Seeing her distraught reaction, Jerry backpedaled. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said that. I was feeling guilty that I was bitching about getting flowers from a coworker, when you couldn’t even get flowers—”
“It’s okay,” she interrupted, taking a deep breath. She gazed at the arrangement, commenting absentmindedly, “The amaryllis sure is pretty.”
Satisfied that she had not let herself dissolve into tears once again in Jerry’s office, Sophie turned her thoughts away from painful loss toward hopeful gain, remembering what Grant had done for her. “Your coworker sent you flowers—well, now I have people in my life that do nice things for me too.” She managed to smile while confiding, “Actually, I should probably report to you that I have a new job.”
Reminded of his duties as parole officer, Jerry looked at Sophie as if seeing her for the first time today. She was dressed in a lightweight black pantsuit, and the silky halter top showcased the creamy skin of her neck and slender arms. Her blond locks were pinned back in a neat bun.
“A new job? I was wondering if your clothes would be suited for working on a ship.”
She grinned. “Not quite. These long pants might get caught in the rudder or something. I’m actually going to be teaching psychology at my alma mater, DePaul.”
“Really? How’d you pull that off?”
A slight blush colored her cheeks. “Grant made it happen.”
Jerry arched one eyebrow. “Grant? As in Grant Madsen?”
She shyly nodded, and he deduced he was going to have to draw it out of her. “How did Grant get you the job?”
Her eyes took on a dreamy, enraptured glow as she explained. “Grant told me once about how much his Uncle Joe meant to him, and he asked me if I had anyone in my life like that. So, I told him about my graduate advisor, Anita. But I never in a million years expected Grant to call Anita and ask her to give me a job! I still can’t believe he did that! It’s the kindest thing anyone has ever done for me.”
She’s in love, it dawned on him. For all his colleagues’ jokes about setting up a dating service for their parolees, these two cons had developed a tight connection, a budding romance, right under his nose. He was stunned. He had to admit they made a gorgeous pair, but for some reason he felt uneasy about their relationship.
“When do you start your new job?”
His question drew her out of her romantic reverie. “I’m not sure. I’m meeting with Anita today to set things up before she travels overseas. And I need to give my current boss, Roger, enough notice.”
He nodded and took out her file, snapping the end of a ballpoint pen. “What’s the contact information for your new supervisor?”
Now that they were all business, Sophie sat up in her chair and provided Anita’s full name, address, and phone number, promising she would have her call Jerry today before leaving the country.
After taking down the data, Jerry studied Sophie, whose face was flushed with optimism. He felt a paternal tenderness toward her. “So, things are looking up for you then?”
“I guess so,” she tentatively agreed. She still had a long road back to herself, but she was taking steps in the right direction.
He rose from his chair and plucked a white amaryllis from the arrangement. Slowly the stern parole officer walked around his desk and handed her the green stem. It just felt like the right thing to do. “Perhaps it does get easier?” he said.
Biting her lower lip, she carefully placed the delicate flower into her handbag. Feeling a little choked up, she stood to leave, murmuring, “Perhaps. Thank you, sir,” before bolting out the door.
She emerged from the office slightly shaken, causing Grant to scramble to his feet.
“Are you okay?”
Sophie gazed into Grant’s eyes and a bright smile spread across her face.
“Yes, especially now that you’re here.”
Suddenly propelling herself into his arms, she wrapped him in a tight hug while tilting her mouth upward to meet his. Though he was surprised, he quickly got on board and his full lips met hers with intensity and fire as his sure hands caressed the skin of her shoulders and upper back. Their deep kiss lasted several moments, and she felt her heart pounding with arousal, her chest pressed against his.
Finally, he peered down at her, his eyes dancing like droplets of sun skimming across a pool. “That was some greeting, Bonnie. Good morning to you too.”
She giggled. “Good morning.”
He took a step back to take in her elegant clothing. “And you look smashing this morning, I must say.”
“Thank you, Grant.”
“A new uniform for Rog’s ship?”
She grinned and shook her head. “Nope.” Coquettishly she patted her up-do. “I may be meeting with my new boss today.” Her eyes narrowed playfully. “I got a call from Anita, and it seems somebody doesn’t want me working with him anymore.”
“Wait a minute, I—”
Giggling again, she cut him off by planting another smooch on his unsuspecting lips. “Relax,” she assured him in a sultry voice, her face inches from his own. “You did good, McSailor. And this kiss is only the beginning of how I’m going to thank you for the best gift I’ve ever received.”
His smile now matched hers. “I like the sound of that.” He ran his fingertips across the smooth skin of her shoulder blades as they swayed gently together.
She peeked at her watch. “Listen, you have to meet with Jerry, and I have to get to DePaul to sort out the details. Rog gave me the day off, but I’ll see you at your place tonight, okay? I’ll be all ready for you then.”
“What are you planning, you little minx?”
Chuckling, she said, “You’ll just have to wait to find out.” She reluctantly let go and grabbed her handbag. “You better get in there. You don’t want to be late!” she called over her shoulder.
He watched her stroll away, her pantsuit flowing and billowing alluringly with each confident stride. Her bright countenance stood in sharp contrast to the darkness of his previous evening with Carlo, and Grant knew he would miss her light spirit immensely today at work. Taking a deep breath, he knocked on his parole officer’s door.
“How’s it going, Madsen?” Jerry asked once Grant was seated.
Grant stared across the desk piled high with papers and files. “Fine, sir.”
“Anything to report to me today?”
“Nothing comes to mind, sir.”
“So,” Jerry began, leaning forward on his desk. “What’s this I hear about you getting your girlfriend a job?”
Grant’s shy smile did not hide his bubbling excitement, which made him look younger than his thirty years. “Oh, Sophie told you, huh? I’m so glad it worked out.”
Jerry could not hide the suspicion in his voice. “Why did you do it?”