Southern Charm : A BWWM Cowboy Romance

by Tiana Cole

  “Oh better. Much better thanks. Did I miss anything?”

  “Not a thing,” Laura said with her eyes on her computer. I had them fooled but I wasn't in the clear. As the day wore on, I could see Joshua's car was still there but I had convinced myself that there was no way he'd remember me anyway. I looked very different from that night at Adrenalin. That night I had so much flesh on display, Joshua would probably not even remember my eye color. My hair was different now, I had very little make up on and I was so formally dressed that sexy Libby and work Libby could be two different people.

  At the end of the day I was so looking forward to picking up Giselle from daycare. I smiled as I left, completely forgetting the tensions of earlier, and went to catch the elevator down, even though I normally walked the two flights. But the light on the numbers above the elevator door said second floor and I wanted a quick getaway. As I got on the elevator I was aware of someone already in there.

  “Going down?” a deep voice said. My God. I swallowed and gripped my purse. It was Joshua.

  “I – I. Um. Yes, down please.” I said not looking at his face but at his shoes.

  “That's good,” he said with a laugh. “We're going down anyway.”

  “That's great,” I said and turned my back to him, eyes fixed on the closing elevator door.

  As the elevator descended, my stomach did a flip and I could feel heat on my back. When the doors opened on the ground floor, Joshua tapped my shoulder.

  I froze where I was standing.

  “You must be new,” he said. “I haven't seen you before.”

  I was being rude by not looking directly at him so I took a chance and turned around. I looked him straight in the eye and he gave me a big smile as we got out into the foyer.

  “I'm Joshua Fieldman,” he said with an outstretched hand. I looked at his hand and remembered how they cupped my breasts that night. Slowly I shook his hand.

  “Libby Edwards,” I said. We had eye contact, he was smiling at me and then I realized. He didn't know who the hell I was. He hadn't remembered me from Adrenalin. I finally smiled back.

  “Wait,” he said. “Don't I know you from somewhere?”

  “No.” I snatched my hand away. “I mean, we've never been introduced before.”

  “Well, I won't keep you,” he said.

  I turned and walked to the exit. He was right behind me. I kept my head looking straight ahead but was aware of his body being so near. At the rotating doors I started to breathe again. He doesn't know me. He can't know me. Typical of a guy not to remember who they had a one night stand with. But, luckily for me, he had been drinking as much as I had been. He was young and he'd probably screwed at least a million other women since then.

  I hurried out to the main road, aware that Joshua was walking to his car. I practically ran to the subway and disappeared off the street before he could drive past and see me again. I did it, I thought, I faced him and I got away with it.

  I decided then and there – all I had to do was avoid the office party and do my best to avoid Joshua Fieldman whenever he came to pay Fieldman Finance and Investment Services a visit.

  Chapter 10

  “I'm sorry, Libby, but the office summer party isn't optional.”

  My heart sank when my manager told me these words. I had gone to tell her that I couldn't make the office party. I received the email invitation in my inbox along with everyone else. It was a big bright announcement and someone might have played a fanfare when I opened it. I read all about the annual event and I thought my heart would pop out of my chest.

  It was open to families too. Laura and Penny had cooed about how lovely it would be to see Giselle. I was mortified by the news and thought that just one quick excuse in my manager's ear would be enough to get me out of going to the party.

  “Not optional?” I said with a gulp.

  “No, consider it a working party as such. It's a chance for everyone to meet everyone. You get to meet people from other departments and really interact instead of just bumping into them in the hall or riding up in the elevator with them.”

  I blinked several times. I wished I'd thought up a better excuse than the one I had given my manager – a doctor's appointment. How lame.

  “No, Libby, you'll just have to reschedule your appointment.” She turned her eyes to her computer screen and I knew I had been dismissed.

  So, there I was at my apartment, on the afternoon of the office party, standing at the bathroom mirror, applying a coat of lipstick when Tracy came over with her girls to collect Giselle. She was going to be with them all afternoon with an option to sleep over, depending on when my ordeal at the party was finished and I could get back home from the Hamptons.

