Falling for Maria

by Heather B. Moore

  Heat pulsed through Maria at the feel of this man, his hard angles complementing her curves, and she was feeling a bit lightheaded by the time he started to trail kisses along her jaw, then down her neck. She’d been kissed plenty of times, but Walker kissed her like he cherished her. Which was ironic, since he wasn’t budging on the company policies… although he was currently breaking a pretty major one.

  “Walker,” she whispered. “You’re my boss.”

  “Mmm,” he murmured against her skin, his breath warm. He buried his face in her neck and ran his hands up her back.

  Goose bumps broke out along Maria’s skin, and she let herself melt against him. She ran her fingers along his neck above his shirt collar. He turned his head and kissed her right below her ear. “I’m really glad you left your purse,” he whispered, then brought his hands up to cradle her face. “You’re beautiful, you know that?”

  Before she could respond, he was kissing her again, and this time it was slower, his lips tasting hers and his tongue setting off a small fire in her stomach. When he pulled away, he gazed into her eyes. “I don’t know if I should apologize or kiss you again.”

  “Maybe both?” Maria said, feeling like she had just stepped into another world that had turned everything normal in her life upside down.

  Walker grinned.

  Then he leaned forward and kissed her lightly. “I should probably apologize too,” he said. “I mean, I think I just broke a couple of company rules.”

  “Hmm,” Maria said, running her hands over his shoulders, then back around his neck. “If you can change the office relationships policy, what about the others?”

  He shook his head. “It’s not that easy.”

  “You mean you can break a corporate policy by kissing me and then still tell me there’s no compromise?”

  Walker tangled his fingers in her hair. “I’m only in your office until Tuesday, and even though I do oversee the training of you and your coworkers, I’ll be working back in the corporate office. So…”

  Maria watched him as he seemed to choose his words carefully.

  “I’m thinking that we aren’t officially in the same office starting on Wednesday, and so we won’t be having an inter-office relationship.”

  “You’re splitting hairs,” Maria said, drawing away from him, although he threaded his fingers through hers, keeping her close. “If you can come up with that justification, then I want amendments to the policies in our specific office. Whatever you do with the rest of the corporation is up to you.”

  Walker was quiet at this.

  Maria considered it a victory that he seemed to be at least thinking at it.

  “You know I’m good at what I do,” she said.

  “I know,” Walker said. “And maybe there’s something that can be done, but I’d have to discuss things with my father and the rest of the management team.”

  “How hard can that be?” she asked.

  Walker chuckled, his eyes scanning her face. “You’re used to getting your way, aren’t you?”

  Maria shrugged. “Not always.”

  Walker raised a brow. “So tell me which wish of yours I can grant.”

  “You want to be my personal genie?” she said.

  “Well, since it seems I can’t stay away from you or stop thinking about you,” he said in a slow voice, moving close again, and wrapping his arms around her waist, “I might as well ask.”

  “I can’t think of any special requests right now, but I’ll let you know,” she said.

  “Sounds good,” Walker said, leaning down and kissing her again just as his cell phone rang. He ignored it and continued to kiss her.

  “You can get that,” Maria said.

  “No,” Walker said.

  Maria laughed when the phone stopped ringing and started up again. Walker pulled out the phone from his pocket and turned it off. “That’s better.”

  Maria’s heart hammered as she arrived at work Monday morning. Walker would be in the office for the next two days, and she wondered how she’d gotten herself into this situation, again.

  First, she’d dated Josh secretly for months. And she’d made out with her new boss in her apartment. Now she’d have to coexist with him while keeping another secret.

  After Walker had left and the surprise and elation and warm tingles all over Maria’s body had faded, she started thinking everything through. She’d even called Sydney and June. June hadn’t answered, so Maria had poured out all of her woes and stupid decisions onto Sydney. And the more Maria talked to her friend, the more she worried that she was just some sort of hookup for Walker while he was doing the employee training.

  But then again, she had met his parents— coincidentally— his parents seemed pretty normal, and she hoped that meant that Walker wasn’t leading her on, only to dump her tomorrow.

  “You’re early,” Josh said as she set her purse down on her desk.

  She’d been so wrapped up in her thoughts that she hadn’t even seen him leaning against the doorframe of his office. It took her a moment to come up with a reply, despite the fact that she’d dated this man. She wondered if he could tell what she’d been doing the night before just by seeing the rising blush on her face.

  “I’ve a few things to get a head start on,” she said. “I feel like I’m still catching up from all the unexpected meetings last week.”

  Josh nodded and started walking toward her. Oh no.

  When he reached her cubicle, he shoved his hands in the pockets of his khakis and said, “Have you forgiven me?”

  Maria’s brain didn’t seem to be working, because she had no idea what he was talking about. She blinked once, then twice.

  Josh moved closer, and Maria noticed he was wearing her favorite cologne, the cologne that she’d in fact bought for him. It brought back memories that she didn’t feel like resurrecting right now.

  “For everything,” he said in a quiet voice.

