not light and bubbly like the women you’re used to seeing. Maybe a wedding will loosen her up.” Reid stood.
“She’s serious about her job but that’s not a bad thing,” Gage said in her defense. He rose from his chair and Flynn followed suit.
“It’s not,” Flynn agreed. “She’s a hard-core professional. Does everything she says she’s going to do, and follows through like a boss.” The description sounded like Flynn himself.
“I was just pointing out that she’s the opposite of the type of woman you gravitate toward.” Reid narrowed his eyes. “Lately.”
What Reid was not-so-subtly hinting at was that Andy was, at first glance, a lot like Gage’s ex-fiancée.
He didn’t want to talk about Laura any more than he wanted to bring up politics at a dinner party. He’d admired her strong work ethic and serious nature. In the end, he’d believed in them more than she had.
She’d broken the engagement, coldly stating that he wasn’t enough like her. He had a case of the “toos.” He was too likable, too fun and too easygoing. She’d claimed she needed someone “serious” about the future. The corrosion of that engagement was his biggest failure.
Gage hated failure.
He’d been sure that Andy was that same kind of woman—cold, calculating—until he’d witnessed her flustered. Seeing that chink in her armor had drawn him in rather than pushed him away. He hadn’t completely understood it. After the hell Laura’d put him through he’d be smart not to pursue Andy at all.
But he’d never been one to back down from a challenge, and Gage sensed there was warmth and gentleness underneath Andy’s rigid exterior that had yet to surface. The more of her flaws he exposed, the more he proved that the attraction wasn’t some masochistic repeat of the past with Laura, but some new, fascinating layer to Andy herself.
He liked that she had an imperfect, human side that rarely showed, that she was a mystery waiting to be uncovered. That she didn’t have it together 24/7. Plus she was downright sexy. If he found an opening to show her how sexy she was, he’d happily oblige.
Not that his agreeing to be Andy’s wedding date had been totally magnanimous. He’d needed her to stay on at Monarch for both appearances and results, and a few days in Ohio seemed a small price to pay.
Flynn and Sabrina had left the office around five. Now that Flynn had a girlfriend in Sabrina, he rarely worked as late as he had before. Reid had a date as well, so he’d packed up and followed them out. That left Gage alone in the executive corner of the office, waiting at his desk for Andy’s daily report, which came at around 5:30 p.m.
She strolled in wearing her office attire of black pants, low shoes and a silky white shirt. Her gold jewelry was simple and understated, except for the large-faced watch, which she glanced down at before she entered.
Mouth a flat line, determination in her eyes, she stalked toward him like a hungry lioness. Much like the first time he’d seen her, he watched her approach with an even mix of intrigue and attraction.
Could he uncover the fun, flirty girl under that armor? Was there one?
“Your team is exceptional, Gage,” she said, skipping over a greeting. “Which is in no small part thanks to you being a dedicated, earnest leader.”
His eyebrows lifted at the compliment he wasn’t expecting. But then she spoke again and made it obvious that she’d come in here with an agenda.
“I have an itinerary, your plane ticket and a few other details to cover for this weekend’s wedding if you’re available for a quick rundown. I know it’s last-minute, but I’ve been busy.”
All business, he thought with a smile. He’d always enjoyed a challenge but, he was realizing, lately he’d pursued challenges professionally rather than personally. He hadn’t chased women who’d challenged him since Laura left. Then again, Andy had been the only one who’d tempted him to do so since.
“What are you doing right now?” he asked her.
“Now?” Her eyes widened slightly.
“Yeah. Now. Dinner?”
She shook her head like what he was saying didn’t compute.
“Are you hungry?” he pressed.
“Yes.”
“Are you busy right now?”
“I’m always busy.”
He waited.
She shrugged and affected an unaffected expression. “Fine.”
“Great. I’ll drive.”
“Where are we going?”
“Why? Are you picky? Have allergies?”
“No.” She frowned.
“Then don’t worry about it.” He winked, enjoying throwing her off-kilter.
He needed a little more fun in his life and Andy definitely needed a little more fun in her life. He liked that she seemed unused to a man strong enough or willing enough to take her on. He just liked her, dammit, though he wasn’t yet sure why he liked her this much.
* * *
In the immediate seconds following Gage’s invitation to dinner, Andy wanted to blurt out that she needed to change first. Thankfully she resisted that very female urge. Just because Gage was playing her date at the wedding didn’t mean he was one tonight. She would pretend they were an item, enjoy the reprieve from her family’s judgment, and relish showing up an old ex-boyfriend who thought she’d been carved from a block of ice. But she’d keep the boundary lines very clear in her head. Gage had agreed to be her date for one reason: because he’d needed her expertise at work.
Without something to gain, he wasn’t interested in her—he’d turned her down that night in the bar, after all.
Still, being around him was a rare exception she admitted she was tempted to enjoy. She was a hard sell to any man—even without the offer to pay him. A man who was both professional and not intimidated by her success was a rare commodity. Like finding a unicorn.
Even though her arrangement with Gage wouldn’t last any longer than her sister’s reception, Andy figured it’d be good to get to know him so that her family wouldn’t suspect she’d bribed him to come. The only thing more humiliating than showing up at her sister’s wedding with a fake date would be everyone learning that she was faking it.
But the stray thought about changing for dinner with Gage had rocked her. Why would she care what he thought of her appearance if they weren’t doing this for real? She’d long ago accepted that a forever-and-ever relationship wasn’t going to happen, and yet something about Gage—about his charm and kindness—made a small part of her wish this was real.
He wasn’t intimidated by her. If anything, the more prickly she was, the more laid-back he seemed to become. Laid-back and yet more than a little commanding.
It
