76. Hannah

SEVENTY-SIX

A figure fills my doorway, but I keep my attention on my screen. "Just give me another second to finish this email, then I'll be ready."

Instead of answering, my coworker steps into my office.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see them lower into my guest chair, and my fingers stop moving because the body is bigger than the one I'd expected.

My eyes lift. "Maddox?"

He purses his lips. "And who were you expecting?"

There's an edge of jealousy in his voice, and I almost want to tease him about it. But he's looking too damn delicious today, so I tell him the truth. "I'm going to lunch with Sarah." I glance at the clock on my monitor. "In five minutes."

"Who's Sarah?"

I try not to look at his big man fingers as they tap on the armrest. "Girl in marketing."

"You two do lunch a lot?" Maddox is still looking jealous, even though I'm clearly not having some sort of sexy affair with Sarah.

My mouth pulls into a smile. "You're cute."

The tension in his shoulders vanishes, and a smirk forms on his lips. "Come sit on my lap and say that."

"Maddox," I hiss, glancing at the open door behind him.

He reaches back like he's going to swing the door shut.

"Stop it." I snag a paperclip off my desk and throw it at him. "You're gonna get me in trouble."

He catches the paperclip.

Of course he does.

"Throwing things, Miss Utley? Might need to send you to HR for some of those workplace training videos."

"Says the man who just asked me to sit on his lap," I deadpan.

Maddox twirls the paperclip in his fingers. "Maybe we should watch the movie together."

I press my lips together.

Maddox wasn't in the office yesterday, having meetings elsewhere, so now is the first time I've gotten to see him since I left his house Saturday morning.

"Sarah agreed to help with the books for some team her daughter skates on. And she offered to take me to lunch in exchange for helping her make sense of the spreadsheets." I try to get us back on topic. "And she'll be here any minute."

"Skating?"

"Ice skating."

"In the summer?"

I roll my eyes. "Oh my god, are you just here to pester me, or did you need something?"

He keeps his eyes on mine as he lowers his voice. "Can you come over Friday?"

It shouldn't make me so giddy to hear him ask. And he definitely shouldn't be asking me in the office. But I kinda love it.

I'm about to say yes when I remember I have plans. "I can't."

"Oh." Maddox looks so dejected I'm tempted to take him up on his first offer and climb into his lap.

"I want to." I tell him the truth. "But my mom has book club on Friday night, so Chelsea and I have plans to get pedicures and have a girls' night."

"Saturday, then?" Maddox narrows his eyes as I start to smile. "Why do I feel like I'm stepping into a trap?"

"Not a trap. Just a baseball game."

"Baseball," he groans. "First the hockey restaurant, now this."

"You're so dramatic," I laugh. "A bunch of people from Chelsea's school are going to the Kids game, and Mom has decided she doesn't want to go, so we have an extra ticket."

"But baseball is so boring," he complains. "Can't I just take you and Chelsea somewhere else? Literally anywhere else."

"Dramatic," I repeat. "And don't act like you don't like baseball. Everyone likes baseball."

Maddox sighs. "Fine, what time should I pick you up?"

"I think it starts at two—"

"What starts at two?" a female asks from the door. "Do you need to—" Sarah cuts off when she sees Maddox in my visitor's chair. "Oh. Uh." She looks up at me with wide eyes. "Sorry, did you want to postpone?"

"No, no, we're good," I tell her. "Maddox is talking about something else."

For a moment, I wonder if calling him that sounds too personal, but he's always telling everyone to call him by name, so it's really not that weird.

Maddox slips the paperclip into his pocket as he stands from the chair. "Hi, Sarah. Nice to see you again."

"Thanks," she breathes as she holds her hand out.

Then she must realize this isn't really a handshake moment, and she starts to lower her hand. But Maddox is already reaching out to take hers because he's accommodating like that, so she lifts her hand back up.

It's the most awkward interaction I've seen in a long time, and I have to avert my gaze to keep from cracking up.

"I just need to finish this email real quick." I focus on my screen.

"I'll get out of your hair, then," Maddox says. "You ladies have a nice lunch."

I lift my gaze to see Maddox pause at the doorway.

"Hannah, let's plan for noon."

"Alright," I agree with my most casual voice.

Sarah's back is to him, and she's staring at me with wide eyes, so she doesn't see when he winks at me.

Once he's gone, Sarah collapses into the chair Maddox just vacated. "I can't work for a man that attractive. It's just not right."

I glance at the empty doorway. "You're not wrong."