“Mariah? Hey. Can I interrupt you for sec?”
The male voice addressing her by name startled her. She hadn’t heard anyone approach.
She’d been too immersed in the horrifying discovery that her high school boyfriend had private messaged her to say how he was looking forward to seeing her when she was home again this weekend.
And that wasn’t even all. He’d also liked every one of her Instagram photos for the past five years.
She was definitely in trouble there. The question was, was she also in trouble here at work?
Slapping her cell face down on the desk, she spun to face Evan Klein. He wasn’t her direct boss but he was definitely on a higher level than she was as a newbie in this company.
He was like executive washroom level and she was still surprised when anyone knew her name.
“Um, hi. Yeah. Sure,” she blathered, hoping he’d forget her being so engrossed in her cell phone she hadn’t noticed him standing there until he’d said her name.
He smiled, flashing perfect white teeth at her.
In fact, all of him was pretty much perfect in a generic Ken Doll kind of way.
A young thirty-something. Blond hair, perfectly cut. Navy blue suit that fit like it was custom, which it might well be knowing how much some of these guys earned in a year. It all blended together to make him look like ninety percent of the other men who worked here.
And speaking of the other men who worked here… Alexander Barrington had skidded to a stop right behind where Evan leaned his shapely behind on the edge of her desk, arms crossed.
“So, uh, what are we talking about?” Alexander asked, breathless.
She’d seen him annoyed, like when he’d stepped in dog shit and couldn’t get a cab. She’d seen him obtuse here in the office when he’d stare right through her like she didn’t exist. But she’d never seen him panicked—visibly flustered—like he was now.
“I’m not sure,” she answered, leaning back in her chair and crossing her own arms to mimic Evan’s pose. “Evan, what are we talking about?”
“Your availability for Christmas weekend,” he grinned.
“And why are we discussing my Christmas plans?” she asked, suspicious.
Alexander finally stepped forward. “Because Evan doesn’t know when to mind his own business.”
Now she was really intrigued. Whatever this was about, it had Alexander completely off-kilter.
Interesting…
Unlike his Ken Doll friend, Alexander Barrington was not a cookie cutter Manhattan businessman.
He had a mop of dark wavy hair that usually was just a tad unruly and longer than customary for the other males in the company.
His eyes were a piercing blue that stood out in stark contrast against his almost black hair.
He didn’t smile often. In fact he was more likely to frown when he showed any expression at all. He never flirted with any of the women here that she could see, unlike Evan. And there was a very intriguing tiny white scar on his upper lip that made her wonder about the story behind it.
Alexander Barrington was by no means perfect. But he was intriguing.
He was a legend around here, having closed the most and biggest deals in the company.
He stood out from the crowd with an air of confidence that bordered on hubris. He’d frightened her when she’d first started until she realized his blank stare didn’t mean he was angry, just oblivious.
And after the shit on the shoe incident, she had proof he was as human and fallible as the rest of them. She’d never fear him again. But she couldn’t help but continue to be intrigued.
“So what are you doing?” Evan asked, ignoring Alexander.
“For Christmas? I’ll be upstate with my family,” she answered, still not knowing why it mattered.
“It’s not actually on Christmas, right? What day is your thing?” Evan twisted toward Alexander, who look pained.
“Don’t you have somewhere you need to be?” Alexander asked the other man.
“Nope.” Evan grinned.
“What’s going on?” she asked, eyes narrowed as her gaze ping-ponged between the two executives visiting her lowly work area.
“Our mutual friend here needs a date for a wedding Christmas weekend.”
“Evan…” Alexander grit out between clenched teeth.
“Seriously, dude. Just tell her what day the wedding is. Maybe she can come.” Evan turned back to her. “You’d go right? It should be nice. Where is it?” Evan pivoted again to address Alexander.
“The Plaza,” he mumbled.
Evan let out a long low whistle. “The Plaza at Christmas. That’s going to be gorgeous. Imagine the decorations. You like Christmas decorations, right?” He reached out pointedly and touched one ornament on her mini desk tree.
“I do,” she answered, playing along as a plan began to form. It took her barely ten seconds to make up her mind. “What day?” she asked.
Both men turned to stare at her.
“The wedding. What’s the date?” she elaborated.
Alexander swallowed visibly, then said, “Saturday, December twenty-third. And apparently there’s a rehearsal dinner Friday as well that I’m supposed to have a date for.”
“He’s a groomsman,” Evan supplied hooking a thumb in his friend’s direction.
“Hence our trip to the tuxedo shop,” she guessed, putting the pieces together.
He nodded while Evan’s brows shot up with interest. “What trip is this?”
“Nothing,” Alexander said.
She’d been planning on leaving right from work Friday the twenty-second. She’d taken the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day off, as had most of the rest of the company, so she wouldn’t have to return to the city until January first.
But in light of what was waiting for her—namely Jeff and her mom pushing them together—those ten days at home looked less and less enticing.
It would feel like an eternity. Her favorite time of the year and her first vacation from work since starting and it was all going to be ruined by Jeff showing up and following her around like a lovesick puppy if she didn’t do something.
But, if she went to this wedding with Alexander, then maybe she could get him to agree to do something for her. Such as come home with her this weekend and scare off her much too friendly high school ex-boyfriend.
Her actually dating someone else might be the only thing to combat her mother’s matchmaking and Jeff’s sudden and unexplained enthusiasm for her a decade after they’d broken up.
“I can make that work,” she blurted.
“What?” Alexander’s eyes flew wide.
“Great!” Evan grinned, speaking over his friend.
“If you do something for me,” she added.
Evan’s brows rose over hazel eyes that sparked with interest. “That sounds intriguing.”
“Why are you still here?” Alexander glared at him, before turning back to her. “What did you have in mind? And remember, I don’t control promotions or raises.”
She waved that away. “It’s not work related. It’s personal.”
“I like the sound of that.”
This time they both turned to glare at Evan for that comment.
“Sorry,” he mumbled but didn’t leave.
“What are you doing this weekend?” she asked Alexander.
He looked understandably cautious as he said, “Uh, nothing, I guess. Why?”
Things were looking promising. Her lips twitched with a smile. “How would you feel about a little road trip?”