  She stared into his blue eyes— the eyes she used to trust. “Everything? What are you getting at?”

  Josh smiled and leaned against her desk and folded his arms so he was only inches apart from her. “For not backing you up in that meeting last week. For not introducing you to my parents and friends.” He brushed his hand against hers.

  Maria stared at his hand as it linked with her own.

  “For not being open about our relationship,” he continued, leaning toward her.

  Was he going to kiss her? In the office? No one was here yet but Lisa, who couldn’t see them. Maybe ten days ago, Maria might have found it romantic, but she’d written off Josh. Completely. With or without Walker invading the edges of her life.

  “Josh,” she said, putting her hand on his chest to stall him. “We broke up, remember? It’s not about forgiving. That should happen if we’re still together. Which we’re not.”

  Josh kept on leaning, his mouth curving into a smile, amusement in his eyes, as if he wasn’t taking her seriously. Maria had to practically shove him away. Then she moved to the other side of the cubicle and folded her arms. “I already told you, Josh. It’s over. Too much has happened, and too much never did happen.”

  Josh narrowed his eyes. “It’s about him, isn’t it?”

  “Who—”

  “I know about the ties, Maria,” Josh continued. “And I’ve seen the way he watches you.” He stepped forward, his eyes blazing. “How can you be so stupid? Walker Harris has a different girl every weekend. You’re just the flavor of the week.”

  Maria burned with anger as she stared at Josh. “How do you know about Walker’s personal life?”

  He barked out a laugh. “At least you’re not denying it. Ever heard of Instagram?”

  Maria opened her mouth to reply, but the sound of the front door opening on the other side of the wall stopped her from saying anything.

  Josh stepped out of the cubicle just as Ben walked into the office with his Starbucks cup.

  “You guys are early,” he said, then went to his c
ubicle.

  Maria held her breath, but Ben said nothing else, and it was clear that Josh wasn’t, after all, going to talk “relationship” with someone else within hearing distance. He just shook his head, as if she’d disappointed him— again— and walked to his own office. Where he belonged.

  She sat down at her computer and turned it on. She wasn’t going to check Instagram… she just wasn’t because first, it would play right into what Josh had said, and second, it wasn’t like she and Walker were really dating anyway. They’d shared a few kisses. Well, a lot of kisses. But there had been no commitments between them either way. She started to browse through company emails when she stopped on one that was titled Requested Revision to Company Dress Code.

  Her heart hammered as she opened the email to see that it was from Walker to a list of executives. Her name wasn’t on the list, so he must have bcc’d her. She checked the time the email was sent. 1:00 a.m. that morning.

  She scanned through the email, then read it slowly. The tingles came back. Walker had used some of her arguments in his email to the executives, about how the employees, specifically at her company, enjoyed success regardless of their casual dress code.

  “So?” Walker said, startling her out of her absorption. “What do you think?”

  She turned to see Walker standing at the edge of the cubicle.

  “About what?” she asked, trying to keep the smile from her face but failing miserably.

  “Oh, so you’re going to play coy?” Walker said, his eyes gleaming with laughter, although he managed to keep a straight face.

  “It’s well written,” Maria said, leaning back in her chair as if she wasn’t affected at all by his grand gesture. “Do you think they’ll rewrite it?”

  Walker held her gaze as he spoke, still keeping his distance, although making her feel like he was standing much, much closer. “I’ve also prepared an amendment that would apply to this office only.”

  “Oh?” Maria asked. “What would the amendment say?”

  “Come into the conference room, and I’ll fill you in.” Walker tugged off his tie and set it on her desk with a wink. Then he turned and left. Maria stared after him.

  She was still staring when Josh opened his office door and poked his head out.

  “Walker’s here?”

  “He just went into the conference room,” Maria answered, trying to organize her thoughts. She watched Josh cross over to the conference room and disappear inside.

  She turned back to the email and re-read through it quickly. Walker had made a good argument, thanks to her, but the bottom line was that she was impressed.

  So, then, the only thing left to do was pull up Instagram on her phone. She’d started an account a couple of years ago, but most of the pictures were of her vacations with Sydney and June. Which meant she posted a few pictures twice a year, and that was it. She typed Walker’s name into the search feature.

  His name popped up about eight times, but it wasn’t difficult to find the picture that belonged to him. His green eyes and dark wavy hair were unmistakable. She tapped his profile, and a stream of pictures started to load.

  Well, Josh was right about one thing, Walker posted a lot.

  And there were quite a few women in them… his arm around this woman, or that woman. He wasn’t kissing any of the women, at least. So that was a good thing, right? She went through each picture more carefully. Did a picture with a woman mean he was dating them? She wasn’t sure, and then one of the hashtags caught her attention.

  #BayHouseReunion

  Maria googled Bay House, and it turned out to be a nonprofit career center for women. Browsing through the website, she found that they trained women who’d been homeless and needed career development. They accepted monetary donations as well as donations of used professional clothing. She clicked on the About Us link and saw the name of Janene Walker as a member of the board.

