Chapter 38
CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
Maren
I walk into the office on Monday morning, steady on my feet.
I spent the better part of yesterday being coached back to health by Arietta. She got me off the couch at noon and into the kitchen. We made a salad together, and then once the food had settled, she guided me through some stretches and yoga poses.
It didn’t seem like a lot of movement for my ankle, but it was tender by the end of the day.
It was a quiet Sunday, filled with lots of laughs with my roommate, good food, and thoughts of my boss.
As soon as I step off the elevator, I notice something on my desk.
It’s a pink rectangular box with a white bow on it.
I glance around, but my co-workers are all busy tending to what needs to be done.
This is the first day I haven’t arrived at the office before all of them. I took extra time to get ready this morning.
“Hey, Maren.” Everett passes by me. “How was your weekend?”
“Good,” I answer honestly. “How about you?”
“One of the best I’ve had in a long time.” He smiles before he disappears down the corridor toward his office.
I stare at the pink box as I drop my purse into the bottom drawer of my desk.
It only takes a glance into Keats’s darkened office for me to realize that he’s not at work yet.
Scratching the side of my nose, I lower myself into my office chair.
That’s when I notice a small white card next to the box with my name written on the front.
I open it and read the masculine handwriting.
You said they were your favorite shoes. Keats.
A smile creeps over my lips as I untie the bow and lift the box. I rip through the pink tissue paper and gasp. “What? How?”
I pick up one shoe. It’s the same brand and size of the shoes I had on the other night. I reach for the other.
I don’t know how Keats found another pair of the same shoes since I bought the originals when I was in college. It was at a small store in Boston that was going out of business.
My mom took me there for the weekend. She called it a girls’ trip, but it was more of a rediscovery of our relationship. I had matured during my years in school, and she wanted to treat me to martinis and caviar.
I bought the shoes even though she insisted on paying for them. I wanted to show her that I was responsible and capable. Every time I slipped them on, I remembered that weekend.
I carefully place the shoes back in the box with shaking hands. “Wow,” I say softly. “I can’t believe this.”
“Believe it.”
I look up to see Keats standing in front of my desk. The smile on his face makes my heart swell.
“Thank you.” I smile. “How did you find these shoes?”
“Anything is possible if you want it badly enough,” he says. “Join me in my office, Maren.”
I push back from the desk and stand on shaky feet. “Give me a minute?”
He nods and sets off toward his office door.
I watch as he walks away. The gray suit he has on may make him look sexy-as-hell, but the heart that beats inside his chest makes him irresistible.
I smooth my hand over the skirt of my dress. Sucking in a deep breath, I close my eyes and mouth to myself, “It’s okay to like your boss.”
When I look toward his office, he’s standing in the doorway staring at me. With a crook of his finger, he beckons me closer, and I go.
I let my heart take the lead.