Falling for Maria

by Heather B. Moore

  “What about the contract I signed?” Maria asked. “Not to be the devil’s advocate, but Josh is just doing his job.”

  “I’ll quit if the board asks me to step down,” Walker said. “And I’ll find another job.”

  “You can quit over this, over me, over someone you just met last week?”

  Walker chuckled. “I really don’t think it will come to that. But you need to know that I’ve met a lot of women, dated a lot of women, and none of them are like you.”

  Maria blew out a breath. “Don’t do anything drastic because of me. I’d feel horrible.”

  Walker scooted closer to her. “Too late.”

  “What do you mean?”

  He tightened his hold on her hand and leaned toward her. “I sent out a couple of e-mails right before lunch explaining to the board that I’m dating a beautiful, talented woman who happens to be an employee of our company. I offered to resign if the policies can’t be amended. In other words, I’ve seen the error of my ways.”

  Maria’s mouth dropped open. “You didn’t. You can’t.”

  Walker was smiling now. “I did, and I can.”

  When Maria couldn’t come up with any coherent reply, Walker leaned toward her and kissed her on the mouth.

  Right in front of a crowded restaurant.

  Her heart pounded as his hand cradled her face and he deepened the kiss.

  “You’re crazy,” she whispered when he pulled away.

  “Are you ready to order?” a woman’s voice interrupted the haze that had overtaken Maria’s mind.

  She flushed at being caught kissing in a public restaurant, but Walker didn’t seem to have any such reservations. He just smiled and ordered in a smooth tone.

  “I’ll have the same,” Maria said, not even sure what Walker had ordered.

  When the waitress left, Walker slipped his arm around her, making Maria feel like she was a teenager who couldn’t be separated from her boyfriend for even one minute so they had to cozy up in a restaurant booth.

  “So…” Walker said, running his fingers along her neck and making Maria wish they were alone, somewhere far away from the people in the restaurant. “How about tonight? Want to go out?”

  “Now you’re asking me out?” she teased. “What if you find out you don’t like me after all, and you regret all of those e-mails you sent out?”

  “I’d never regret them,” Walker said, kissing her right beneath her ear.

  He smelled so good, and his lips were like bursts of fire on her skin. “We’re in a public restaurant, Walker.”

  “I love how you’re calling me Walker now. And is that a yes?” he asked, his breath warm on her neck and sending a rash of goose bumps along her skin.

  She smiled, feeling herself melt into him. “Yes.”

  “Good,” Walker said, gazing into her eyes. “It’s my friend’s birthday gig tonight, and there’ll be a band and lots of good food and wine. I want them all to meet you.”

  Maria shook her head. “You are crazy. I mean, what are you going to tell them about me?”

  “That I’m a lucky man,” Walker said, grasping her hand and bringing it to his lips.

  Maria laughed. “You’ve got to tone down the charm. The customers are starting to stare.”

  Walker chuckled, and just then the waitress showed up with their order.

  They ate and talked, and no matter what Maria said, she couldn’t convince him to go to the birthday gig without her.

  When they returned to work, Walker told her he had afternoon meetings at corporate and would pick her up from her apartment that night.

  Maria walked into the office by herself and found Josh sitting in her chair, waiting. No one else had returned from lunch, so it was just the two of them.

  “What are you doing?” Maria asked, trying to keep her voice neutral, when in fact, she was truly annoyed.

  Josh stood and shoved his hands into his pockets. “You’re really going to date Walker Harris?”

  Maria lifted her chin. “Yes.”

  “Even if it costs you your job?” he pressed.

  “There are other jobs,” Maria said. “I don’t agree with the new policies anyway.”

  Josh blew out in frustration. “How can you just throw everything we had together away? Just like that, you’re dating our boss, and you’re flaunting it in front of everyone.”

  “You’re the only one who knows about us in this office, Josh, and you’re the one filing reports about it,” Maria said and folded her arms. “I don’t get you.”

  “I’m in love with you,” Josh said, grabbing her arm and pulling her toward him. “It’s killing me to think of you with Walker or any other man. I made a mistake.”

  Maria put her hand on his chest to stop him from leaning down.

  But Josh used his other hand to pull her closer. “I haven’t sent the reports yet. Please give me another chance, and I’ll forget I ever talked about any reports.”

  “No, Josh,” Maria said, pulling out of his grasp. She didn’t like the desperate sound of his voice. She picked her purse back up. “I’ll be working from home the rest of the afternoon.”

  “Wait,” Josh said. “Just hear me out.”

  Maria didn’t respond. She hurried out of the office and into the parking lot. She wasn’t afraid of Josh, but he was being way more persistent than she was comfortable with. Once she got in her car, she put on her Bluetooth. Instead of calling one of her friends— they’d both be slammed at their own jobs— she called Walker.

  “Do you want to press charges?” Walker asked in a steely tone after she’d told him what Josh had said in the office.

  “No,” she said. “He’s belatedly upset over the breakup. Maybe it’s post-traumatic stress or something, or maybe he realized that he really did like me.”

  “He said he loved you,” Walker reminded her.

  “I don’t think he truly does,” Maria said. “And even if he did, it’s still over.”

  Walker exhaled. “I’m going to talk to him. This needs to end.”

  “What about your meetings?”

  His reply was firm. “You’re more important than any meeting, and it’s not like Josh is going to go away any time soon. I need to see if he’s even trustworthy at this point.”

  Maria had the same fear, although it was hard to comprehend. “All right,” she finally said. “I’ll be in my apartment working remotely.”

