TWELVE
Breanna felt like shewas a teenager entering a new school when she walked into the office building. As she readied herself for work this morning, her stomach was in knots. What would her co-workers think of her new look?
Amanda was the first to see her. Her jaw dropped, and she jumped out of her chair so quickly it bumped against the cubicle wall.
“Oh... my...” Amanda shook her head. “What happened to you?”
Because of Amanda’s loud voice, the others in the room were alerted to Breanna’s presence. Within seconds, all of her co-workers swarmed around her, oohing and ahhing over her hair, new dress, and shoes. Breanna didn’t really want to tell them every little detail, so she explained that the party had convinced her to get a new look.
Amanda laughed and elbowed Jackie standing next to her. “Yeah, I bet it was Brad who changed Breanna’s mind.”
Heat rushed to Breanna’s cheeks. Her co-workers must have seen her blush, because they all laughed heartily. Shaking her head, Breanna moved past them and sat behind her computer desk. She also clicked on the small fan on her desk, hoping that would cool her off quickly.
“Breanna, it’s okay.” Amanda sat on the edge of Breanna’s desk. “We all know what a sweetheart Brad is, so we don’t blame you for becoming enamored with him. After all, he is the sexiest man alive.”
She blew out an agitated breath. “Brad was very nice to me, and probably showed me more attention than he should have. But we are just friends, and we’ll always be that way.”
Amanda flipped a red lock of curly hair over her shoulder and narrowed her gaze on Breanna. “Umm, sure you’re just friends. It’s written all over your face and in your eyes. You’ve fallen for him, haven’t you?”
“No!” Breanna shouldn’t have answered so quickly. She swallowed, trying to moisten her suddenly dry throat. “I’ll admit that he swept me off my feet a time or two, but my fairytale weekend is over. The coach has turned back into a pumpkin, and I’m no longer Cinderella.”
“Theweekend,” Amanda gasped. “You were with him all weekend?”
“No,” she answered quickly again. “Only on Sunday. We spent most of the day together. He took me shopping and he convinced me to style my hair.”
“I can’t believe it.” Amanda covered her mouth as her eyes widened.
Breanna stiffened. “What can’t you believe? That Brad would want to spend time with me?”
“Bre,” Amanda’s voice lowered and she leaned closer to her. “Brad doesn’t usually spend more than one day with a woman alone. If he spends more than one day with them, he’s with a group of friends, not one-on-one.”
Flutters pumped through Breanna’s heart. It was a good thing she was sitting, because she was sure her weak legs would have dropped her to the floor by now. “Well, like I said, it was nothing. He knows I have a boyfriend and Brad was just being kind and helpful.”
And yet, why had he kissed her so passionately? And Heavens, why had she continued to let him?
“I hope you’re right.” Amanda stood and folded her arms. “If not, a lot of women will have their hearts broken to learn he only has eyes for you.”
Breanna shook her head and turned to her computer. Amanda was full of crap. There was no way a gorgeous and wonderful man like Brad Montgomery would be attracted to a plain and shy woman.
Soon, the chatter lowered to a minimum, and she was able to concentrate on editing an article, but noises in the building disturbed her. Whenever the double glass doors opened into the lobby, Breanna snapped her gaze up to see if it was Brad. She thought for sure he’d come in to see his fans.
Yet, the morning zoomed by, along with the afternoon. It would be time to leave for home, and she couldn’t even think about what she’d accomplished today besides getting a stiff neck for all the times she peered over her cubicle to see if Brad was in the office.
The next few days came and went, and Brad didn’t step foot inside the office. Breanna tried not to miss him, but she did. She missed seeing his sweet smile and hearing his infectious laugh. She missed seeing the way his blue eyes sparkled like diamonds, and she missed the way her limbs turned to jelly every time he touched her.
What was wrong with her? She’d only spent two days with the man. Could he have affected her so much in such little time? But he had. Tom didn’t matter that much any longer, either. Of course, he had yet to see thenewBreanna. He blamed his absence on working overtime and also that Kevin needed help fixing his truck.
On Thursday when Breanna came to work, the ladies were gathered around Amanda’s desk. They all wore frowns and disheartening expressions. Had someone died?
Breanna was never one to stick her nose into other people’s problems, so she continued walking to her desk. But words from their conversation snagged her interest, and she stopped to listen closer.
“Did you hear that he does nothing but stay home, anymore?” Jackie asked.
