Falling for the Boss (14 page)

As they lingered over dessert, something
in which Maggie never indulged when eating alone, she happened to glance toward the entrance, where several people had just arrived and were waiting to be seated.

A couple being shown to their table earned a second
, longer look as Maggie belatedly recognized Felicia followed closely by none other than Luke. Still appearing to give her cousin every attention, Maggie pondered the whereabouts of Marcus. For Luke’s sake, she hoped this apparent twosome meant Felicia was coming to her senses.

Ryan was easy to listen to and had countless s
tories to share. Maggie couldn’t remember when she’d so enjoyed an evening. They were still laughing over one antidote as they drifted slowly toward his truck.

A short distance away,
the man who’d just arrived turned quickly as his ears picked up the sound of feminine laughter. His eyes searched the parking lot, lighting on a familiar profile as well as her tall companion. As he watched them enter a pickup truck and drive away, his green eyes grew stormy, and his handsome face darkened with suppressed anger.

Maggie, unaware that she
’d been observed, thanked Ryan for a wonderful evening and reluctantly said goodnight, remembering she had to work the next day. They’d discussed several additional outings for the following week, and her thoughts were pleasant as she prepared for bed.

It wasn’
t so for Marcus, who was lying awake trying to rationalize the scene he’d witnessed outside the restaurant. He could find no reasonable explanation for why Maggie hadn’t been honest with him about having a date.

Sh
e might not consider it any of his business and she would be correct, but it wasn’t like her to be anything but direct. It also wasn’t the best time for her to get involved with someone. What was she thinking?

Maggie
went into work earlier than normal the following day in order to complete the paperwork she’d left unfinished. Sitting in the break room with her golden head bent over the table, she didn’t hear the quiet footsteps coming downstairs.

“
Such dedication, Maggie. What are you doing here at this hour?”

Maggie
looked up at the sound of Luke’s voice. “I’ve been trying to get these numbers to add up, but they refuse to cooperate. How have things been with you?”

“
It’s been crazy around here for the last few weeks. I can’t remember Marcus having so many difficult cases at one time. The research has been interesting, but time-consuming; especially the case we’re working on for Damien. In fact, that’s why I’m down here now. I need some files from the storage room.”

“I thought I saw Felicia yesterday,” she mentioned casually.

“Yes, she came breezing in here last night expecting Marcus to drop everything and entertain her. He wasn’t exactly pleased by her arrival and didn’t bother to hide it. Before the sparks could truly fly, I offered to take her to dinner. Marcus met us later.”

Maggie
tensed at this mention of Marcus being at the restaurant before realizing he must have arrived well after her own departure. Still, it was obvious from Luke’s comments that nothing had changed. Felicia wasn’t going to be deterred.

“
Is she still here?” she asked diffidently.

“
No, they quarreled.”

Noticing her companion’s smiling countenance, she asked,
“And you find that amusing?”

“
Yes, I do.” He chuckled at her startled expression. “I have a somewhat malicious sense of justice. That being so, I found it extremely gratifying to witness Felicia being sent on her way after being rather heatedly reminded that any free time Marcus has available will be spent with you.”

“
With me?” Maggie asked in astonishment. Her absorption in the conversation was so complete that her role as Marcus’ fiancé had been temporarily forgotten.

Luke looked at her strangely for a moment.
“Who else? It would be unnatural for Marcus not to desire your company above everyone else.”

S
he realized her error almost immediately. “But that doesn’t mean we must spend all our time together. There’s room in any relationship for friends.”

“Is there? You’re a most
unusual fiancé.”

Luke
went on his way down the hall, which was just as well since Maggie had run out of ideas for defending a position to which she didn’t subscribe. As she finished the paperwork, her mind replayed the conversation, and she had to smile. Marcus certainly knew the right things to say even if he didn’t believe them himself.

T
he day passed slowly as is always the case in the fall when there are fewer tourists in town. Maggie shut the heavy, front door behind the last group with a feeling of relief. Leaning back against the door, she closed her eyes for a moment. This was how Marcus found her.

“
You look tired.” The quietly spoken words caused her eyes to fly open, her heart leaping in response to his deep voice.

“I feel
tired, though I shouldn’t be. It wasn’t busy enough for me to feel this way.”

“
Burning the candle at both ends can be fatiguing,” he suggested in a soft voice that nevertheless got her attention.

“Doing what? Reading?”
she quipped lightly.

Marcus smiled, but it was
n’t a nice one. “Definitely not reading.”

Maggie shook her head slowly.
“I wish I knew what you’re talking about.”

“It wouldn’t make any difference.
Women are notorious for doing just the opposite of what one tells them.”

She
pushed away from the door angrily. “Then I have to wonder why you bother with them at all.”

“I only bother with
them up to a point. I have enough sense to value their meaningless words at their true worth. As for hearing the truth, I’ve learned to live without it.”

Maggie’s face darkened with anger.
“I’m not going to stand here and defend womanhood nor do I believe that men hold a monopoly on telling the truth. You’re entitled to your opinion, based on your own experiences; and I’m entitled to be offended when your personal bias is applied to me.”

A
reluctant smile formed on his lips. “Well done, Maggie. Not only are you a good actress, but you’d probably make a decent attorney.”

“Don’t patronize me. You’re too
accustomed to saying what you please with impunity,” she added heatedly.

