Deep Surrendering: Episode Four (4 page)

“I know, I know. It was a risk to come here, but I wanted to show you that last night hasn’t changed how I feel about you. I’m still in this. We had a bump in the road, but that’s no reason to give up. I’m sure you don’t give up on a deal just because a client says no the first time.”

He finally sat down and studied me for a bit.

“I know I should be upset you showed up here without telling me. But I like seeing you in my office.” His smile was slow to start, but once revealed, it lit up his whole face and I knew I wasn’t in trouble.

“Are you okay after last night?” I asked.

“I got caught up in my head. I have a tendency to do that, in case you haven’t noticed. It’s something I constantly have to work on, and being with you forces me to do that.” Being with him forced me out of my academic comfort zone, made me take risks, and have a lot more fun. He threw me off balance, in a good way.

“So with that said, yes, I will have dinner with you, Mari Cherry.” The nickname made me all kinds of happy, as did his acceptance of my dinner invitation.

“You know,” I said, getting up and stepping around the coffee table until I was standing in front of him, “I almost showed up here naked, wearing just a trench coat. In case you needed added incentive to go out with me.” He sat up and put his hands on my hips, pulling me toward him.

“Is that right?”

“Yup. But then I had this feeling that something would go wrong, so I went with a dress instead. You like?” He spun me around slowly and nodded appreciatively.

“I like you any way.” He pressed his face into my stomach and I wrapped my arms around him.

“I like you, too. In spite of not being able to have sex facing me, and in spite of your past, and in spite of your kinky fuckery.”

He chuckled and the sound vibrated against me pleasantly. His hands went lower, cupping my ass.

“So, have you had a busy day?” I asked. He looked straight up at me, propping his chin on my stomach. I ran my hands through his glorious hair and smiled down at him.

“You could say that. I forget how many loose ends I have to tie up every time I travel.”

Were we finally going to talk about this? “How long are you going to be gone?” He’d been vague every time I asked him, so I’d had to guess, based on reading between the lines.

“Two months.” Shit. That wasn’t forever, but it was longer than we’d been seeing each other.

“And then you’ll come back?”

“For two weeks. And then I’ll be gone again. That’s how it works.”

“Always?” I said.

“Yes. Until my father decides to do something else with me.” He said it as if he had no choice in the matter, and I believed him.

“Not fair.”

“Life isn’t supposed to be fair. We’re not born with a guarantee of fairness. We’re not born with a guarantee of anything.” He got to his feet and wrapped his arms around me, giving me a tight hug.

“I know that. But I still think good things can happen.”

“Sometimes.” He leaned back and smiled down at me.

“So, is this a good surprise?” I asked. “I was hoping you wouldn’t be mad. Also, Carl was in on it, so you can’t get mad at him for helping me. And you can’t fire him either.”

He chuckled and let me go. “I think I can let this one insubordination slide. But I’m afraid I have to get back to work. I was in the middle of a meeting.”

“You were? What did you tell them?”

He smiled again. “I told them that I had a call from a very important client that I couldn’t miss.”

“You didn’t have to leave your meeting. I don’t want you to get into trouble because of me.” I definitely feared the wrath of the elder Mr. Herald. Plus the explanation Fin and I would have to go through if anyone figured out who I was or why I was here.

“I can take care of myself. Have for years.” He did that thing where he clenched his jaw for a moment, broadcasting his feelings.

“Okay, well, I should probably go. But meet me at my place at six thirty.” I stroked his dark purple silk tie and then used it to pull him down for a kiss. I loved that he had to bend a little to kiss me.

“See you later, Mari Cherry.”

I was just walking toward the door when it flew open, nearly smashing me in the face.

I stepped back to avoid crashing into the door, but I didn’t have enough time before the person opening it stepped in and almost on top of me. I made an unladylike sound and nearly toppled over, but Fin caught me before I landed butt-first on the floor.

“You okay?” Fin asked, helping me steady myself. I nodded and looked into the face of the elder Mr. Herald. Fin’s Dad.

Good thing I didn’t come naked.

“Pardon me,” Mr. Herald said, the first one to gather himself. “Fintan, would you like to introduce me?” His sharp eyes missed nothing, and he knew I wasn’t an important client. I wondered if he recognized me from the charity events. Hopefully not. But he might when he heard my name.

“Uh,” Fin said, clearly knocked off balance by his Dad. “This is Cherry Everson.” I had to give Fin credit. When the fake named rolled off his tongue, it sounded real to my ears.

