Chapter Fifteen
Ryan smiled and said hello to Nancy, slinging his messenger bag over his shoulder, trying to act like there was nothing out of the ordinary for his Monday morning visit to Logan’s office.
He’d spent a long weekend dissecting everything that had happened, and he needed to see Sarah and make sure things were cool between them.
Yeah, he wanted to think what had happened was more than a one-night stand, but he realized that she’d basically done to him what he’d done to pretty much every woman since Melanie—let him down easy and hightailed it out of there as soon as she could.
And it sucked.
He’d get over it. He didn’t like it, but this was Sarah. It wasn’t like he could avoid her at work, and he didn’t want to. She’d been right about one thing: their friendship was too important to ruin. He not only liked having an office friend, he liked having her as his office friend.
So, if Friday night was truly about getting their physical attraction to each other out of their systems for her, then so be it. He adjusted the strap to his messenger bag, which held two chocolate cupcakes with white-chocolate sprinkles. It didn’t mean he couldn’t bring her a sweet treat to alleviate any uncomfortableness.
Last night, during their Sunday-afternoon football ritual, he’d asked Bridget to make them, saying Sarah had put in a personal request. Of course, he’d left out the part that she’d done so wrapped in his crisp white sheet, naked.
He approached the office and stopped short of the entrance to Sarah’s desk. She was standing behind it at the copy machine, the deep-purple miniskirt she wore hugging her curves. His mouth watered at the sight of her hair swept up in a high ponytail, exposing her delicate neck. He wanted to kiss that neck. Desperately.
Pull your head out of your ass and stop ogling her.
He took a deep breath. “Hey, Sarah.”
“Ryan.” She walked back to her desk with a stack of papers. “Good morning.”
“You look nice today.”
“Thank you.” She smoothed down her black knit sweater. “I did a little shopping yesterday at Macy’s.”
“I bet there’s a lot of great sales this time of year,” he said and cracked a knuckle. Great. They were reduced to small talk about damn holiday sales. “How was your trip home? You didn’t text me…um…I mean you got home okay, right?”
“What do you mean her trip home? Didn’t you take her?” asked a familiar voice.
Crap. Ryan turned around to greet Logan. “Hey, boss.”
“Good morning, Logan.” Sarah moved between them, offering to take Logan’s coat. “Ryan meant Sunday. I was telling him about my adventure into the city for a shopping bonanza. I’d accidentally left my wallet in the women’s dressing room at Macy’s, and couldn’t find it for over an hour. I had no idea how I was going to get home with no money to take the subway.” She turned to Ryan. “It all worked out. Someone had found it and given it to a salesclerk. I didn’t have to walk back to Brooklyn.”
“Glad to hear it,” Ryan said coolly, unsure if he was relieved or pissed that Sarah had so easily conjured up a story to cover where she’d been Friday night.
Logan shoved his hands in his suit pockets, oblivious of any weirdness going on. “How are you feeling?” he asked Sarah.
“Great. I’m so sorry about our date. It must have been something I ate.”
“Before dinner?” he asked.
“I had a little snack before I left my apartment.” She handed Logan a stack of envelopes. “Probably wasn’t the smartest idea to soak a stomach full of chips and guacamole with a peppermint martini. I really am sorry.”
“You don’t have to apologize.” Logan flipped through the mail she’d handed him, looked up, and winked. “It just means we’ll have to try again soon.”
No it doesn’t. It doesn’t mean that at all. Ryan slung his messenger bag over his shoulder, making no move to leave. He wasn’t sure what he’d do, but there was no way he was going to let the woman he’d made crazy love to be asked out on a second date by his best friend.
And he’d admit it. She might have thought it was his typical move, but he’d never spent so much time concentrating on fully pleasuring a woman. It had taken a few beers over the weekend and dissecting what had happened with his sister, to get a woman’s point of view, but yep. He’d made love to Sarah.
And fuck. It was unfair that he wouldn’t be doing it again, never mind that Logan might get that opportunity.
He dug his heels into the floor. Fisting his hand, he cracked a knuckle. Not going to happen.
“Hey.” Logan slapped Ryan on the back. “Speaking of second dates. Corrine thought you were great. I gave her your phone number. That’s okay, right?”
Ryan looked over at Sarah, hoping to see “jealous Sarah” from the restaurant leap out of her chair, but her focus was on her computer screen. “Yeah…sure…Corrine was cool,” he said to Logan.
“She definitely can help you with your commitment issues.”
Sarah glanced up. “You should call her, Ryan.”
What the hell? She wanted him to ask Corrine out again? He shrugged. “Maybe I will.” Okay, this conversation was over. He started to change the subject, not ready to leave Sarah and Logan alone, when Nancy came in, escorting an older woman dressed in a long red velvet dress with a white apron, her gray hair up in a bun.
“Mr. Scott, Mrs. Claus is here to see you,” Nancy announced and then broke out in laughter.
