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Felicity hated to intrude. Austin and his sister were close, and Felicity knew he didn’t get to see her as often as he liked. That’s why when she visited, he took a rare day off. The last thing he needed was for Felicity to barge in, distracting him with work-related issues. She wouldn’t have bothered him if this hadn’t been time sensitive.
In the elevator on the way to the top floor of Austin’s building, Felicity took a deep breath and checked her posture. She was glad she’d worn a simple, black, sleeveless dress and black slide sandals. She anchored the file folder with the papers under her arm and smoothed the skirt with her palms. It was a comfortable outfit but still looked pulled together enough to feel good about this impromptu visit and seeing Austin’s sister again.
It wasn’t the first time she had been in his condo. In fact, she stopped by several times a week, on the evenings when Austin worked through dinner, to pick up the meals Derek, his personal chef, prepared for him and left in the kitchen’s warming drawer. But it was the first time she had been in the condo with him at home.
The elevator doors opened, and Felicity gripped the folder with both hands and stepped into the foyer.
“We’re in the living room,” Austin called. “Come on in.”
Austin, Savannah and a good-looking guy she hadn’t yet met all looked up expectantly as she entered the room. They were all holding beer bottles and looking quite content.
Austin stood.
“Felicity!” Savannah handed her beer to the guy she was sitting next to and jumped up to greet her with a warm hug that made her feel as if she was her long-lost best friend. “I’m so glad I got to see you on this trip. It’s been too long. Chaz, this is Felicity Schafer. Austin would be lost without her. Seriously, he wouldn’t know his next move without her. Felicity, this is my boyfriend, Chaz Mendoza.”
After she and Chaz exchanged pleasantries, Savannah took Felicity by the hand and led her over to the space on the couch next to Austin. “Sit down and join us. Can I get you a beer?”
“Thank you, but I’m just here for Austin to sign papers. I wouldn’t have bothered him with it, but I have to scan them and send them off before the end of the day.”
Felicity glanced at Austin to gage his reaction. She wanted to stay—even if it was only for a minute, but she didn’t want to intrude.
“Join us,” he said. “Please.”
His invitation spawned a crop of goose bumps on her arms. She ran her hands, envelope and all, over them.
“Savannah, get her a beer,” he said. “You do like beer, don’t you?”
Savannah and Chaz disappeared into the kitchen before she could decline.
“Is that okay?” she asked. “I don’t want to be rude to your sister by refusing, but I hate to intrude on your time together.” She held her breath. In a way, it felt as if she was testing the vibes she’d felt last night at dinner, but everything felt a little off-kilter.
“Sit down,” Austin said. “It’s fine.”
Discreetly, she inhaled a deep breath. Right now, a beer and some time with Austin sounded exactly like what she was craving.
She lowered herself onto the edge of the couch. Austin was sitting on the middle cushion. She sat next to him, leaving a respectable amount of space between them.
“Do you want to sign these now?” She held out the file. “It would be just like me to have a beer and go off without you signing them.”
He smiled at her in that way that made her wonder what he was thinking. “Then you’d have to come back and have another beer and you probably wouldn’t make it back to the office.” He smiled, and her heart melted a little more.
“Great, thanks for reminding me,” she said. “If anyone at the office smells beer on my breath, I’ll need you to tell them it was okay.”
“If anyone questions you, just send them to me.”
“Even your dad?”
“He’s out of town, remember?” Austin said with a grin.
Felicity’s stomach knotted, but that’s when Savannah and Chaz came back into the room. As Savannah stood in front of her offering her the beer, she looked back and forth between Felicity and Austin with a knowing expression on her face.
