“There’s a bit of news from George’s floor.”
Elizabeth began to squirm. If they discovered information about George’s secret marriage, they would begin to question her to see if she knew more. She didn’t make it a habit to share her employer’s personal information because of loyalty and for fear of being canned. Not to mention, when a person started to gossip about things they knew, sometimes they became out of hand and said more than they should. In her position, saying more than she should could be harmful to her health. Yes, it was better just to remain silent. Elizabeth waited and when LuLu spoke, she was surprised by what she shared.
“George hired a new lawyer.”
Lisa frowned. “That’s it? George brought in another lawyer. He’s always hiring new attorneys. Word is that he doesn’t like to work, so he just pretends by employing more legal representatives. That’s nothing. Old news. You better give me something else or there might be more purple on the horizon.”
LuLu frowned before saying, “You don’t understand. He didn’t hire just any lawyer. He hired blue eyes himself!”
“Ol’ blue eyes? Like in Frank Sinatra? I thought he was dead,” said Wesley.
“I didn’t say ol’ blue eyes; I just said blue eyes. As in, he has the dreamiest blue eyes a woman has ever seen. Anyway, he is a high class defense attorney for some of the meanest criminals known to man. They say he prides himself in getting the guilty off scott-free.”
Elizabeth frowned. Now why would George, who was an expert in white collar crime, hire such a high-profile criminal defense attorney?
Lisa interrupted her thoughts. “Oh, yeah, I’ve heard about him. He’s young, attractive, and likes to eat all over town with one beauty or another. He never dates anyone from work. He’s on all the society pages.”
LuLu buttered a roll and asked, “How would you know? Have you been reading the society pages?”
“Of course, I always read the society pages.”
After that, the normal argument between LuLu and Lisa ensued. LuLu was of the opinion that reading the society pages was of the Devil, and Lisa took the position there was nothing wrong with it. The pastor had tried to reason with the two women using a theological explanation, but it had done no good. They were both firm in their beliefs. One said it was okay; the other that it was wrong. Wesley and Elizabeth had decided to just let them argue it out. They figured when one of them was personally convicted by Jesus, it would all work itself out.
As the two ladies were going back and forth, Elizabeth spotted a new individual entering the promenade. He was tall with midnight black hair. His build was similar to that of Wesley’s, but he seemed broader in the shoulders.
He sat down at a table and looked up, catching Elizabeth in the act of openly staring at him. He sent a smile in her direction, causing her to blush bright red. Her heart beat a rapid tattoo against her chest. Her throat tightened as she swallowed the food in her mouth. She lowered her gaze back to the table, but not before Wesley caught her.
“I see you finally spotted someone you like.”
“What?” Elizabeth asked in a shocked whisper.
“Don’t be ashamed. That’s the first time in the year I’ve known you that you have openly stared at anyone.”
“I was looking because he’s new. That’s all.”
“Elizabeth, there’s nothing wrong with finding someone of the opposite sex attractive. In fact, I believe that’s God’s plan for all of us, or part of His plan.”
“It doesn’t matter. You’re wrong. I was just staring because he’s new.” Sighing wistfully, she continued, “It wouldn’t matter anyway. I’m hardly the type of girl that would attract his attention.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Look at me, Wesley.”
“I look at you a lot. You’re a very attractive and beautiful woman.” He lifted a piece of her brown hair. “You have lustrous brown hair and sparkling emerald green eyes, as well as a heart of gold.”
“You’re just saying that to be nice,” Elizabeth said, feeling heat rise to her cheeks.
“Nope,” he said, while popping a carrot into his mouth and crunching on it.
With uncommon boldness, she asked, “Then how come you’ve never asked me out, hmm?”
“Good question. Do you want to go out?”
Elizabeth raised her eyebrow. “I don’t think Lisa would like that too much.”
“How did you know?” asked Wesley, an eyebrow raising in surprise.
Elizabeth shrugged. “It’s obvious. Why didn’t you guys just tell us?”
“We didn’t want to change the friend dynamic by announcing that we were dating. We would still like to be friends if it doesn’t work out.”
“Good. I’m glad to hear it. You guys will be great together.” Elizabeth thought for a moment and then looked at Lisa and LuLu, who were still hot and heavy with their moral discussion, before asking Wesley, “How would I go about getting the attention of someone like that?”
