Page 3 of A Heart of Little Faith
“Believe it or not, I do run into them occasionally.” She sat at her desk, smiled as she booted her computer and hoped Anne would take the hint.
She didn’t.
“So, what’s he like? And what was the argument about?” Her boss leaned against the doorframe, making it clear she wasn’t leaving anytime soon. Anne behaved like a dog with a bone when it came to men and Lily.
Not that there were many bones thrown at a thirty-year-old single mom.
Arrogant boor flashed in her mind like a cheap neon sign. But his smile had shone brighter than the paintings on display, his husky laugh had tickled long dormant places inside her, and he’d gripped her hand, as if to promise to take care of her forever. She shook her head as she remembered last evening.
She’d been immersed in the painting in front of her; she hadn’t noticed anyone around her. The intense colors swirled around the canvas and demanded her full concentration. But now she wondered how she could have been oblivious. A magnetic energy had emanated from him, drawing her closer, almost against her will. After the bold colors and textures of the painting, his brown pants and beige sweater should have been blah and boring. But the lightweight texture of the sweater accentuated his muscular chest and Lily whistled to herself. Even sitting in a wheelchair he personified strength and masculinity. She couldn’t tear her gaze away from him. Dark blond hair fell over his forehead, and her fingers had itched to push it away from his brow. Wire glasses framed hazel eyes that she fantasized could switch on a whim from piercing hazel to forbidding brown to molten amber. She pictured herself removing those glasses and…
Shaken, she focused her attention on Anne. “I don’t know. He’s Samantha’s brother and we just rubbed each other the wrong way, I guess.”Because really, why else would I have gotten angry at an almost stranger?“Or maybe I was just tired from yesterday.” At this, Lily stared pointedly at Anne, who missed the signals she sent. “I would have done both of us more of a favor if I’d just stayed home.”
Anne leaned forward. “Was he cute?”
Was he cute? His chiseled features, square jaw, and strong physique lent him a leading-man quality. She didn’t think she’d describe him as cute though. Cute was softer, more pliable, like a baby or teddy bear. Gideon was vibrant, handsome, virile. Heat slapped Lily’s cheeks..
“I guess.” She rolled her eyes as Anne’s face glowed and she plunked in a chair. “But there’s more to life than cute.”
“Hah!”
Lily stared at her. She didn’t need this now. Not from Anne, who should have known better. She had a stressful job occupying too much of her energy and a daughter to raise. The last thing she had time for was to get involved with a man.
“Okay, okay, I’ll leave you alone. But if I were you, I’d ask Samantha to set you up,” she said. As she headed toward her own office, she added over her shoulder, “About the Armadillo account, let’s meet in my office in an hour to rework our strategy.”
She logged onto her email account, thankful Anne moved onto another topic. Unfortunately, that left Lily to resume the dreaded task of figuring out what to do with her client. Throttling the CEO was not an option.
Only twenty-four hours ago, things had been different. She’d been studying her notes on the Armadillo strategy and had begun making a timeline to coordinate software rollout, media events and executive training. The launch schedule would be tight, but doable. Until the company’s vice president of marketing called—software bug, delayed product fix, safety and reliability message trashed. Lily could still hear those words echoing through her mind as Armadillo’s CEO refused to postpone the launch date. Despite her fervent hope she’d been punk’d, the stone-faced VP had not yet demonstrated a sense of humor. She sincerely doubted he’d start now.
This put her in the position she was in today. After zipping through her emails, and jotting some notes, she headed into Anne’s office. Four hours later, she returned to her office for an attempt at a late lunch. After going back and forth with different ideas, and after speaking to both the VP of marketing and the CEO, they faced the prospect of either making this launch work as is, or getting fired from the account.
Lily rested her head on her desk for a minute. Her phone buzzed and she sprung up again.Ugh. She picked it up. It was a text from Samantha.
what did u think of the art show
Images of Gideon’s chiseled features flashed in her mind.
it was good. not necessarily my taste, but a good chance to get out
i saw you and Gideon talking
She shivered.
yeah, for a little bit
Lily bit her tongue. The last thing she wanted to do was discuss her brother. All she wanted to do now was go home and disappear into a tub of chocolate frosting.
i may have to work late tonight. could you pick up Claire up from school for me
no problem. i’ll keep her with me until you get home
thanks. gotta run
Lily put down the phone and stared absently at her manicure as she tried to assuage the guilt churning her stomach. Thanks to her insane client, it would probably be another late night. Sinking dejectedly into her desk chair, she stared with longing at Claire’s school photograph. The bright smile, twinkling brown eyes and ever-present pink outfit drew her in, taunted her, teased her with what she missed out on as she remained at work. Puffing her cheeks out in a balloon, she exhaled slowly and headed into Anne’s office.
A few hours later, Lily thought she had something.
“What about ease of use?” she asked, rubbing her eyes. They were gritty and dry as she blinked several times to bring the room into focus.