Chase turned his attention to her. “Maisy?”
She hesitated, not because she didn’t want to have lunch with Chase. The invitation was unexpected. “The shop…” Much as she wanted to accept, she didn’t feel good about leaving Fred to cover the store alone.
“It’s fine, Maisy,” her uncle insisted. “Go and enjoy this time with your friend. Take the rest of the day off, business is slow.”
“You’re sure?”
“Go,” he reiterated.
“Okay,” she finally said, relieved not to be leaving her uncle in a lurch. “Thank you. But promise to call if you need me.”
“I will,” he assured her.
Maisy’s nerves were tight as she collected her purse. When she reappeared, Chase told her, “The car is coming around to pick us up in front of the mall.”
“Okay,” she said, more than a little nervous. “I’m ready.” She stepped around the counter and joined him, wondering where this lunch date would lead.
—
Chase led her to where the car waited. The driver immediately leaped out to open the rear door. Maisy slid into the backseat, and Chase walked around to the other side and joined her.
They were soon on their way. He noted how Maisy primly folded her hands in her lap. Clearly his visit had unsettled her. Multiple times Chase had told himself this midweek trip to Seattle had nothing to do with her. That was a lie. Yes, he had a specific reason for the visit. The bottom line, however, was that he wanted to see Maisy again. He needed to see her reaction once he told her what he’d done to satisfy her request to pay her kindness forward.
For his own part, he remained silent, too, debating if he was doing the right thing. After an awkward minute, Maisy said, “I never expected to see you again.”
“I didn’t expect I would see you, either, until after our last phone conversation.” This was only half true, as he hadn’t been able to stop thinking about her almost from the moment they’d met.
“Are you in town on business?”
“Not really, although I needed to make this trip.”
“Oh…” She sounded more than a little confused, not that he blamed her. His response raised more questions than it answered.
“Maybe it’s selfish of me, but I wanted to see your face when I told you.”
She twisted her head to look at him, her expression full of curiosity.
Despite himself, he grinned. “You’ll know all in good time.”
“You’re going to make me wait?” she cried, growing impatient.
“All in good time,” he repeated.
She frowned, as if seeing him with new eyes. “Who are you, Chase Furst?”
“What do you mean?”
“What kind of position do you hold that allows you to take time off to fly to Seattle on a whim?”
He grinned, amused by her curiosity. “I know the bank president.”
“Ah, bankers’ hours!”
He chuckled. “Have you ever heard of Furst Bank?”
“Furst Bank?” Her eyes widened with surprise. “Oh my goodness,” she exclaimed, and then blinked several times. He watched as she drew in a steady breath as if to calm her nerves. “You’re more than wealthy. You’re super-ultra-mega-wealthy.”
“So it’s been said.” He couldn’t help being amused by her reaction. “Apparently, you’ve heard of us?”
