Page 99 of Verses Of Us

She spun around and eyed the phone, pressing the button. “I don’t have anyone on the schedule. Do they have an appointment?”

“Um… no?”

Alexis pinched the bridge of her nose. “So, then?”

“He says he needs to speak to you. In person.”

She massaged her temple. Annie was new, but she wasn’t oblivious to the rules. “I don’t care, Annie. If he doesn’t have an appointment…” She took a calming breath. “What’s his name?”

“Hewson.”

As if someone had clubbed her in the kneecaps, her legs gave out and she fell into her chair. “PaulHewson?”

“Yeah…”

Her leg fidgeted, and her head sank into her hands. Alexis wasn’t sure which bothered her more; that her assistant didn’t recognize the person standing in front of her, or that he was waiting on the other side of the frosted office wall.

“Should I send him in?”

She nibbled on her lip for a few moments, then put her shoes back on and shoved her shaky hands into the pockets of her cropped linen pants. At least she looked good, even if she now felt sick.

“Alexis?”

She released her lip from her teeth. “Send him in.”

“Are you sure? I can tell him to—”

“No, it’s fine,” Alexis croaked.

The door slowly swung open and time stood still.

MARKED

Alexis

Therehewas.

Dressed in torn blue jeans, light brown leather shoes and a crisp white t-shirt, Ciarán stood at the door, untroubled by the small gawking crowd behind him.

Alexis panicked. The professional side of her brain knew she was supposed to invite him in and avoid making an emotional fool of herself in front of her employees. But the more dominant part of her, the lonely, regretful one she’d been living with since leaving Dublin, crumbled the moment she saw his face.

Trying her best to exude a calm façade, she forced a smile. “Please come in.”

Ciarán moved into her office, bringing a warm, luxurious scent with him that surrounded her like a hug.

Annie peeked in over his shoulder, gripping the door frame. “Alexis, what about the meeting with Roger in twenty?”

“Reschedule it.”

With a cautious glance toward Ciarán, her assistant nodded and shut the door, taking all the air in the room along with her.

“What are you doing here?” Alexis asked, locked in place by Ciarán’s assessing gaze.

“I was in town and thought I’d drop by.” As if it was the most natural thing in the world, he strutted around her office, a faint smile hinting at the corner of his lips.

“Is that so?” Her arched eyebrow shook. Waves of anxiety blasted through her as the headache returned, sending sharp stabs between her temples.

“Why are you really here?” Inside her pockets, she kept flicking her thumbnail. Was the room suddenly warmer?

---