by Amy L. Gale
“One o’clock. You’re fired if you don’t talk to him,” she said as she started the car and waited for Holly to climb in.
She opted for jeans. Luckily, they still fit, and she wondered how long it would be before her fabulous wardrobe had to be replaced with new clothes that allowed for expansion in the midsection.
A white cotton button-down shirt, nice and crisp, finished her casual look. She’d pulled back her hair to match the perfectly knotted tails worn by the perky-titted bar staff. She upped the color on her makeup, and her Chanel sling-back pumps in black gave her a feeling of sophistication. The armor of a woman going to battle against girls who appeared half her age.
She was back at Maguire’s at one o’clock on the dot, asking to see the owner.
“He’s not here yet. Would you like to wait at a table?” the perky girl who’d sat her hours earlier asked.
“I’ll just wait at the bar.”
She sipped water and waited. Fifteen minutes. Thirty minutes. Forty-five minutes. It was ridiculous. She’d downed four glasses of ice water, and now she had to pee.
She stomped from the barstool and shoved open the door to the ladies’ room. She’d come. She’d waited. She was leaving.
Holly washed her hands, pulled open the door to the restroom, and barreled into the tiny hallway that lead toward the kitchen, falling smack against the man she’d been waiting to see.
He steadied her as she managed her footing. “Are you all right?”
“I’m fine.” She wanted to turn back toward the bathroom and throw up. “Sorry.”
“Holly?”
The air rushed out of her lungs. “You remember me?”
“Yes!” His dark eyes were fixed on hers, and his hands lingered on her arms. “I’ve been thinking about you for months. How have you been?”
“Oh, I’ve been better.”
He nodded and kept looking at her as though she were supposed to sport another head, but then his lips parted into a sexy smile that made her knees weaker than they were. “It’s so good to see you. Let me buy you lunch.”
“No, Tracy and I came for lunch earlier. I, well…” Her world was getting fuzzy, and she felt her knees begin to give out.
“You don’t look like you feel well. Come with me.” He laced his arm around her waist and pulled her against his tall, muscular frame. Holly sucked in the scent of him as though this was surely the last time she’d be this close to him. He walked her through the noisy kitchen to a room in the back where he’d set up his office and shut the door. “It’s not too big a space, but have a seat.” He helped her to an old brown leather chair in the corner, which looked like it had been a favorite piece of furniture for most of his life, then poured her a glass of water from the water dispenser next to her.
She took the cup and sipped. “Thank you.” She studied him for a moment and was glad to know that she would have recognized him anywhere. Though she hadn’t been able to remember his name, that wavy dark hair she’d run her fingers through, and his strong jaw she’d lined with kisses, were fresh in her memory.
“Are you okay?”
“Fine,” she said, but the knots in her stomach told her differently.
“I can’t believe you’re here. I was really hoping I’d get to see you more. But after your birthday party, well things became a bit of a blur.”
“Tell me about it.”
“I woke up and you were gone.” His eyes flashed his disappointment, and it took Holly by surprise. “I only had a first name. I didn’t know where you were. I asked everyone who was here that night, but no one had seen you or your friends before.” He locked his eyes on her. “Holly, I didn’t want it to end like that.”
“You would rather be the one to walk out?” The sarcasm that emerged didn’t sound like her at all. Was this part of pregnancy too? She couldn’t keep down her food or her emotions?
“No. I didn’t want either of us to walk out. I don’t take women home and do what we did without knowing them.”
“Great, makes me feel so much better.”
“No, Holly, that’s not what…” He stopped. He knelt on the floor before her and looked up at her. “I really liked you.”
“Did all the mojitos I had make you decide that?” Her voice was snappy and defensive. What kind of mother was she going to be if she couldn’t even have a normal conversation with a nice man?
“No. I’m not a one-night-stand kind of guy. I didn’t deal with your rejection very well.”
“My rejection?” Her voice rose.
“You walked out.”
“I thought we were done.” She might not have remembered his name, but she sure remembered walking out. Embarrassment had her fleeing the hotel room. Her mother had made it very clear to her. Men didn’t respect women who hopped into their beds. They had their fun with those and tossed them away. It had been a conscious decision to leave while he was sleeping. She never would have guessed she’d be in the position she was in now.
He sat back on his heels and his shoulders dropped. “You thought we were done? So you’re a one-night-stand kind of girl?”
“I most certainly am not,” she said as she tried to stand, but found herself still too disoriented. She plopped back down into the chair and let her vision clear. Disappointment still filled his eyes. Had she actually gone to bed with a man who sat in this stuffy little office with no windows and dreamed of a future and a wife? “I’ve never, ever done anything like that. Never,” she said clearly, hoping to get her point across.
“I believe you.”
“You do?”
“Yes. I’m a good judge of character.” She wanted to believe him, but she’d seen his wait staff. Then again, those chocolate brown eyes didn’t look like the kind that would shield lies. There was no reason to not think he was sincere.
She willed her heart rate, which had created an uncomfortable pounding in her chest, to slow. “Holly Jacobs,” she said, reaching her hand out to him.
“Gabriel Maguire.” He took her hand and held it instead of shaking it. She noticed how small her hand was in his, just as her body had been when she’d leaned up against him when he walked her to the office. Usually, it would make her feel insecure, but she didn’t feel that way at all.
“Nice to meet you.” She finally smiled, and he returned the smile with a dashing one of his own.
“Likewise,” he said with a wink, his dark eyes twinkling. “Don’t you leave here today without me getting your phone number. I wasn’t kidding when I said I want to see more of you.”
“It’s a good thing.” She sucked in a breath and tried to keep the smile on her face. She wanted to remember the moment when he looked at her and was smitten. There was that chance she’d never see that look of admiration again. “It looks like I’ll be in your life for a while.”
“I like the sound of that.” His voice dipped into an almost husky groan that twisted her up inside. “So what made you come here? Were you thinking of me too?” The smile on his lips softened, and she dreaded what she was about to tell him. She wanted to remember just how handsome he was right at that moment, looking at her like the sun rose and fell with her.
“Haven’t stopped.” She pursed her lips together. “But you might change your mind about wanting to see more of me.”
“Oh, I don’t think so.” He lifted his hand to her cheek and gave it a gentle brush with his thumb.
“I’m pregnant.”
He didn’t pull his hand away, but it stilled. He didn’t speak, but only sucked in a deep, sharp breath and let it out slowly. The twinkle in his eyes clouded over and Holly knew she’d lost him, again.
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www.5princebooks.com
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