  So the pictures were not women whom Walker was dating en masse.

  The door to the conference room opened and shut, capturing Maria’s attention. She quickly switched screens on her computer so that when Josh walked by her desk, he wouldn’t be able to see what she’d been looking at.

  But instead of walking on past, Josh stopped.

  Dread pulsed through Maria. What did he want now?

  “We need to talk, Maria,” he said in a low voice, glancing around as if he didn’t want anyone overhearing his request.

  “I’m in the middle of something,” Maria said, although she could easily take a break. She’d just been stalking Instagram. “Can it wait until lunch break?”

  It was then she noticed that Josh’s face was flushed.

  “Are you all right?” she asked.

  “I’m not all right,” Josh said. “And this can’t wait until lunch. Meet me in my office.”

  She watched him walk away, startled at his insistence. Josh hadn’t been a particularly demanding person. In fact, he’d been the opposite— easygoing and too lax about things.

  She released a sigh and rose from her desk. She might as well get this over with. With or without a dress code change, maybe she should still find another job.

  Once she entered Josh’s office, he shut the door behind her, then said, “He told me you two are dating.”

  “Who? Walker?” Maria said, trying to catch up to what Josh was saying.

  “Yep,” Josh said. “That means you’re in violation of your employee contract, and I’m assuming Walker is too. I have to write up a report, unless…” He stared at her.

  “Unless what? Unless I don’t date him?” Maria asked. On one hand, she was secretly pleased that Walker had told Josh that they were dating— Josh deserved to hear that— even though she hadn’t technically gone on a date with Walker. On the other hand, she couldn’t figure out why Josh was set on attacking her like this.

  Josh just looked at her, an eyebrow raised.

  “You’re serious,” she said. “I can’t believe it. What do you want, Josh? We’re not getting back together. Keeping our relationship a secret wasn’t our only problem, it just covered up everything else.”

  Josh moved back to his desk and sat down. He started typing on his keyboard. “I don’t have any choice. I signed a contract to be honest in my dealings.”

  “Fine,” Maria said. “You do your job. I’m not planning on working here much longer.”

  Josh stopped typing and looked up. “Walker said he’s appealing the dress code.”

  “I know,” she said, suddenly tired and sick of this three-ring circus she was caught in the middle of. “There’s too much history between you and me, and I don’t want to feel stressed every day at work.”

  Josh’s gaze hardened, and he turned back to his keyboard and started typing again.

  “Just…” Maria began. “Just keep Walker out of it. It’s his dad’s company, and I’ll take the blame. I’m on my way out soon anyway.”

  Josh didn’t acknowledge her, but hopefully he heard her. Maria left his office and returned to her desk. She tried to concentrate on her current campaign while phones rang and conversation buzzed from the other cubicles. But her focus wouldn’t return.

  She felt a hand on her shoulder that made her flinch.

  “Sorry,” Walker said. “You’re pretty focused there.”

  Maria looked up into his piercing green eyes. She already felt guilty enough for the havoc she’d started, and now Josh had probably filed his contract violation report. Now she’d have to tell Walker.

  “Did you hear what Josh is going to do?” she asked.

  “Yes, and we need to talk.”

  The sushi restaurant was small and cozy and crowded. But when Walker spoke to the hostess, she ushered them toward the back, where there was an open table.

  “Connections?” Maria asked as they sat down in the round booth.

  Walker’s smile was brief. “I’m a regular, and I tip well.”

  “Ah.” Maria picked up the menu the hostess had set on the table,
although she was nervous about this conversation with Walker. What had he and Josh talked about? She didn’t even know where to begin the conversation. From all angles, it seemed that she’d be found in contract violation and fired. And what about Walker? He was a manager in Baker Corp.

  The words on the menu jumbled together, and finally Maria looked up at Walker to see him watching her.

  “So, I’ve decided,” she said. “I’m leaving the company as soon as I can find a job. I just hope I can find one before Josh can—”

  “I’ve already talked to my dad,” Walker said, reaching across the space of the curved bench and taking her hand.

  Maria could only stare at their linked hands. Here it was… this was the termination speech.

  “I told him that I wasn’t going to stop dating you.”

  This brought her gaze up.

  “I know we haven’t technically been on a ‘date,’ but I’m hoping that will change,” Walker said.

  Maria exhaled. Was he really saying what she thought he was?

  “My parents both know I like you,” Walker continued, his thumb stroking the top of her hand. “And of course Josh knows, and I’m sure more people will find out soon enough.”

  Heat traveled from his touch on her hand up her arm, getting dangerously close to her heart. “We haven’t even been on a date,” she said in a choked voice. “I mean… you’re taking a lot of risk here.”

  “I’m thirty, Maria,” Walker said. “Give me some credit here. I like you, and that’s enough for now. I was up half the night thinking about the company policies, and I came to one conclusion.” One side of his mouth lifted. “You were right, in everything. The policies need to be revamped, and most importantly, our employees need to be given the opportunity to have their say.”