“
What else can you expect from someone like me?” he asked softly. He turned and left her staring after him.

Feeling an
overwhelming urge to cry, and knowing she wasn’t in a place where she could do so, only added to Maggie’s frustration. How dare Marcus attack her like that? Wearily making her way to the break room, she told herself to stop thinking about that ugly exchange. What did it matter what he thought?

Apparently
, it meant a great deal. She could think of nothing else during the ride home. Even the luxury of a good cry while taking a shower brought little relief. Something had happened to upset Marcus, but for the life of her, she couldn’t think what it could be.

Just as she was contemplating
whether she wanted to bother with dinner, Maggie remembered something that had completely slipped her mind. She’d made tentative plans to go to a movie with Ryan.

Did she want to go out? Maybe cancelling was the
wisest course; she was tired and her head was pounding. Another five minutes decided her; anything was better than staying home with only gloomy thoughts for company.

As the theater was
located a few blocks from Maggie’s apartment, she and Ryan chose to walk. In no time, she found herself seated in the last row watching the latest sci-fi flick, her mood considerably improved. It was only as they strolled along the narrow sidewalk outside the theater that Maggie’s thoughts reverted to Marcus. For a moment, she wished it was his arm thrown casually around her shoulders instead of Ryan’s.

The subject of her thoughts w
as closer than she realized. Marcus was returning home from a court hearing. Though he could have taken another route, he chose one that passed Maggie’s apartment. Not sure what he expected to see, nor why he was doing such a ridiculous thing, he turned onto her street, driving slowly due to the uneven cobblestone surface.

Just when he
reached the conclusion that he’d blown the situation out of proportion, he saw them. He didn’t have to worry about being seen himself. Maggie and her friend had eyes for no one else.

Anger
was his primary emotion, though disappointment was a close second. This was one occasion when he hadn’t wanted to be right. But there was no longer any doubt that Maggie was seeing someone. Two nights in a row was decent evidence in his opinion.

Why had
n’t she told him? That bothered him more than anything else. He’d thought her different. Even a fake engagement had standards to uphold, he thought irritably.

R
yan didn’t need much persuasion to extend their evening. As he watched Maggie slice a homemade cherry pie, he said, “I can’t understand why you’re not married. You don’t chatter constantly, and you make the best desserts.”

“
Look at me closely, Ryan. I’m not pretty.”

He tilted his head to one side. “No, you’re not.  But you’re nice to look at, if that makes sense.”

“What about you? You’re pretty enough to have a girlfriend.”

Ryan grinned boyishly and admitted,
“I’ve been dating Janet for over a year. I’m thinking about giving her a ring for Christmas.”

After Ryan left, Maggie
made herself comfortable on the couch to give some attention to Mittens who’d been left alone most of the day. As she absently brushed the cat’s soft fur, her eyes grew wistful. She was a little envious of Ryan. How lucky he was to have found someone to love and be loved in return! Would her turn ever come?

Over the next few weeks,
the two cousins met as often as their schedules allowed. One such outing was a daytrip to Myrtle Beach where they walked for miles along the sandy shore. Another evening was agreeably spent pouring over old photos and talking about her father.

On his last weekend in
town, they drove to Jekyll Island. As they strolled along the dirt roads touring that island’s famous cottages, Maggie realized how much her life had become centered on Ryan, and he would be gone in less than twenty-four hours.

When they returned to Maggie’s apartment
much later that evening, Ryan said regretfully that he couldn’t stay longer since he still had a number of things to do before going to bed. They said their farewells on her doorstep.

Maggie
tried hard not to cry and Ryan promised to do a better job of keeping in touch. As he turned to leave, he leaned forward and kissed her, both of them oblivious to the fact that the entire incident had been observed.

Marcus was in a foul mood. He
’d returned from Atlanta exhausted from a busy week in court to find Felicia waiting for him. His patience in regard to her relentless pursuit of him was wearing thin.

From the beginning, h
e’d made it clear that he had little interest in a long term relationship and none at all in marriage. Diplomatic hints that the attraction between them was waning had accomplished nothing. She continued to hang around in the hope of changing his mind. Even his engagement to Maggie had done nothing to deter her.

By use of some potent persuasion, he managed to send
her off to spend the day with Luke. Marcus then spent an exceptionally long period of time trying to find some information he needed for court. Though he remembered that Maggie had helped Luke prepare the file in question, he didn’t want to contact her except as a last resort.

Since the discovery of her boyfriend, Marcus had more or less avoided her. Such a thing had been easy u
ntil now. He had to have the file, and she was the logical person to ask. Repeated calls to her apartment drew a blank. Evidently she was out.

He left Bradford House to
run some errands, and on his return decided to stop by Maggie’s apartment on the chance that she was home. To his extreme annoyance, he had to park some distance away, having been beaten to the only open space left on her street by another more fortunate individual.

His progress was
further delayed by the combination of a narrow sidewalk and a meandering group of teenagers strolling along in front of him in no apparent hurry to reach their destination. Just as his frustration reached the breaking point, the group in front of him dispersed. Marcus had a clear view of Maggie being escorted down the pathway leading to her door.

At this point, a
wave of anger swept through Marcus. Quickening his steps, he walked on, not sure what he would do when he arrived. Several options presented themselves, but since nearly all involved physical violence, he couldn’t actually do them. The couple in front of him must have dawdled on the way because Marcus was almost upon them before he realized.