  “I’ll call you as soon as I talk to him.”

  It was over an hour later when Walker called, and by then Maria was pacing her apartment, her work forgotten.

  She snatched up her cell when she saw “Ex-boss” on the screen. She really had to change the contact name.

  “He’s not sending the reports in,” Walker said as soon as she answered.

  “What? How did you manage that?”

  “I told him he’d be welcome to send them, but I’d also be sending in a complaint of my own about how he’s harassing you.”

  Maria was stunned. “So what did he say?”

  “He admitted that he thought you two would get back together,” Walker said. “That you’d just had a major fight. I told him to take a couple of days off— take a break from everything at the office.”

  Maria exhaled. “That’s a good idea. I wasn’t looking forward to seeing him again in the morning.”

  “We’ll get this all figured out,” Walker said in a soft voice.

  “I know.” She crossed to the balcony and stepped out into the cloudy day.

  “So are you still coming with me tonight?” he asked.

  “Yes,” she said. “And thanks for talking to Josh. I’m sure it was awkward on more than one level.”

  “Not a problem,” Walker said. “And by the way, you can wear anything you want.”

  Maria laughed. “As if I need to be told that.”

  When she hung up with Walker, she found that she was really looking forward to meeting his friends. It would give her a better sense of the man he was,
although she had a feeling she knew enough about him to decide he was pretty amazing. And that she was the one who was lucky.

  “Mmm,” Walker said, leaning in to kiss Maria on the cheek. “You look great.”

  “You don’t look too bad yourself,” she quipped as he drew back. And it was true. He wore a dark button-down shirt, open at the collar, and khaki pants. He hadn’t shaved that evening, so dark scruff on his face poked through.

  Maria wore a deep coral dress, fitted, yet casual. She’d paired it with her favorite silver sandals and the largest silver hoop earrings she owned. She’d elected to leave her hair down and straightened.

  Walker hadn’t moved too far from her, and his fingers skimmed her arm. “Ready?” he asked, a lazy smile on his face.

  “Yep,” she said. “Do you still want me to meet your friends?”

  “They’ll think I’m a lucky guy,” Walker said with a wink, then extended his hand.

  She placed hers in his, and they walked out of her apartment. Once in his car, she relaxed on the seat, trying to keep herself calm, even though she was feeling pretty keyed up. The good thing was that Walker seemed to like her outfit choice. He had let his gaze linger more than once.

  “The light’s green,” Maria said while they were waiting for a traffic light.

  “Oh, thanks,” Walker said, a smile on his face. He reached over and grabbed her hand. “I’m not going to be able to keep my eyes off you tonight in that dress.”

  Maria laughed. “That’s kind of the idea.”

  The party was in full swing when they arrived at the outdoor café. It appeared that Walker’s friends had booked the entire place.

  Maria was swept up in introductions, and she loved the way Walker kept an arm possessively about her as if she belonged to him. She liked that feeling. She also liked the way several of the women watched her, as if she’d taken some prize from them. Walker had chosen her, for whatever reason, and she was proud of it.

  When the dancing started up, Walker drew her onto the dance floor, then pulled her into his arms. She wrapped her arms about his neck and nestled against him. Their bodies seemed to complement each other perfectly. Although the beat was fast, he danced at a slow rhythm with her.

  “What do you think?” he asked.

  She smiled. “I think your friends are really nice. But some of the women are giving me glares.”

  Walker just ran a hand up her back, sending shivers along her skin.

  “So, what’s the story? Is there an ex-girlfriend or two here?”

  Walker kissed her neck.

  “I’m talking to you, Mr. Harris.”

  He lifted his head at that. “Belle’s the woman with the blonde hair and red dress. We dated for about a year, but I knew going into it that it would never get serious.”

  It wasn’t hard for Maria to remember Belle. Her name could have been Barbie. “So it was just for fun?”

  “In her mind, it was just a way to get back at her ex-fiancé,” he said.

  Maria brushed her fingers along Walker’s neck. “Only one ex here tonight?”

  Walker’s smile thinned. “Rachel has the short brown hair and is wearing a blue top.”

  “Hmm,” she said. “What’s that story?”

  “She, apparently, had a crush on me for a long time,” Walker said. “Right after the break up with Belle, I took Rachel out a few times. We never clicked.”

  “Her opinion or yours?” Maria asked.

  Walker pulled her closer. “Mine. And that’s all that matters. None of those women are you.”

  “I like the sound of that,” Maria whispered against his skin.

  Walker slowed his movements as they danced, and bit by bit, Maria knew she was falling in love with this man. Come what may, she believed him when he said things would work out.

  “So,” he said, his voice deep and vibrating against her. “What are your plans for the next year?”

  She laughed. “Am I on the year plan like Belle?”

  “No,” Walker said, drawing back so he could run his thumb along her lower lip before pressing a gentle kiss on her mouth. Obviously, he had no problem with PDA. “It’s as far as my calendar will schedule out.”

  “Then we need to get you a new calendar,” she said. “I don’t think a year is enough.”

  Walker grinned, then kissed her again. “Let’s get out of here and get started on that calendar.”

  Maria couldn’t agree more.

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  Heather B. Moore is a USA Today bestselling author. She writes historical thrillers under the pen name H.B. Moore; her latest is Slave Queen. Under the name Heather B. Moore, she writes romance and women’s fiction. Her newest release is the historical romance Love is Come. She’s one of the coauthors of the USA Today bestselling series A Timeless Romance Anthology.

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