Anything You Can Do(5)
"I promise not to hold that against you if you don't hold my law degree against me," he retorted with a smile.
"I'll try, counselor, but these ingrained prejudices are hard to overcome. Are you with the same firm as these two?"
"No," he said. "Does that make it better or worse?"
"A little better, I suppose. Gives you some distance, at least. You see, I go back home to Haywood tomorrow to pack my bags, move in with Bailey next Saturday, and go to work for Hoskins, Grier and Morris on Monday. Since secretaries and lawyers are natural enemies, there's absolutely no chance for Gordon and me to be friends." She sighed in exaggerated fashion. "Unfortunate, really. He has some good qualities, like being rich, lazy, and blond, but hey, that's life."
Austin laughed in genuine delight. Paula was witty, entertaining, and attractive. A quick glance at Gordon convinced him he shouldn't go any further than admiring her, though. He'd known Gordon a long time, but he'd never seen him look at a woman the way he was looking at Paula—kind of a combination of the way he used to look at his dog and the Playboy centerfold.
Well, if she and Gordon developed a relationship, at least the three of them could get along. However, he wasn't too sure about Bailey. How was it possible with only a glance she could make him feel the way he'd felt those early years in law practice—like he had to work twice as hard just to catch up with the rest of the world?
From the corner of his eye, he watched her stretch her long legs across the grass.
She made him feel frustrated, defensive, and, damn it, exhilarated in anticipation of the challenge, an aspect of those early years he'd forgotten until now.
*~*~*
The waitress left with their post-race breakfast order.
Paula disappeared behind a newspaper she'd picked up as they came into the coffee shop while Austin and Gordon discussed the fate of a mutual friend from college days. Bailey settled back in the plastic-covered booth, sipped her soda, and thought again of the awards ceremony.
She still couldn't decide if she should be proud of winning a second-place medal in her age and sex division. Ordinarily second place, especially with the age and sex qualifiers, was the same as losing. Still, Austin didn't get a medal even though he'd beaten her. So that kind of meant he hadn't really beaten her…didn't it?
And he had run one hell of a race, hadn't held back just because she was a woman. Besting him would be a noteworthy accomplishment—and a far safer one than getting pulled under by those vibrant eyes so full of energy and life, those thighs with the well-defined muscles that looked as if they'd be rock-hard to the touch. Not, of course, that she was in any danger of doing that.
"Hey, listen to this!" Paula smoothed her newspaper onto the table. "SWM, thirty-two, professional, seeks long-term relationship with attractive, single woman, twenty-six to thirty-five. Could this be the father of my future children? Nope, he smokes."
"What on earth have you got there?" Bailey demanded, glad to have a new direction for her wayward thoughts.
"The Kansas City Observer. It has this section called New Friends. There's pages and pages of ads."
"I wouldn't think you'd have any trouble finding dates," Austin assured her.
The man really was dense. Bailey didn't see how Paula could have made it any clearer that she didn't want to date an attorney, but he kept trying.
"I'm not looking for dates," Paula advised him. "I could have stayed in Haywood if all I'd wanted was dates with male bodies. I'm looking for a relationship with someone who's intelligent, romantic, exciting, funny, handsome...hmm...Degreed DWM, professional, divorced two years, no diseases... Oh, gag."
"Prince Charming," Gordon contributed. "She's looking for Prince Charming, but no lawyers need apply."
"That's a great idea," Paula said, folding the paper. "I'll run my own ad. Looking for Prince Charming, no lawyers need apply, although the exclusion should be self-evident."
"Ah, revenge will be sweet," Gordon drawled, raising his eyes to the ceiling. "Stafford Morris, for all those weekends you made me work and all the nasty memos, not to mention the cigar smoke, behold your secretary."
"May the two of them have a long, long relationship." Bailey lifted her soda in a mock toast. "Our beloved managing partner," she explained to Austin.
"I've met the man," he acknowledged, and Bailey wanted to ask the circumstances, why his lips thinned when he made the curt remark. But before she could decide on a polite way to frame her question, the food arrived and conversation ceased.