Falling for the Boss (10 page)

The waitress arrived with huge beers for all of them.  “Thomas!  It has been too long since you showed your
handsome
self
in
here.  Come on over here for a hug, boy!” the buxom blo
nd woman
said.
The woman sported more make-up than a movie star and teased blond hair that almost stood straight up from her head in all directions. 
Her rubenesque body was squeezed into the tightest pair of jeans
Victoria
had ever seen. 

Victoria
’s eyes widened as Thomas pulled her into his arms for a bear hug which the woman immediately returned.  “Jessie!  It’s good to see you!  How’s Hank?” Thomas asked, leaving an arm around her shoulders as he talked to her but they were facing the table so
Victoria
had a perfect view to be jealous of. 

“Oh, he’s over at the bar somewhere.  He saw you guys come in so he sent me over with the beers but if you don’t take your arm off me he’s likely to come over and whoop your butt!”

Thomas turned and waived to a huge man wiping down glasses behind the bar.  The man waived back at Thomas and laughed at the scene.  “
D
on’t let her give you no sass, Thomas!” he yelled over the noise and music in the restaurant. 

“Don’t worry.  I’ll take care of her for you!” Thomas called back. 

Hank laughed and moved on down the rest of the bar to help a customer, obviously not too worried about his woman being in the arms of a handsome man.

Victoria
denied the relief she felt at knowing the woman was already taken.  And Jessie shook her head
at her significant other’s lack of reaction to Thomas’s affection
.  “Hank saw this pretty little gal you’re with
.  That’s the only reason you haven’t been pummeled.
O
therwise, he’d be over here in a Ne
w York minute,” she admonished, snapping her fingers in the air. 

“I know he would, love,” Thomas
laughed
and kissed her forehead. 

Jessie
laughed and
waived him away but kept her arm around Thomas’s waist.  “What you guy’s gonna have tonight?  I’ll make sure you’re order gets in ahead of these slugs,” she said, sma
c
king a man’s bottom as he passed.  The man just laughed and turned back to kiss her cheek, then moved on to his table. 

Thomas looked around the table.  “Jessie, bring out four slabs with all the sides.  And keep the beer coming.”

Jessie’s smile grew bigger.  “You got it, Doll!” she laughed and gave him another squeeze.  “Now sit down next to that pretty little thing and tell her what a great guy you are so she’ll fall madly in love with you!”

Turning to
Victoria
, she said in a stage whisper, “You grab this guy and keep him, honey.  He’s worth all the irritation, I guarantee it!”

Jessie walked off
before
Victoria
could correct her on the relationship she had with Thomas
, leaving a laughing Bob and Mike staring at an embarrassed
Victoria
.  Thomas sat down next to her and it seemed as if his chair moved a little closer. 
Victoria
forgot to breathe for a moment, then told herself she was just being silly.

“Cheers, everyone!” Thomas said and raised his glass.  Four beer mugs raised in the air, clinking for a moment before everyone paused while they took a sip. 

They talked shop, discussing the findings of the day as they normally would if they were in the office.  The meal came a few minutes later and all four of them chowed down on the best spare ribs
Victoria
had ever eaten.  They were juicy and had a wonderfully tangy sauce, perfectly complemented by beer, something
Victoria
normally wouldn’t drink, preferring wine. 

They feasted
on cole slaw, hush puppies, French fries and juicy ribs,
having a lively argument about politics and education policies.  Once they had made a respectable dent in the food Jessy had delivered to their table,
Bob stood up and decided that he needed to dance off some of the food.  “Ok, I’ve spent
enough
time with you guys, I need to find some female companionship before diving into those files again tomorrow.  I’ll see all of you in the morning,” Bob said and stood up, grabbed his beer and headed off to the
bar.

“I think I’ll join him,” Mike said and followed in his wake.

That left Victoria and Thomas sitting at the table, watching the
thinning
crowd.  It was only a Monday night and most folks probably had to work in the morning, so the restaurant was only half full.

Victoria
felt awk
w
ard being left alone with Thomas.  She wasn’t’ sure what to say
“If you’d like to follow them, I’ll catch a cab back to the…”

“Dance with me,” he said and stood up to stand behind her.

“Thomas I don’t know how to dance to this kind of music.”

“I’ll teach you,” he said and grabbed her hand, guiding her onto the dance floor. 

Victoria
followed reluctantly.  She loved dancing but was afraid of being in his arms. 
Fortunately, t
he music was fast paced and the other dancers seemed to be moving in and out of their partners
’
arms so she thought it might be a little easier to deal with.

She slipped into his arms and glanced up at him, waiting for him to step into the music.  He instantly led her through the steps, having a confident ability to lead her.  After the first song, she relaxed and
trusted him not to embarrass her. 

