Chasing Forever (The Forever Series #1)(53)
“Yes.” He bent his head until his mouth connected with hers. “That and a lot more,” he whispered against her lips before drawing her into another heated kiss.
Chapter Twenty-Four
When Regan walked into her office on Thursday morning she wanted to turn around and leave. She had a pile of cases to read for the Motion for Summary Judgment Lucas wanted her to finish by Monday morning for a lease dispute over the legal description of the property. Yes, very exciting stuff. On top of the daunting pile of work, she was secretly dreading seeing Parker that night at the restaurant. If she were lucky, they could go back to being friends and pretend as if nothing happened.
“What do you mean you’ve been spending time with him?” her mom asked over the phone.
She’d broken down and called her mom when she decided she couldn’t face reading about leasehold interests for one more minute. Regan had shut the door to her office, hoping no one would enter without knocking. She’d been delaying telling her mom about Lucas, but she needed to come clean. She hated keeping things from her mom, especially something as big as letting Lucas back in her life.
“We’ve gone out a few times, and we decided to try to work things out between us.” She hesitated, not sure how to explain her abrupt change of heart. Hell, she didn’t understand it herself. “He apologized and explained his side of the story.”
The silence on the phone spoke volumes of her mother’s disapproval. She chewed on the side of her nail and then quickly dropped her hand into her lap.
“Do you think you can trust him—I mean really trust him?” her mom finally asked.
That was the million-dollar question. She wanted to trust him, but at the same time, she instinctually wanted to guard part of her heart so it wouldn’t be shattered if it ended badly. “It’s complicated,” she answered.
“No, it’s not. You either trust him, or you don’t. If you don’t, you’re wasting his time and yours. Half-measures don’t work.”
“After everything that happened in college, I haven’t been able to trust anyone enough to go on more than a date or two. Now he’s back in my life, and I can’t help thinking it’s for a reason.” Regan leaned back in her chair. “Maybe I need closure.”
“What about your job? I can’t imagine the firm would approve of your relationship.”
“We’re going to wait until my summer associate position ends, and then when things cool down, we’ll make it official.”
“So, you’re basically having a secret affair with your boss?”
She cringed. That wasn’t exactly a favorable description of her behavior, and it stung even more coming from her mom. “No. Not a secret affair. We’re just acknowledging the facts. Mainly, he’s my boss for the summer, and we’d like to keep our relationship to ourselves until our circumstances change.”
“I hope you know what you’re doing.”
So did she. “It’ll be fine. I’m not nineteen anymore.”
Right then her phone buzzed, and she pulled it away from her ear to check the incoming text. It was from Lucas.
Meet me in the building lobby in 30 minutes.
Thirty minutes later, per Lucas’s instructions, she stepped off the elevator with her purse over her shoulder. She paused, scanning the lobby for Lucas. He was standing near the floor to ceiling glass windows, with his back to her and his hands in his pockets. He looked incredibly sexy in his custom navy suit, and for a moment, she stopped to appreciate the picture he made. He slid back the cuff of his shirt to check the time.
“I’m not late,” she said, walking toward him.
He turned around, flashing his devilish smile, dimples included. “Not yet.”
“So what’s with the secret meeting?” she asked. She wanted to kiss him and touch him. Seeing him every day and having to monitor every look and every touch was harder than she thought. She wished the summer were over.
Lucas pushed the glass door open. “Follow me.”
She followed him as he turned right and then when he reached the end of the block, he held out his hand. Smiling, she threaded her fingers through his. “Now are you going to tell me what’s going on?”
“I thought we’d get some fresh air. You know, take a few laps around the block. I know how much you hate that Summary Judgment Motion you’re working on.”
“No, it’s not too bad.”
He laughed and shook his head.
“Okay, it’s pretty dull,” she admitted.
They stopped at a crosswalk. “Do you remember our first date?” he asked.
“This time or six years ago?” she asked, not sure she liked where this was going. She didn’t want to remember the past.
“Six years ago,” he said quickly.
“You mean brunch?”
“Yes. You probably don’t realize this, but after I dropped you off at your dorm that night, I barely slept. I’d met a beautiful, funny woman at a party I didn’t want to be at, and I couldn’t wait to see her the next morning.”
“Okay,” she said weakly. She could hardly sleep that night either, but she didn’t think she wanted to relive that night because it was…tainted.
“And you didn’t disappoint me. I actually called my mom that day and told her I’d met the perfect girl.” He squeezed her hand. “I thought I could take you to brunch today, and I could have a new ending for that perfect date with the perfect girl.” He stopped in front of a small building with a black and white striped awning and pushed a piece of hair away from her face. “One that doesn’t end with hurt feelings, deceit, or misunderstandings.”