taking her back down the hall to her infuriatingly handsome boss. I ran my fingers over the handwritten numbers, a smile stealing across my face.
Surprise, surprise.
“Until next time,” I mimicked, stepping into the elevator and firmly selecting the ground floor. Flipping the little paper rectangle over and over in my fingers, I didn’t stop the grin that spread across my lips.