The country music was fun and the
two
step was easy to learn, especially with a great teacher like Thomas.  He knew all the moves and how to coach her into the next step.  When they moved, it was as if they had been dancing with each other for years. 

“You dance well,” she said at a pause in the music.

“So do you,” he said, his smiling eyes looking
down
into hers. 

“Where did you learn to dance?” she yelled as the music started up again and he swung her into a country waltz. 

“We were all taught to dance when we were kids
,
”
he said, leaning down and talking close to her ear so he didn’t have to yell. 

“I can’t imagine all
four
of your brothers marching into a dance studio.  How did your mother manage
that?” she laughed at the image.  She didn’t have the advantage of talking into his ear because he was too tall.  Even if she stood on her tip toes, she wouldn’t be able to reach his ear. 

“She didn’t,” he said and spun her around and under his arm.

“I don’t understand,” she
yelled
as she came around and back again.

The music suddenly stopped, then started again, much slower this time.  “There is a ballroom at the main house
,” he said in a normal voice.  “
My mother pushed us all into the room with the dance teacher and locked the doors once a week.
  Since there were five boys and only one sister, that meant we had to dance with each other.  We learned how to dance as quickly as possible so we didn’t have to dance with our brothers anymore.
”

Victoria
would have laughed at the idea of five boys partnered with each other, but she
was breathless again.  She could feel every part of his body as his thighs moved against hers, her hips rocking against his and her breast brushing against his chest as they swayed easily to the music.  “Your house had a ballroom?”
was all she could think to say. 

He nodded. 

“Of course!  Why didn’t I think of that?”
  She thought for a moment.  “What else does your house have?”

“It isn’t my house.  It’s Sal’s now.  I live about five miles from the home I grew up in.”

“Ah.” 
Victoria
couldn’t think of anything else to say.  He was holding her in his arms and it felt better than she had dreamed it would be.  She had always thought his
strong hands would be firm, when in fact
they were gentle but with calluses on the palms. 

“I think we’d better head back
to the hotel
.” Thomas said, his voice seemed deeper than usual and his eyes were a darker brown. 

Victoria
realized she was staring at his eyes and mouth and jerked back.  “Of course,” she said, flustered.  “I’m sorry.  I really can find my way back if you’d like to stay.”

He chuckled deeply and took her hand back in his big one.  “Come on.  I don’t have any reason to stay so stop trying to push me into the arms of another woman.”

Victoria
didn’t understand his humor but was grateful he now had his back turned to her.  She needed to pull herself together and stop thinking of him romantically.  Ever since her conversation with Laci the other night, she seemed to be thinking of him more and more often. 

They got back to the hotel and Thomas walked her to her hotel room.  “Do you need to call Larry tonight?”

“Larry?”

“Your fiancé?”

“Oh.  Barry
,” she corrected.  “
But he’s not my fiancé.”

“He’s not?” he asked, standing in the hallway, his hands in his pockets.

Victoria
searched through her purse for her room key.  As soon as she pulled it out, Thomas took it and opened her door for her, his eyebrows raised as he waited for her response. 

“Well, no, we’ve only just talked about marriage.  He hasn’t proposed yet.”

Thomas looked down at her and gently pushed a strand of hair out of her face.  “He’s a stupid man.”

And with that, Thomas
handed her key back to her then
walked to the next door and unlocked his door, letting himself in
. 
Victoria
watched him walk away then disappear into his hotel room
, confused
about his parting comment.

She walked into her own room and closed the door, leaning against it as she repeated his words over and over in her mind.  What had he meant? 

Finally, she gave up trying to figure out that enigmatic man.  She could put all sorts of meanings behind his words but she would only be thinking fancifully.  Bracing reality was what she needed and she pushed against the door and got ready for bed.

The next morning,
Victoria
finished her evaluation and called it quits.  They were leaving the next day for Milwawkie.  Bob and Mike had already left for the afternoon, taking some time off while the work was slow. 
Thomas had left earlier in the morning for meetings and no one had seen him since. 
She was the last one to finish up and she quickly typed up her notes
o
n her computer then packed up all the files. 

Victoria
went back to the hotel and wondered what she should do with all this extra time.  She had about five hours before she had to start packi
ng for the next city.  She stood
in her hotel room and bit her lip.  The sun was shining outside, beckoning her.  She decided to pull on her bathing suit and take a dip in the pool.  It was about ninety degrees outside and the crystal clear water of the hotel pool was just what she needed to cool down and relax for an afternoon. 

After changing into her bathing suit and a filmy sarong, s
he stopped in the hotel gift shop and bought some magazines thinking she might have a chance to do some reading. 
She also picked up a big, floppy straw had to protect her face.  Pulling the hat low down on her face, she ventured to the pool.  Since it was the middle of the afternoon,
most of the chairs were empty and she had her pick of the prime sun bathing spots.