Ryan joined the old receptionist with a hearty chuckle, because he knew exactly who was in costume, and it’d been a while since he’d seen her.
“Mom?” Logan asked, giving his mother a hug.
“It’s Mrs. Claus today.” She squeezed his cheek, fully in character, and turned to Ryan, wrapping her arms around him. “Hello, Ryan. I hope you’ve been a good boy this year.”
“I did my best, Mrs. C.” He hugged her back.
“I’m not surprised. Now this one”—she waggled her finger at her son—“I’m sure is an entirely different story. I’ve got my eye on you.”
“You know me,” Logan said with a grin. “What are you doing here?”
“I’m giving out Christmas presents at the children’s hospital around the block. Did you forget that you agreed to help me?” She reached into her huge red bag and pulled out a green felt hat, handing it to Logan. “Here, put this on. We need to go now.”
Logan immediately handed the hat back. “I never agreed to help.”
Mrs. Scott narrowed her eyes. “Yes, you did—on our plane ride home from Florida.”
“I agreed to a lot of things on that plane.” He winked at Sarah and Ryan. “It was a bumpy ride.”
Logan’s mom put her hands on her hips. “You’re honestly going to disappoint all those children waiting to see Mrs. Claus and her chief elf? It’s not like you don’t own this company. Surely, you can sneak out and join me for an hour or two?”
Logan shook his head and glanced over at Sarah. “How’s my schedule this morning?”
“Not good, boss. You have a phone call with a London investor in fifteen minutes that we’ve already rescheduled once, followed by a meeting with our accounting office.”
“Sorry, Mom. It’s end-of-the-year budgets season.” Logan turned with his back to his mother, mouthing, “Thank you.”
“Well, that is unfortunate.” Mrs. Scott frowned. “What about you, Ryan?”
“Sorry, Mrs. Claus. I’m headed to Vert Tower this morning. Your son has me working all kinds of hours.” Ryan added for Sarah’s benefit, “Although, I should be back for a late lunch today.”
Sarah bolted up. “I could go. I’m free all day.”
Ryan blinked. Seriously, Red. He’d basically told her he’d be back to have lunch with her, and she’d taken that as an opportunity to run out the door? So much for her being adamant that things between them would go back to normal.
“I think that’s a great idea,” Logan agreed. “Take the day off and spend it with my mother.”
With Logan’s blessing, Sarah gathered her coat and purse and headed for the elevator with Mrs. Scott, elf hat in hand.
“Think that’s a good idea?” Logan asked, nodding to the two as they stepped into the elevator.
“For you to be without your executive assistant for the day? Probably not.”
He laughed. “You’re probably right, but I meant for Sarah and my mother to spend time together. I mean…if things work out between Sarah and me, and we start dating exclusively, they’d eventually get to know each other. So why not start now?”
“Good thinking.” Ryan bit back the urge to clock his friend. Why couldn’t Logan be interested in any of the other women in the office? He could have his pick of any of the single ladies on the floor, probably the married ones, too. His best friend falling for the girl of Ryan’s dreams was not part of the plan. Sarah’s plan, yes. Ryan’s, no.
“Well, have a good morning at Vert Tower. I’m thinking of joining you later in the week.”
“Great, man. The crew would love it. See you later.” Ryan said good-bye. Once alone, he unzipped his messenger bag and pulled out the container holding the cupcakes he’d promised for Sarah and set it on her desk.
…
Sarah handed the last of the presents to a sweet bald-headed boy who looked about seven or eight, wearing the cutest snowman sweater. He hugged her tightly and then ran over to meet Mrs. Claus, who was holding a tray full of Christmas sugar cookies.
Her insides warmed at all the merriment around her. Spending the morning with Mrs. Scott, wearing the silly elf hat and passing out gifts at the children’s hospital, had been a much-welcome distraction. It had felt good to take a break from obsessing over her situation with Ryan.
It had also been nice to get to know Mrs. Scott a little more. She’d chatted with Logan’s mom countless times when she’d either called or stopped by the office to see him, but it had never been more than polite conversation. Over the last two hours, Sarah had come to realize his mother had a wonderful sense of humor, loved children, and had a huge heart.
And now she knew what the woman and her husband had done for Ryan, too.
She maneuvered over to a table where the staff had set up lunch for them and waited for Mrs. Scott to join her. Her stomach growled as she stared down at the chicken-salad sandwiches, fruit salad, and tray of cookies.
“Wasn’t that a hoot?” Mrs. Scott finally came over and slid into the seat opposite Sarah.
Sarah nodded, adjusting her elf hat. “I don’t think I’ve had this much fun on a Monday all year. Thank you for letting me be your chief elf today, Mrs. Claus.”
“You’re welcome.” She winked. “You were much more fun to get into character with than my son would have been. I don’t know if you know, but acting isn’t his strong suit.”
Sarah snickered because she did know. Logan once had the staff do client-support role-play exercises during one of their professional-development trainings. His playing a pissed-off client had left something to be desired when he’d tried to give Paul a hard time using a thick New Jersey accent that sounded more like a horrible mobster impersonation. “Well, he has other skills,” she offered.