Mr. Herald wasn’t convinced, but he stuck his hand out and shook mine. He had the same beautiful bone structure as his son, but his angles were sharper. His was not a face made for smiling. His dark hair had shaded to an attractive gray, and I could see why people said yes to him. This was not a man who heard the word no very often.

“Nice to meet you, Miss Everson,” he said, giving me a firm handshake. His hands were thick and blocky, unlike his son’s with those long almost-delicate fingers. Must have gotten those from his mother.

“N-nice to meet you, Mr. Herald,” I said, my voice stuttering. I should say something else, but I didn’t know what to say that wouldn’t screw things up, so I just waited for Fin to take the lead and then I’d follow.

“Well, it was nice to see you again, Miss Everson, and I’ll let you know about the charity event. It’s such an important cause.” Fin’s blue eyes were intense as they stared at me, but I could understand where he was going with this.

“Oh, thank you so much for agreeing to see me. I appreciate it so much. We’ve had a hard time getting donors, and I knew it was a long shot.” I turned and shook Fin’s hand, trying to convey my gratitude for his fake donation. Actually, I should hit him up, but maybe later.

“Finally joining the philanthropy bandwagon, Fintan?” Mr. Herald said as Fin dropped my hand like a hot potato. “What organization are you supporting?” Trés fantastic. I wouldn’t even have to lie.

“It’s a new literacy organization. We work with adults and children, offering classes, donating books, that sort of thing. We’re having our first fundraising ball and I thought Mr. Herald might want to donate, or maybe help out in some way.” That sounded convincing, right? I schooled my face to be wide and innocent and guileless. You could get away with a lot if you looked too cute to plot anything sinister.

“How nice,” Mr. Herald said, smiling, but it didn’t sit well on his face at all, and it was gone in a moment. An uneasy feeling took up residence between my shoulder blades, melting down my spine.

I needed to get out of this room. I couldn’t explain my reaction to Fin’s father, but it was so strong that I had to pay attention to it.

“Well, I think I’m going to head to my next appointment. So nice to meet you,” I said, and headed for the door without a backwards glance. I shut it behind me and prayed that Mr. Herald bought my story and Fin wouldn’t get interrogated or have to suffer his father’s wrath because of me. If I’d only gotten out a few minutes earlier, it wouldn’t have happened.

I hurried down the hall, past the receptionist, who was furiously typing and talking on her earpiece, and down to the street. Only then could I take a breath without my chest feeling tight.

Carl had waited for me, and he opened the door of the car as soon as he saw me.

“Everything go well, Miss Marisol? You look as if you’ve had a shock.” I probably did. What was it about Fin’s father that gave me that fight or flight feeling? The last time I felt that, I was walking alone and a man followed me. Luckily, I ducked into a store and he moved on. I shook my head to try and clear it before I got back into the Town Car.

“I’m fine. Just got surprised by the elder Mr. Herald. He’s … imposing.”

Carl nodded.

“I mean, I’ve met him before, but never like that. If he asks about me, will you tell him anything?” God, why hadn’t I thought about that before? Carl knew exactly what Fin and I were doing, and he could have snitched on us at any time.

“I wouldn’t dream of it, Miss Marisol.” He gave me a warm smile in the rearview and I trusted what he said. I relaxed and leaned back into the seat.

Fin’s dad was scary as hell, and I hoped I didn’t have to encounter him too often.

I pulled out my phone and texted Fin.

So sorry about that! Hope your dad bought my story.

He didn’t respond, and I just chalked it up to him going back to his meeting.

To keep my mind occupied before the date, I went through my candle party orders. Damn, Chloe hadn’t been lying. She’d sold the shit out of those candles. She’d even sold a bunch of the decorative holders that weren’t cheap. I was thrilled and I definitely owed her big time. I’d probably have to be her wing woman at the bar at least twice.

As I was putting the order forms together to enter into the website, my phone buzzed with a text.

I’m fine. You okay?

Fin’s text left a little to be desired, but maybe we could talk when we saw each other later.

Yeah. Can’t wait to see you!

Ugh. The text was a little too cheerful and perky, but I hit Send anyway.

Looking forward to it.

I put my phone away before I could read way too much into his messages. Technology made communicating easier, but then you spent half your time trying to figure out what people were saying and if they were really mad at you.

I hadn’t told Fin what we were doing, so he showed up dressed in his normal beautiful date attire. Purple tie and all, except this one was a light lavender. He had another bouquet of lilacs, and yet another vase.