Page 40 of Savannah Sweethearts

I stood behind him a moment before I said anything. He sat in his dark office, his head buried in his hands, his hair standing out on end. Was he upset? Embarrassed?

“Alonso?” My voice was so quiet I wasn’t sure he heard me until his head slowly lifted and he swiveled around in his chair.

Dark eyes shone at me and my breath hitched. The man I had spent seven years wanting to toss off a tall bridge stared at me, eyebrows raised. His lips were full and I watched him part them for a deep sigh. I was completely entranced. This was not the same man who had tried to hurt me years ago or even the man I had been furious to see weeks ago.

“Yes, Piper?” His voice was deep and it quivered just a bit. His prominent Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed.

It was like time slowed down. I watched him stand in front of me, his long, black eyelashes closing and opening and deep brown doe eyes glistened at my own.

“You? The flowers?” I could barely form a complete thought let alone full sentences. “Why?”

My hand instinctively reached out and touched his arm. I felt his muscles flex under my fingers and he took in a sharp breath. The goofy grin I had rolled my eyes at last week now made my heart skip a beat.

“Because I thought you deserved a happy birthday. And because I needed to be the one who put that happy look on your face.” His face grew a little closer and his fingers brushed my hair back from my cheek.

I blinked several times, sure my eyes were playing tricks on me, my skin feeling things that were not actually happening. This couldn’t be the same Alonso Ortiz. He smelled like soap and cinnamon, and the skin on his arm was soft and supple.

“I… Thank you.” I looked up to him and bit my lip, unsure what else to say. My fingers curled around his forearm and I squeezed lightly. I didn’t understand why tears pricked the back of my eyelids, so I closed them and whispered again. “Thank you, Alonso.”

His warm breath caused my skin to break into goosebumps and I shuddered involuntarily. Would he kiss me? Did I want him to?

No. I needed to get away from him. I hated him. He was immature, and I did not want him to kiss me let alone touch me. Maybe he was just messing with me, another one of his childish pranks. I needed to break the trance I seemed to be under, but I couldn’t move. If this was a prank I would be played the fool all over again.

A voice from behind us provided the much-needed interruption. “Everything okay here?” Rex sounded concerned, as he should be given my proximity to Alonso Ortiz.

Immediately I stepped back and my chest heaved. “Yes, everything is fine.” I looked at Alonso. “Thank you.” I retreated several steps and let Rex pass into their shared office space.

Unaware of what he had broken up, Rex looked from me to Alonso. “AO, you good?”

“Yeah, Piper just had a problem with her contacts. All fixed now.” His eyes were trained on mine, his face serious. “Happy birthday, Piper.”

“Oh, yeah. Happy birthday.” Rex raised his coffee cup towards me in a toast.

Forcing a smile I thanked Rex and went back to my desk. The floral arrangement was huge, a cheery display of pinks and yellows. Pink was certainly my favorite color and yellow was the color of friendship. Did he know that? The balloon bobbed under the air vent, announcing my birthday to everyone within viewing distance. I slipped the candies in a still-empty desk drawer. They barely fit.

Maria came back over. “Ready for the budget meeting?” When I stood, she added, “Did you figure out who they’re from?”

It would raise eyebrows if I said they were from Alonso. He hadn’t signed the card and I assumed that was on purpose. Workplace romances were discouraged and we were certainly not in a romance. We were barely working towards liking one another.

No, I couldn’t tell Maria. “Oh, they’re from a, uh, friend of mine. We’ve known each other a long time.” Satisfied with that, we walked together to the daily budget meeting.

An hour later and Alonso and I were in the car heading out to interview a family with six children who all joined the military. It was a good news story, my favorite kind. We were silent as we left downtown Savannah and headed over to Richmond Hill.

Once the landscape opened up to more greenery, I scrounged up the nerve to ask him the one question that had been plaguing me. “Why didn’t you sign the card?”

His grip on the steering wheel tightened. “You’ve been in newsrooms before. You know they’re like a high school with the rumor mill. I didn’t figure you wanted people asking questions about the two of us.”

I nodded. “That’s what I thought. And I appreciate that. We certainly don’t need tongues wagging.”

His laughter filled the car. “And I have a reputation to uphold.”

The warm feeling I had just developed for Alonso dissipated. “Excuse me?”

“Everyone knows I’m the bachelor in residence. So many people have tried to set me up with their sisters or friends. I don’t need a woman.”

His easy grin infuriated me. But I had just the right comeback. “Oh, so you’re gay? I should have known.”

The car wobbled back and forth for a second as he whipped his head toward me. “What? No!”

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