The Boss Project by Vi Keeland

He shrugged and pulled his wallet out of his pocket. “Whatever you want. I’m not picky. But use my card to order it.”

“I can pay for dinner myself. Though, technically, I think you wind up paying for dinner either way, since you pay me the money I use to eat.”

His lip twitched. “Use my card, please. I gotta run. I have six people waiting in my office.”

“I’ll see you soon.”

A little while later, I headed to the elevator. I’d just entered and pushed the button for the top floor when Joan opened the double glass doors to the office and walked toward the waiting car.

Shit.

Merrick’s floor was illuminated. But I couldn’t very well close the elevator doors now that we’d made eye contact. So I panicked and did the only thing that came to mind. I hit every button on the panel.

Joan noticed as soon as she stepped inside. “Oh my.”

“Yeah, someone must’ve thought they were being funny.”

“We might be better off waiting for the other car. Looks like we’re going up before we even start heading down.”

“Good idea.”

We stepped back out into the hallway. Once that car left, we pushed the button to call the other one.

“Everything okay between you and Merrick?” Joan asked.

I was already nervous, so that question freaked me out completely. I tried to school my features. “Why wouldn’t it be?”

“No reason. I just saw him coming from your office earlier and wanted to make sure he wasn’t pushing you for information on any of your patients. Not that you can’t talk to him, of course, but I figured I’d check in. He can be very persuasive when he wants to.”

Don’t I know it. I forced a smile past the nerves in my face. “No, he wasn’t doing that.” I’m not sure whether I felt guilty for hiding the truth, or Joan was actually waiting for more, but I felt the need to elaborate. Once again, I went with what popped into my head first. “He was talking to me about coming in for therapy.”

Joan’s eyes widened. “Really?”

I nodded. “Yep. It was a surprise to me, too.” Oh boy. I’m making this worse.

By the time we arrived at the lobby level, I felt like I might suffocate in the damn elevator. I was relieved when the doors slid open. Joan and I walked to the exit together. My train was to the left, so I pointed as if I were going home. “I’m this way.”

She smiled and pointed in the other direction. “My bus is that way.”

I couldn’t get out of here fast enough. “See you Monday,” I called, already moving down the sidewalk.

When I got to the subway station, I waited a few minutes in case Joan had forgotten something. You’d think I’d just stolen the Hope Diamond the way my heart hammered inside my chest. When I returned to the building, I held my breath until I arrived safely at Merrick’s floor.

Inside the apartment, I still felt tense. But then I stepped into the living room and saw something on the coffee table.

Was that…?

I walked over for a closer look. Sure enough, two orange goldfish were swimming around in a bowl. And it was not the same bowl that had been on the nightstand in his bedroom.

He got more fish? Or…

I dropped my purse on the couch and headed to the bedroom to investigate. As I opened the door, the jitters I’d had since Joan were finally pushed out by the warm feeling in my chest.

The fishbowl on the nightstand was gone. Merrick had moved it to a new home, in a new room. It was so minor and silly, but he’d taken the time to think about the comment I’d made last night, and he’d done something to alleviate my unvoiced concern.

Maybe I didn’t have to worry about fighting the shadow of another woman after all. It seemed Merrick wanted to let the sun in himself.



• • •



“Oh my gosh. That sounds like a huge undertaking.”

“Nah,” Kitty said. “It’ll give me something to do while I’m stuck here in the house. It’s only been two weeks. Eight more with this cast is going to make me go cuckoo if I don’t have something to occupy my time.”

“When would this reunion be happening?” I asked.

“I was thinking spring next year or the year after that, depending on the availability of the dude ranch.”

The front door opened, and Merrick walked in. I pointed to the phone and held up a finger. “Did you say dude ranch?”

“What better place than that? A lot of open land, night fires, horseback riding, and cowboys. Who doesn’t love a cowboy?”

“Well, I can’t argue with you there. What’s not to like about a cowboy?”

Merrick’s face scrunched up.

“But do you feel up to that already, Kitty?”

Merrick slapped his hand to his forehead and shook his head as he walked toward me.

“I’m fine—was fine last week when my jackass grandson thought I needed a nurse, too.”

I was pretty sure Merrick heard that last part. When I looked up, he held his palm out for the phone, but I shook my head. He took it from my hand and brought it to his ear anyway.

“Hey, Grams.” Merrick looked at me as he spoke. “No, I’m not working. And neither is Evie. We’re about to have dinner…alone in my apartment.”