  “You look gorgeous,” Tracy said as if it were some kind of consolation for me having to go. I stared at her through the bathroom mirror.

  “Thanks Tracy. Although I want to be as hidden away as possible. Luckily with everyone and their families being there, I'm sure I can avoid him.”

  When I told Tracy the ground breaking news that my hot and steamy one night stand lover turned out to be my boss, she did a somersault. Well not a literal one but near enough. She talked about fate, serendipity and all those things for hours while I just looked at her and said, “Well he doesn't know who I am and I'm tempted to keep it that way.” She was stumped by that but hadn't let the subject rest.

  “So that's it?” she said as she folded her arms in the bathroom doorway. “You're still not going to say anything to him, even after you got the sign?” Tracy closed the bathroom door and came in.

  “What sign?” I turned to face her in the tiny room.

  “The sign! You know. Can't you see it's a sign that you happen to be working at the very place Giselle's-”

  “Shh, keep your voice down,” I said looking at the door. I could hear Giselle giggling with Tracy's teenage twin girls. “We can't go through all that again, not now. Look, this isn't easy, you know? How do I spring this on someone? And at an office party?”

  “Look it doesn't have to be today, Libby. But at some stage, you have to tell him.”

  “I recognized him straight away, he didn't have a clue about me.” I turned back to the mirror. “Have I aged that much?”

  “Silly, you haven't aged at all. You just go to the party, see what happens. If you can, at least try to have some fun. All you do is work.”

  I arrived at the party, a little flustered and very sure I wasn't going to have a good time, despite what Tracy said. I saw Laura and Penny straight away as I walked out of the hotel restaurant and into the garden area where the party was being held.

  The weather was amazing and everyone looked so different in summer outfits, not a suit or tie to be seen. I wore a crepe, shocking pink summer dress. It was sleeveless with a thin belt at the waist and a flared skirt.

  “You didn't bring Giselle,” Laura said. “I really wanted to meet her.”

  “She wouldn't have liked this,” I said, my eyes scouring the entire lawn. It stretched out to the waterfront. The food was on large tables covered by a white canopy. The staff wore black and white and circled the guests with trays of champagne and fruit juice. Laura grabbed a champagne flute and handed it to me.

  “Here,” she said. “You look nervous. Relax and have some fun.”

  “Are you not having fun?” a voice beside me said. I knew it was him. He was right by my shoulder and I had to turn around. I couldn't walk away and pretend he wasn't there.

  “I just got here,” I said to Joshua.

  “Me too. It's Libby, isn't it?” he said.

  “That's right.” I smiled, not out of politeness but because Joshua's smile was so compelling I just had to smile back. In the bright sunlight I noticed tiny details in his face that I hadn't before. Faint traces of a dimple on each cheek. Giselle had cute dimples. Dark, chocolate colored eyes; Giselle's were the exact same shade.

  “Well, you must be special if the CEO remembered your name,” Laura said loudl
y. “You remember mine?” she said to him.

  “Of course I remember your name, Laura. You having a good time?”

  “I always do. But I'm off to try the oysters. That's new this year,” she said. And before I could say, I'll join you, Laura and Penny were off and I was left on my own with Joshua. I took a long sip of champagne. He stood right in front of me. He was so tall and broad, he obscured the rest of the party.

  “How are you enjoying your work, Libby?” His look of concern was sincere.

  “It's fine. I like it here.”

  “I don't mean to talk shop but the senior managers always tell me how important relations on all levels are,” he said. “I don't come into the building very often as you know. I think some people can't really relate to me.”

  “I can't see why. You seem very...” I suddenly became self conscious.

  “I seem very what?”

  “Well...nice, I suppose.”

  He gave me cheeky grin. “Nice? I'm nice? I was going for dashing and charming when I picked out this shirt.” He laughed.

