Page 8 of Blessings in Disguise

“Okay.”

“I’ll be right here at four.”

“In this room?”

“Yes. Let’s plan on that.”

Harlan stood and trudged away.

A few minutes later, Caleb left the room and headed to Gemma’s office. From the doorway, he said, “Hey, hi.”

She looked up. Her pretty face was set off by auburn hair she’d pulled back in a knot and she wore another cute sundress. Her office smelled like exotic perfume.

“Come and sit down. You look exhausted.”

When he was situated, he said, “I am. Wow, I haven’t had a session that intense in I don’t know how long.”

“These kids’ issues are tough to deal with.”

His forehead winkled. “You seem so on top of things.”

“Not always. I make time to decompress.”

“How do you decompress?”

“Exercise mostly. Yoga, running. You?”

“I run. Maisy and I used to do it together. But Jackson worried about the pregnancy so we take walks now.”

“Hmm.” She braced her arms on the desk. “Caleb, I asked to see you today before all this happened with Harlan because I want to apologize for my probing at The Garden Grill. You told me you didn’t want to talk about what happened to you and I pushed.”

He took a deep breath. “Don’t get me wrong. I wish I could talk about it. But I just…”

She held up her hand. “I wasn’t asking for an explanation. I only wanted to say I’m sorry. And I’d like to be friends.”

He stared at her with the errant thought that he wanted more than friendship. When it got uncomfortable, she said, “Is something wrong?”

“No. I’d like to be friends, too. Let’s do some things together so we can get to know each other better.”

Her eyes twinkled. “I’d like that very much. Since we both run, shall we set up an exercise date?”

“How about after I meet with Harlan in two days? I’ll be here at four. I’ll wear my running clothes.” He rolled his eyes. “I’ll probably need some exercise then.”

“Sounds like a plan to me. I’ll be ready. And by the way, if you’re going to keep meeting Harlan, you have to clear it with Jackson.”

“I’ll head over there now.”

She stood and came around the desk. He hadn’t noticed how tall and slim she was before. She held out her hand. He took hers in his, but his grasp wasn’t really a handshake. It turned out to be more like a caress.

Which shot sparks through him again.

* * *

“Knock, knock.”

Jackson looked up from his computer. “Hey, buddy.” He smiled at Caleb. “Do you have time to catch up?”

“I do. After I tell you why I came.”

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