Page 54 of Second Chance for the Single Mom

She shrugged. “Fair enough. As long as you’re thinking about it.”

“I am now.” I pointed at her desk. “You finished the prep-work for the Ashton case, right?”

She nodded. “I was just about to start writing our request for dismissal for the Jackson brief.”

“That can wait until tomorrow. Why don’t you take the rest of the afternoon off?”

She perked up. “Seriously? I should call you out on your dating habits more often.”

“We’re not dating. She’s just showing me a condo,” I insisted. “You’d better get out of here before I change my mind.”

Julie grinned and began packing up.

As I drove to the condo development, I thought about what Julie had said. Was I so excited to see Haley that it was noticeable? I’d been tempering my expectations, but I was still hopeful. It was the same feeling as when I walked into court with a very winnable case, yet didn’t want to get my hopes up.

But when I parked on the street and saw Haley standing in front of the development, wearing a form-fitting summer dress with a blazer over the top, I couldn’t deny it.

My excitement had little to do with the building we were about to enter.

“Obviously it’s still not completed,” she said as I approached. “That area over there, where the cement mixer is? That will be a dog park. Do you have a dog?”

Her eyes cut over to me, and I felt my pulse quicken. “I don’t, but that’s not relevant. This would be an investment property that I would rent out.”

“I’m glad you said so!” she replied. “Let me shift my mindset about this place.”

She used a keycard on the door, then held the door open for me with her body. My arm brushed against hers as I squeezed by, and it felt like a jolt of sexual electricity passed between us.

It was impossible to forget the night of sweaty fun we had shared together.

“The place Lucas is living in is your investment property too. Right?” she asked. “Is there a reason you’re buying another property in a different building? There are several condos available in the other one, which might make management easier.”

“The building association doesn’t allow anyone to own more than one unit,” I explained.

“Ah,” Haley said, stepping into the elevator. “A lot of buildings have those restrictions. Fortunately, this one does not. You could buy two if you wanted!”

“Easy, now,” I said with a smile. “Let’s focus on one, first.”

“Can’t blame me for trying,” she said with a wink.

I felt a thrill of attraction as the elevator smoothly carried us to the top floor.

“We’re going to look at the penthouse suite first,” she explained. “It has the best south-facing views. After that, we can check on two smaller units on the seventh floor. Sound like a plan?”

“Sounds great,” I said, deliberately tryingnotto look at the tops of Haley’s breasts. She was showing a delicious amount of cleavage today.

I wondered if that was on purpose. If she was looking extra nice because she knew she was meeting me today.

“Seriously though, we can look at whatever you want. Just let me know,” she said while we left the elevator and entered a small anteroom with three doors branching off. “I can’t thank you enough for your help in court last week.”

“It was nothing,” I said.

Haley gave me a face. “Maybe to you. But it meant a lot to me. I owe you.” She smiled at me for a moment, then turned toward one of the doors. “This is the unit we’re looking at.”

It was a breathtaking double-unit, with a spiral staircase leading to a lofted second floor. But what immediately drew our attention were the massive windows facing south toward downtown Portland, across the river in Oregon.

“Look at that,” I said.

“You’re paying a premium for the view, but it’s worth it,” Haley explained. “As you can see, the balcony extends the entire length of the apartment, and curves around to another sliding glass door into the primary bedroom.”

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