  “Stop teasing. You know what I mean,” I said.

  “No, tell me what you mean?”

  There was a moment of silence between us. But something flowed from one to the other, like a wave of emotion. I felt it in my stomach, it worked its way to my heart and made it beat a little faster. I saw Joshua's chest rise, he let out a silent sigh and the warmth of his breath on my face made me feel relaxed.

  He looked into my eyes as he sipped his drink.

  “Amazing,” he said.

  “What?” I asked him.

  “You. There's something about you. I just feel very...”

  “Very what?” I began to edge away from Joshua as his body seemed to be getting incredibly close and I wondered if anyone standing nearby would notice.

  “You intrigue me,” he finally said. “Something about you makes me imagine you have a great story behind you. That you had a full life and somehow I'm compelled to want to unravel the mystery.”

  “I'm not a mystery.” I cleared my throat. “Besides, isn't your three minutes up. They tell me that's all you spend talking to members of your staff before you move on to the next.”

  “Not this time.” Joshua looked over his shoulder. “Mind you, I am supposed to circulate. But, I wonder if I could ask you something.”

  My heart was in my throat. Please don't ask if we slept together, I kept repeating in my head.

  “Could we have lunch this week? Then you and I can talk for longer.”

  “But,” I stuttered. “Is that allowed? I mean, won't people talk?”

  “It's not that kind of company, Libby. I allow people the freedom to do as they please in terms of relationships at work.”

  “Relationships?”

  “Don't panic. I only want to take you to lunch, I wasn't going to ask for your hand in marriage. But wait. I don't want to be too presumptuous. I know you're divorced but I didn't ask if you were in a relationship now.”

  “Me? No. I'm very single right now. It's just me and my daughter.”

  “So, is that an I do?” he asked. “I meant for lunch, not for marriage.”

  We both laughed. Mine was a nervous laugh but he hadn't realized that I was shaking like a leaf. I had to make a decision, though. To have lunch or to turn him down. If I had lunch with him, we'd be on our own and I could bring up the subject of Giselle.

  “I do,” I said.

  “That's brilliant. I'll be in the office on Wednesday, Libby. How does that sound?”

  “Sounds great,” I said. I didn't even finish my train of thought, my decision process. His intense stare had weakened me and all I could say was yes to him.

  As he walked away from me I noticed that Laura and Penny were standing close by. They were both sipping cocktails through straws and looking at me as if I had two heads.

  I went over to them. “What's up with you two?”

  “Do you realize how long Joshua Fieldman spent talking to you?” said Penny.

  “Seven whole minutes!” Laura exclaimed. “That's a record, Libby. What did he say to you?”

  “Oh, nothing much,” I said, teasing. “He just asked me to lunch. Now where's that food table?” I began to walk away from them, Penny pulled me back by the arm.

  “Did I hear right? You're going on a date with the CEO?”

  “It's lunch,” I said. “That's all.”

  “He never asks anyone to lunch,” Laura chimed in. “He likes you. Oh my God, he likes you. No prizes for guessing you like him too, right?”

  I shrugged my shoulders and went to get some food. The girls both followed close behind. While I helped myself to oysters, all they could do was talk endlessly about Joshua Fieldman. How I managed to act so cool, I have no idea. There was a mini volcano happening inside me and it was about to erupt. I had to keep my panic at bay until I saw Tracy. Only then could I explode and tell her what happened and the big decision I had to make.

  Chapter 11

  Of course, being the person she is, all Tracy could say to me was, “Tell him. You have to tell him the truth.”

  She couldn't dwell on the subject too long when I went to pick Giselle up from her place but I knew I hadn't heard the last of it. She called me the day before my lunch date with Joshua.

  “Before you say anything,” I told her, “I've been building myself up for it.”

  “Good,” Tracy said. “You never know, it could lead to a happy ever after.”

  “Or he could run a mile. He's so young.”

  “Not that young. He's marrying age.”

