“Paul’s fine.”
“Easy for you to say. Look at who’s waiting for you in the lobby. Paul, on the other hand, is getting a little soft and he doesn’t even care. And I know he doesn’t care, because I’ve been dropping little self-improvement hints. As in, ‘Put the cookie down and hop on the treadmill, for God’s sake.’ ”
“You don’t really say that.”
“No, but I think it. It’s the same thing.”
Maria laughed as she gathered her things and stood. “Do you want to walk with me?”
“That’s why I’m still waiting. I also want to see your face when you find out.”
“Find out what?”
“You’ll know soon enough.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Come on,” Jill said. “And make sure you introduce us. I want to tell Paul all about it, especially if your beau flirts with me.”
“Colin’s not really the flirting type.”
“Who cares? The truth is, I just want to get a closer peek at him. To make sure he’s good enough for you, of course.”
“That’s very kind of you.”
“What are friends for?”
As they started down the hallway, Maria took a deep breath, feeling her worries reassert themselves. Thankfully, Jill didn’t notice, her mind clearly elsewhere.
“Hold up a second,” she said. Maria watched as Jill reached into her handbag. Pulling out her lipstick, she applied some before dropping it back into her bag.
“Okay,” Jill said, “now we can go.”
Maria stared at her. “Really?”
Jill winked. “What can I say? First impressions matter.”
Up ahead, Maria watched as two paralegals suddenly rounded the corner from the lobby, whispering excitedly to each other like a couple of high schoolers. Jill nodded toward them.
“Now do you understand what I mean? You were definitely holding out on me. That is one gorgeous man.”
“He’s not that good-looking.”
“Uh… yeah. He is. Now come on. You’ve got a date and you shouldn’t be late.”
As soon as Maria spotted Colin in the lobby, her stomach did a little flip-flop. He was facing the opposite direction – waiting for her, she realized – and from the back he could have passed for a young lawyer, albeit an exceptionally fit one with visible tattoos. When Maria glanced toward the receptionist, she noted that Gwen was trying hard not to stare at Colin while she worked the phone.
Colin must have sensed their presence, and when he turned, Maria caught sight of a lovely assortment of flowers; oranges and yellows, with a burst of red in the center. Her mouth dropped open slightly.
“Surprise,” Jill whispered, but Maria was too shocked to hear it.
“Oh,” she finally said. “Hi.” Beginning to approach, she was only vaguely aware that Jill had remained behind. Up close, his clean scent mingled with that of the flowers. “New clothes?”
“Freedom clothes,” he answered. “They probably kept me out of prison.”
She smiled, amused. And in the next instant, she thought, And I can’t believe his answer doesn’t worry me. But she didn’t want to think about that. Instead, she nodded at the flowers. “For me?”
“Yes,” he said, handing them over. “It’s an autumn bouquet.”
“They’re beautiful. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
“Let me put them in my office. I’ll be right back and then we can go.”
“Okay.”
Behind her, she heard Jill clear her throat and she turned. “Oh, this is my friend Jill. She’s an attorney here, too.”
Jill approached and he offered his hand. “Hi, Jill.”
“Hi, Colin.” She took his hand, her demeanor friendly yet professional. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”