Page 81 of Mine

Chapter Twenty-Two

The knock on the door jolted Phoebe from her current telephone conversation. With the cord from the retriever stretching as she glanced over at the wooden barrier, Phoebe shuffled it to the side and turned on her heels, motioning for her visitor to come in.

The man stepped inside with a bouquet of roses in his hands. The flower arrangement was so big it covered the top half of the deliverer. Phoebe held a finger out at him as she finished the call she was on.

“It’s no problem, thank you very much.” She dropped the phone in the cradle and glanced back at the guy.

“Phoebe Alexandria Rose?” he prompted.

“Yes,” she said, coming around the desk to stand in front of him.

“These are for you.” He handed the big arrangement over to her, and Phoebe smiled delightfully.

“They’re beautiful…” she sang, slipping her nose in to smell them.

“Have a good day, ma’am.”

“Wait!”

The deliverer turned back.

“Who are they from?”

“Oh sorry.” The man stepped back in the room and pulled a card out of his back pocket. “They fell over twice on the way over here, so I carried them while I drove the rest of the way, and I didn’t want to destroy your card. I hope that’s okay.”

The man looked uneasy.

“It’s fine,” she said, accepting the card. Phoebe sat the flowers down and ripped the envelope.

My lady love, being with you has given me a lifetime of joy. Please accept these roses as a symbol of my love for you. – Quentin

The smile that stretched across Phoebe’s face was clandestine. She shivered all over and had a reckless thought that she’d had to put in check quickly. Quentin made her want to drop everything she was doing and go to him. Just to feel his lips against hers and his tongue down her mouth.

“Chill out, girl, you’ve got work to do.”

Sometimes a girl had to give herself a little pep talk. It was the end of the day, and from the moment they’d touched down, Phoebe had been enthralled in one crisis to the next. Why people decided New Year’s Eve was the best time to get reckless was beyond her. But she had a job to do. Leaning into the flowers once again, Phoebe sniffed then sauntered around to her desk and dialed his number.

It rang twice when he answered. “How was your day?”

The groove of his deep voice comforted Phoebe, and she found herself leaning into the phone. “Busy, but no different than last year after new year’s.”

“Hmm, I have a massage waiting for you when you’re done.”

“Really,” she crooned. “I am so looking forward to that.”

“Full body, too.”

Phoebe whistled. “Why don’t I just call in right now and tell Jordan I won’t be here tomorrow.”

Quentin laughed. “You won’t hear me disagreeing.”

“If only it were that easy,” she moaned. “Thank you, babe, for the flowers. They’re beautiful.”

“You’re beautiful,” he said.

Phoebe blushed and flipped a piece of hair behind her ear, then glanced at her wristwatch. “I’ll tell you what, how about I’ll leave in thirty minutes and make my way to your place?”

“Are you calling in first because you know an all-nighter is in order?”

---