AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Sure.”
Max and Jin had spoken at the same time, wearing matching expressions of skepticism.
“Good, I’m glad we agree.”
I turned with those parting words and left the building, figuratively and literally. On my walk, I pulled up the mobile app — which I had designed, not to brag or anything — of my favorite coffee shop and placed an order for a large Americano and two of these amazing stuffed pastries they made in the shop. He could quickly eat one of the ham and cheese stuffed pastries whenever he had a second. They were incredibly filling, in addition to being delicious. And the shop was on the way to his office, so it only took me an extra five minutes to pop in and grab my order.
The St. James firm was, naturally, in one of the prestigious historic buildings right in the heart of Savannah. The rent on this place would be ridiculous. I pushed through the door and was immediately greeted by a receptionist seated at a desk next to the bank of elevators.
“Can I help you?” she asked with a smile, her French-tipped fingers not even pausing as they flew across the keyboard.
“Oh, um, I’m delivering coffee and lunch to Holden?” It came out sounding like a question. “Holden St. James.”
I didn’t know why I felt the need to clarify which Holden I was talking about, or why I had made it sound like I worked for a delivery service. So many questions, so little chill.
“Name?” Click, click, click.
My hands were getting so sweaty that I was worried his coffee was going to slip out of my hand and splash across the pristine marble floors.
“Sutton Buchanan.” I tried to infuse some confidence into my voice this time.
She didn’t respond or look away from her screen or otherwise acknowledge my response. The only sound in the lobby was the rapid clicking of the keys.
“Go on up, Sutton. He’s on the third floor,” she finally answered, meeting my gaze with a smile. “You can’t miss his office.”
“Thank you.” I smiled back, then headed toward the elevators and used my elbow to press the call button. The doors slid open a few seconds later, and I felt a swell of nerves as I made the short trip up to his floor. I looked down at my clothes, suddenly wishing I hadn’t worn jeans, my tied-dyed sneakers and a pink shirt with Mario characters printed all over it. Very classy, professional look.
I had to take a deep breath before I stepped off, reassuring myself that Holden would be happy to see me and wouldn’t mind the intrusion. I would be quick. He didn’t even have to say anything — or I could leave it outside his door and sneak away before he saw me. I would just text him a —
“Sutton!” The sound of Holden calling my name jerked me out of my panicked planning.
My gaze met his, frantically searching for one of those telltale signs that he was happy. I found it at the corners of his eyes, those little wrinkles appearing to tell anyone who was paying attention that he was smiling.
“Hi,” I breathed. The butterflies in my stomach had nothing to do with nerves this time, and everything to do with Holden in a tailored dove-grey suit, his hair styled by plowing his fingers through it. “I come bearing gifts.”
I cringed internally.“I come bearing gifts”? Real smooth, Sutton.Why couldn’t I have just said “I brought you coffee and lunch” like a normal person?
His eyes dropped to my hands and a real smile graced his face. The butterflies turned into a stampeding herd of buffalo.
“Come to my office.” He rested his hand on my lower back, steering me toward his office. I had to concentrate extra hard on his next words instead of the hand on my back. “Opposing counsel asked for a thirty-minute break to review his client’s answer before it goes on the record.”
“Sure, that makes sense.” It did not make sense at all, but I was still striving for that elusive cool, casual Sutton. “I didn’t mean to interrupt. I just thought I would drop this off since you didn’t have time to grab anything. I know you’re busy.”
He opened the door and ushered me inside. I walked into his office and set the coffee and bag on an empty corner of his desk, then turned to take in the space. It was warm and masculine and so utterly Holden that I couldn’t stop the smile that spread across my face. His eyes traveled over my face, lingering on my smile.
“What’s that smile for?” He sat in his chair, motioning for me to take one of the empty leather chairs on the other side of his desk.
I reached into the bag, passing him his pastry and coffee before taking a seat.
“Your office is just so...you.” I looked at the bookcase, packed with bound legal books, and then at the wall of black-and-white pictures carefully positioned around his diplomas. Some of the pictures looked like they were from Beacon Hill. “I guess I always pictured you as more of a sleek, modern kind of guy. Now that I know you, this fits you so much better.”
He looked around the space like he was seeing it with new eyes.
“The interior designer my mother hired to decorate my apartment would agree with the ‘sleek and modern’ assessment, but this is where I spend most of my time, so.” He shrugged, taking a sip of his coffee. “An Americano?”
“I took a guess. You seem like the no-nonsense kind of coffee drinker. Was I right?”
“Yes, it’s my usual order. Thank you. I should have said that earlier but you surprised me.”