  “Let's not get ahead of ourselves.”

  “Well, if nothing else, there's child support.”

  I tried to get off the phone so Tracy would stop lecturing me. I know she was doing it for my own good.

  Her words, “tell him, tell him,” were like a mantra going around in my head after spending just half an hour on the phone with her. To be honest, telling Joshua the truth was all I could think about anyway but that didn't make it any less hard for me.

  I had lots to weigh up. Firstly, Joshua was young. He might not want the responsibility of a child. He might deny sleeping with me and I could lose my job. But, having said that, Joshua didn't strike me as the type of person who could be so callous. At the very least, as Tracy had suggested, he'd offer financial support for his daughter, even if he didn't want to have a relationship with me.

  And yet, then again, it was obvious he liked me and I was absolutely attracted to him. But what about if all he felt for me was physical. He might just want to take me to lunch so he could eventually take me to bed. But, as Tracy pointed out, lunch was not a take you to bed sort of meal, that would be dinner.

  So maybe his attraction to me was more than physical – he was the one who suggested lunch as opposed to dinner. He did say he found me intriguing. In the end, I decided that maybe all I needed to do was go with the flow and see what happened. The truth would come out in time. Maybe not at lunch, as Tracy kept insisting. Or maybe, just maybe, it would.

  I was still contemplating my dilemma and didn't notice Joshua walk in to my office at first. It was time for our lunch date.

  “So this is where you hang out,” he said to me. “Hi, Laura, Penny.” He nodded to the girls. Both answered at the same time.

  “Hi Joshua.” They almost sang the words.

  Joshua walked to my desk. I hoped it was neat enough. I laughed inwardly at such a ridiculous thought, as if my desk would matter to him. I began to shut down my computer and looked up at Joshua. He wasn't inspecting my desk at all he was looking out of the window. He had a far away look in his eyes. I followed his eye line and then had to do a quick double take. Joshua wasn't looking out of the window, he was looking at my photograph of Giselle.

  “May I?” he said leaning across and pointing at the picture. I handed it to him but didn't meet his eye and tried to remain cool.

  Joshua stood staring for ages at Giselle's image.

 
“Cute,” he said. “Does she get to see her father much? Oh sorry. That's not my business. Forget I said that.”

  “It's okay,” I said. “She doesn't see her father at all.”

  “That's a shame,” Joshua sighed. “She's a beautiful little girl. She looks mixed race. Is she?”

  “Yes she is.”

  “How old is she?” he asked.

  “She – Giselle – is two now. She was about eighteen months old in that picture.”

  “Cute picture.” He handed it back to me at last. “Shall we?”

  He held my chair as I stood up. I caught some very knowing glances from Laura and Penny but tried to ignore them as Joshua reached for the door and held it open for me.

  “I know a cute little place,” Joshua said as we walked down the stairs. “I made reservations. I hope you don't mind me choosing somewhere without checking with you first.”

  “Not at all. Where are we going?”

  “It's called Roberto's. It's Spanish. You like Spanish food?” he asked.

  “I just about eat everything, so sure, I like Spanish. Suits me fine.”

  Roberto's restaurant was tucked away from all the office buildings. It was trendy and quite busy. I could tell it was expensive as soon as I walked in. Joshua ordered a bottle of wine for us as well as ordering the food.

  “So much?” I asked as he went through practically the entire list of tapas on the menu.

  “Relax, you're with the boss. You're allowed to go back late. It's expected.”

  “You make a habit of this, then, do you? Taking all the girls for lunch? Here I was thinking I was special.” I giggled.

  His face was serious. “You are special. As a matter of fact you are the only person I've ever taken out to lunch from the company.”

  “Really?”

  “Like I said. You're special. I just took an instant liking to you when I first saw you, Libby.”

  “You realize I'm ten years older than you don't you Joshua?”

  “What does that matter?”

  “Well, you had a pick of the younger girls. I'm sure they're all dying to have lunch with you.”