“What kind of attention?”
“That’s a good question. I mean, I could get attention from him now. He would probably think I was a frumpy housewife that had no time to take care of her personal being. I think I would rather be noticed as a woman, I mean a real woman.”
Wesley tapped his forehead. “Maybe you should ask Lisa to help you with a makeover. She’s into clothes and looking her best and all that.”
“I know Lisa could help me, but I don’t really want to try and be overly attractive and attract the wrong kind of guy. Not that Lisa does that. I mean, you’re a guy. And I just want to look womanly, I guess. How about you help me instead?”
Wesley shifted. Elizabeth placed a hand on his arm, looked into his eyes, and said, “It’ll be okay.”
Taking a deep breath, he finally answered, “Yeah, I’ll help you. When do you want to do this?”
“When are you free?”
“I don’t have a date with Lisa tonight, so maybe we could meet after work. Say at six. Here in the promenade.”
“Sure. Thanks.”
By now Lisa and LuLu had stopped arguing about society pages and were discussing what they were eating. Lisa was on LuLu about counting her calories so she would eat less; LuLu was on Lisa to count her calories so she would eat more. Wesley and Elizabeth rolled their eyes, sat back and enjoyed their meal, and the brief rest from work.
Elizabeth stared down at her food, thinking. She didn’t know what had possessed her to want to appear more feminine. Surely just looking at a tall, attractive man wouldn’t cause her to just drop this style and change back to what she’d worn before. But she had been looking at herself in the mirror a lot more lately. She knew she wasn’t a beauty queen; she also knew she wasn’t completely ugly. Her family wondered why she wasn’t married yet, and of course she hadn’t told them about her change in appearance. If they knew she’d changed just so she could work as a secretary, they might not have been too happy.
When Elizabeth glanced back up at the man with the black hair, he was watching her. She smiled in his direction, because it felt like the right thing to do. His eyes stayed locked on her. Elizabeth sighed and angled her gaze downward. When she looked down, she noticed her sloppy appearance. A sigh parted her lips. How was she ever going to meet anyone under these circumstances? Who would want to have anything to do with her? Not only did she look terrible, but she was a walking time bomb. She wasn’t safe to be around. The what-ifs continued to swirl through her mind until a headache set up behind her eyes. Taking a deep breath, she wondered, What am I doing to myself?
Chancing a glance at her watch, Elizabeth noticed her lunch break was over. She said good-bye to the group, gathered her things and left. As her feet slapped the shiny tile floor, Elizabeth’s mind wondered. Would Mr. Hampton be upset when he returned from lunch? Had George’s announcement been a pleasant surprise?
As she continued on her way back to the office, she was struck by a flash of color. In the middle of the promenade was a
huge round brick planter that was filled with trees, green foliage, and real blooming flowers. Elizabeth directed her feet to their location. On one of the leaves sat an interesting sight. It was a butterfly.
Elizabeth bent over and studied the unique features of the creature. When the wings were shut, they were a drab brown, and when they opened they displayed an intricate design of orange and black, with a hint of blue. Elizabeth placed her hand forward. The butterfly walked onto her waiting palm.
“That’s a very nice specimen. Vanessa cardui, or Painted Lady, I believe.”
His voice was deep and sent chills down her spine, causing Elizabeth to take a swift breath. With the movement, the creature flew away.
Looking into the stranger’s face, the first thing she noticed was his deep blue eyes. He was even more attractive at this range. Her tongue stuck to the top of her mouth, refusing to work.
Bowing her head, Elizabeth barreled toward the elevator, leaving him at the bushes alone. More than ever, she needed Wesley’s help.
Astraea Press
Pure. Fiction.
www.astraeapress.com
Table of Contents
By God’s Grace
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
Chapter Thirty-Three
Chapter Thirty-Four
Chapter Thirty-Five
Chapter Thirty-Six
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Chapter Forty
Chapter Forty-One
Chapter Forty-Two
Chapter Forty-Three
Chapter Forty-Four
Chapter Forty-Five
Chapter Forty-Six
Chapter Forty-Seven
Chapter Forty-Eight
Chapter Forty-Nine
Chapter Fifty
Chapter Fifty-One
Epilogue
About the Author
Also by Felicia Rogers:
The Painted Lady
By God's Grace Page 29
