A short while later, Sherry tapped on his door. “Your client is here.”
He pushed back his chair, standing to shake the hand of a woman who was probably only a few years older than he was. Pretty, with shoulder-length blond hair and sad blue eyes.
He saw Sherry give her the once-over, clearly assessing her potential in case it was worth reporting back to his mother. Her eyes darted away when she realized she’d been caught.
“Tea or coffee?” she asked, her cheeks flushing.
The woman held up a hand. “I’m fine, thanks.”
“That will be all, Sherry,” Doug said, watching patiently as his assistant reluctantly closed the door, all the way, and only after she was sure that he was still watching. A moment later he saw a red light flash on line one—no doubt Sherry was already phoning his mother with the scoop.
The client, luckily, didn’t seem to pick up on this lack of professionalism and instead gave him a wary smile. “Thank you for agreeing to meet me. I…I’ve never done something like this before. I can’t even believe I’m here.”
This wasn’t the first time Doug heard this. He glanced at his original correspondence with her. Married ten years. Two kids. Both seeking custody. He groaned internally.
“Please, make yourself comfortable.” Once they were seated, he asked her for more details, noticing the sadness in her eyes as she explained the reason for divorce, or rather, lack thereof.
“Both of us are dedicated to the kids. But more and more, it’s like we’re two parents, rather than a married couple. It’s not easy to find time for romance, and well, it caught up with us. It’s like we’re coworkers. We’re not getting any younger, and I’m not sure I believe it will ever get any better, or that we can ever get back to the way it used to be.” Her eyes welled with tears and he handed her a box of tissues he kept on his desk.
“Have you sought counseling?” He felt nearly as surprised at himself as the woman looked.
“Here I thought you’d just draw up the papers and get right to it!”
“I could. But I don’t think that’s what you want. And there’s no rush.” He could sense her hesitation, sense the feeling of hope that seemed to linger within her, despite the tears that she brushed away.
She nodded. “I’m almost afraid of more disappointment. That must sound cowardly.” She gave him a watery smile.
He frowned at her. “It doesn’t at all. You’re protecting yourself. I understand.”
More than she knew. Only unlike this woman, who eventually made it clear that if her husband was willing to try, she wanted their marriage to work out, Doug wasn’t sure what he wanted anymore.
Or if protecting his heart at all costs was worth the price of loneliness.
Chapter Ten
Gabby stood outside her building on Saturday evening, staring down Main Street, only now realizing that she wasn’t even sure what kind of car Doug drove, much less the color. But then, there was a lot about him that she didn’t know—more than she thought. And what she had started to learn made her like him. And that…well, that wasn’t necessarily a good thing.
She adjusted the heel of her strappy shoes and then smoothed down the skirt of her outfit, a dusty blue cotton lace dress that was too restrictive for the weddings where she was setting up flowers, but tonight she wouldn’t have to worry about that. Tonight, she was just there to have fun. To be a wingman. A distraction.
Nothing more, she reminded herself.
Just when she was about to drop to a bench and kick off her heels, a black sedan with tinted windows came sliding down the street. She didn’t need to wait for the window to roll down to know that it was Doug—the license plate made it very clear. So clear in fact that she knew she needed to get any remaining thoughts of last Saturday’s dance out of her head for good. It had been a near miss. An indiscretion. A major lapse in judgment.
She bent down and glared at Doug through the open window. “Easy divorce?”
His grin made it nearly impossible to stay mad at him for long, even if years ago that grin did nothing but make her do just that. Once, she’d found it arrogant, smug even. Now she realized that Doug had a sense of humor, and getting a rise out of her was part of it.
“It was obvious? I wasn’t sure from the lettering,” he said.
She rolled her eyes but resisted the grin that was tugging at her mouth as she opened the door and slid onto the smooth leather seat. “Oh, it was obvious.” Glaring, really. A reminder that she needed to get her emotions in check and pronto. This man was just as much trouble as Jackson Bradford, possibly worse. And just like Jackson, he would remain a friend.
An attractive friend, she thought, quickly raking her eyes over him. So he filled out a suit nicely. Plenty of men did.
He shrugged. “You’re a business owner. It’s marketing.”
“It’s crass,” she replied, clicking her seat belt in place. She gave him a scolding look, but his gaze had already drifted to her legs. Stiffening, she set her handbag on her lap. Her pulse began to race.
“So…how is business?” Not that she particularly wanted to know about all the broken hearts in town, but it was conversation, and this was a little awkward, sitting here in his car, while he merged with the steady but light flow of traffic and began to move down the familiar streets that she had walked and biked a thousand times, even if now they felt a little different. She hadn’t been in a car with a man in…too long to admit. It felt exciting. And that was something that she really couldn’t afford to feel. Not with a man who had chosen a license plate like that, even if it was probably just in jest.
“It