From the raised eyebrow she got from Mrs. Scott in response to that comment, Sarah wished she could reel it back in. She picked up a sandwich and bit down, changing the subject. “Westbrook is lovely.”
“You’ve been to our town?”
“Recently.” Sarah reached for her water and took a sip. “Ryan actually took me to the Westbrook gala. I’m sorry that you and Logan missed the awards ceremony.”
“It was disappointing.” Mrs. Scott laughed bitterly. “Planes and storms certainly don’t mix. We would have much rather been there.”
“You must be so proud of him.”
His mother flashed a warm smile. “I am. His father received the same alumni award when he was around Logan’s age. I was thrilled to hear he was being honored.”
“If it’s a small consolation, Ryan gave a beautiful speech when he accepted the award on Logan’s behalf.”
“I’m sure he did. He’s a special man.” She slid her glasses up the bridge of her nose. “Do you know Ryan well?”
Sarah nodded. “I do. We’re office buddies.” She picked up her sandwich. “We have lunch in the cafeteria together almost every day.”
Based on her wide smile, that seemed to amuse Mrs. Scott. “Are you two dating?”
Sarah’s chest tightened. Oh God, she knows I had sex with Ryan. No, it wasn’t possible. It wasn’t like Sarah was sporting a large neon sign advertising that she’d slept with the guy. She set her sandwich down. “Oh, it’s not like that. We’re just friends.”
“He deserves happiness. He’s always looked out for my son.”
Her insides warmed at Mrs. Scott’s declaration that Ryan deserved happiness. Ryan did deserve the best. He was the kind, decent, protective man that looked after the people in his life.
Was she one of them? She took a sip of her drink. Ryan had revealed on their way up to Westbrook how Logan had shown him and his sister kindness. She wanted to know the other side of it. “I take it Ryan and Logan were pretty close growing up.”
“Inseparable.” Mrs. Scott reached for a sugar cookie. “Logan was a bit awkward as a child. He was picked on by all the other kids. His father and I had countless meetings with the school’s headmaster.”
She nibbled on her cookie and continued, “He and Ryan were already best friends, but when the teasing started, Ryan really took my son under his wing, making sure he wasn’t getting his lunch stolen or being shoved into his locker.”
“I’m so sorry.” Sarah’s heart melted at the image of a young Ryan looking out for his best friend in the Westbrook Academy halls.
“Kids can be so cruel at that age. We were blessed when Ryan and his mother and sister came into our lives, in more ways than one.” She took off her glasses, eyes misty. “Ryan’s always putting others ahead of himself. Have you met his sister?”
“Bridget? Yes, but only briefly.” Sarah’s cheeks heated at the memory of Bridget walking in on her and Ryan. “She sends Ryan to work with all kinds of desserts.”
“Have you tried her strawberry lemon bars?”
“Oh my gosh. They’re my favorite.”
Logan’s mom beamed. “That’s my recipe! I taught her how to make them when she was nine.” She chuckled. “I’m glad she’s doing better.”
“Better?”
“She left Westbrook for Hollywood years ago, but it didn’t work out, and she wound up flat broke and homeless. He took her in and helped her straighten out her life.”
Sarah’s belly fluttered at Ryan’s display of love and caring for his sister. She hadn’t known about Bridget’s past, but it certainly explained his need to check in on her as soon as they’d gotten back to his apartment.
Sarah finished her sandwich and grabbed a sugar cookie shaped as a snowman. “You probably know all about his relationship with Melanie?”
Logan’s mom nodded. “She certainly did a number on him, that one.”
“Yeah,” she agreed. “Do you ever think he’ll be ready for a relationship?”
From the curious look Mrs. Scott was now giving her, she added quickly, “Not with me. We’re good friends.” She paused, adding, “But as his friend, I’d love to see him find someone that he might like to…um…share malt balls with.”
Mrs. Scott chuckled. “He’s still eating that candy?”
“Every day.”
She shook her head. “I used to tell him his teeth would rot. Anyway, to answer your question, I do think he’ll be ready one day”—she laughed—“to share his malt balls.”
Sarah grinned, and her insides warmed.
As Sarah and Logan’s mom continued to talk, a staff member came up to the table and politely interrupted, asking if they could steal Mrs. Scott away for a quick interview for the hospital newsletter.
Mrs. Scott stood, straightening her white apron and adjusting her gray wig. “Duty calls. Thank you, again, for joining me today, Sarah.” She winked. “Maybe you can get back to the office in time to have dessert.”
Sarah smiled, a blush easily coming on. Logan might be Mrs. Scott’s offspring, but she also seemed to be Ryan’s lead cheerleader.
She gathered her belongings and brought her trash to a nearby garbage can. Ryan was all the wonderful things Mrs. Scott believed he was, but no amount of cheerleading on the sidelines could change the fact that Ryan Wright wasn’t looking for a relationship.