Chasing Forever (The Forever Series #1)(22)
Chapter Eleven
No such luck. Five minutes after she sat at her desk the following morning, Annabelle walked in with a printed confirmation of their flight information and a double shot cappuccino in the other.
“Here’s your flight information. The cappuccino with one packet of raw sugar is from Lucas.” Annabelle placed the flight information in her inbox and handed her the cappuccino.
“Oh, okay,” Regan replied, taking the drink out of Annabelle’s hand. She didn’t like Lucas buying her coffee two days in a row. She didn’t want anything from Lucas except for him to leave her alone for the rest of the summer, but that wasn’t going happen. Maybe it would be better if they agreed to communicate solely by email. She liked the email Lucas better than the real Lucas. Via email she could convince herself that she hated his dimpled smile and his Mr. Dreamy eyes. In person, it wasn’t as simple.
“Richard hasn’t approved Lucas’s lodging proposal, but I will give you that information when the arrangements are finalized.”
“If Richard has a problem with the hotel expense, Lucas can stay where he wants, and I’ll stay wherever. I’m not picky.” Entirely different hotels would be ideal. That way, she could minimize the time spent with Lucas. “In fact, I don’t understand why Lucas wants me to go. I can stay here.”
Annabelle raised her eyebrows. “Richard wants you to go. It was his idea, and as for lodging arrangements, expense is not the issue. All expenses and costs are billed to the client.”
“Then what’s the issue?” Regan tore off the corner of the sugar packet and dumped it in her cappuccino. Then she took a sip. She loved her morning cappuccino.
“Lucas wants you guys to stay in his family’s vacation home. It’s an hour drive from the mine.”
Regan choked on her cappuccino and covered her mouth praying she’d caught any dribbles before they dripped on her light pink blouse. “I’d rather stay at a hotel.” She hoped the words didn’t sound as panicked as she felt. She knew all about the family vacation home, and there was no way she’d be caught dead there. That was Olivia’s territory and she didn’t want to be anywhere in that woman’s orbit regardless of whether she’d be there. She was a poisonous viper.
“I’ll talk to Lucas about it.” She turned to leave and then stopped and looked over her shoulder. “I almost forgot. Lucas wants to see you in his office at eleven-thirty.”
Regan bit back her retort and smiled while telling herself not to shoot the messenger. Lucas was setting her up for something. She didn’t have any clue what he wanted this time, but experience taught her that getting close to Lucas Evanston wasn’t a good thing, no matter how charming or thoughtful he appeared on the surface.
After reading the same three cases twenty times in the last four or so hours, she finally gave up and made her way down the hall to Lucas’s office. Maybe he could meet with her earlier. She couldn’t take the anxiety any longer.
When she reached his office, Lucas had the phone to his ear with his back facing the door to the office. Taking his previous words to heart, she moved to push the door open and walk in rather than hover near the door when she heard her name.
“Olivia, I can’t make it.” Lucas ran his hands through the air and shook his head. “Yes. I know I promised, but I have to go out of town for work.” He chuckled. “Don’t be so hard on me. Yes, I got it—same place and day the following week. See you then.”
He disconnected the phone, and Regan watched as he entered the information into his calendar. She felt physically ill. Now that she had confirmation he still talked to Olivia, she really wanted the summer to end, even more than before. She would have never guessed that she’d live to regret the day she accepted the summer associate position at Martin and Black. She’d been so excited that she didn’t ask enough questions, particularly who would mentor her for the summer. At the time, she didn’t care. Boy was she stupid.
She took a deep breath and walked into his office. “You wanted to see me?” she asked with raised eyebrows.
“Regan, sit down,” he answered as he turned to face her.
“I’ll stand.” She folded her arms across her chest.
Lucas tapped his pen on his desk and studied her. “I’d prefer you sit.”
She plopped into the chair farthest from him and refolded her arms across her chest, acting nonchalant, but her heart was beating so fast she feared he could see it.
“Are you okay?” he asked, his eyebrows furrowed in concern.
She tapped her foot on the floor. Just yesterday, he pleaded his innocence in the whole Olivia debacle. What a liar. “So you still talk to Olivia,” she commented.
“I do.”
She bit her lip hard to stifle the anger and disappointment those two words caused. She could yell at him, but in the end it didn’t matter. He chose Olivia over her long ago. There wasn’t anything else to discuss and no conceivable reason for her disappointment. She shouldn’t have expected anything else from him, and if she had for even one tiny moment, then it was her fault—not his.
She exhaled loudly. “You know my mom’s really ill. She has…an illness that makes her tired and unable to do some stuff.” Oh, that sounded brilliant. “I can’t go next week. My mom needs me to take her to a couple doctors’ appointments. I have to fly home. Sorry about the short notice, but it couldn’t be avoided.”