She walked in front of him and although her pants were much too big for her he could see the outline of her round bottom through the oversized garment. It was small and again he suspect quite firm. His fingers itched to confirm his speculation. Had it been any other woman in the office he would have no problem verifying his presumption. But Lacy was another matter entirely. She would never entertain such a proposition and he was reluctant to propose it. He made it a policy to avoid entanglement with the ladies of the office. Well, it didn’t matter. Despite her kissable mouth and pert derrière, she wasn’t his type. It was best to leave thigs as they were.
“I’ve reviewed your work on several real estate projects,” he began as they entered his office and he sat at a round glass and chrome table by the window. His office was much the same as Allen’s only it was on the opposite end of the building. “You have an excellent eye for detail. Allen told me that you have saved his behind on more than one occasion by catching a huge error in cost calculations. I am impressed.”
Lacy shrugged.
“Thanks you. But that’s my job. And it really wasn’t such a big deal. The mistake was fairly obvious if you know what to look for. Mister Larson would have seen it before cutting a check,” she replied.
“Maybe. But it’s nice to know you will identify it early on. He says you are invaluable and I can see why,” he responded. He open several file folders. “Let’s get started shall we?”
Lacy sat beside him at the table and they worked steadily well past lunch. Tyler sat back in his chair and glanced at his watch.
“By God! I’m sorry. It’s long past lunch. You must be starved,” he said apologetically.
Lacy looked at her watch and saw it was two-twenty p.m. And as if directed to do so on cue her stomach growled. Lacy’s face burned red with embarrassment. He laughed.
“Your stomach has answered for you,” he chuckled.
“I brought a sack lunch. I can eat it here if you don’t mind,” she said hastily.
“I don’t mind but why don’t I take you out to eat? We’ve been closeted in this office nearly all day. It will do you good to feel the sunshine on your face,” he suggested.
“Oh, that is not necessary. I normally eat at my desk.”
“I’ve noticed. It’s time for a change,” he said as he stood. “Let’s go.”
Lacy stood and walked slowly from the room. She was nervous about with him outside of work. What would she have to say to him? Would she draw a blank as she usually did when in male company? That was the reason why she avoided such situations. She had zero conversation; at least conversation that a man would interest a man. At twenty-six years old she had only been on two dates; and both were disastrous. She just didn’t know how to be with a man. Would he grow bored with her and hurry through the meal to get away from her? She had such a bad feeling about this meal.
“There’s a restaurant around the corner that I frequent a lot. They have great food. I think you will like it,” he said.
“I’m sure I will.”
He allowed her to enter the elevator first and his gallantry was refreshing. He was such a gentleman. Most men practically ran over her; not noticing that she was there. Lacy entered the elevator and saw several women stare at her incredulously. They couldn’t believe that she was leaving the office with Tyler. She glanced to her left and saw Penny smiling broadly as she waved. She returned the gesture. The doors closed and suddenly the elevator felt smaller than normal. He was such a big man and she felt small and insignificant. It was just the two of them in the compartment and Lacy was uncomfortable with him. Should she attempt to make small talk? Probably but she didn’t know what to say. So she said nothing. They walked almost three blocks to arrive at Ribeiro’s restaurant. Tyler was greeted immediately and they were shown to a table by the window. Lacy looked around the restaurant. She liked what she saw. The décor was soft colors of pink, grey, blue and tan. It was warm and inviting.
“I like this place. I felt that I would,” she said softly.
He leaned forward to hear her.
“You know of this place?” he asked.
“Um hmm. I pass it every day when coming and going from work,” she explained.
“But you’ve never eaten here.”
“No. I came in once but did not stay.”
“Why?” he asked.
She hesitated. Her reasons were private and she was reluctant to share them. She looked at his handsome face and wondered if she could trust him with her intimate notions. She glanced into his light brown eyes. How unusual they were. It was like looking into rich liquid gold. She quickly averted her eyes.
“It seems like a place for couples. For companions talking, laughing and sharing with one another. I would feel out of place being here on my own,” she said quietly.
Tyler was silent for a moment as he thought about her words. He looked around the place and saw men and women sharing tables for two; talking and laughing with heads bent together. He’d never noticed before as he would generally go to the bar and order his food to go.
“I see what you mean. But you are not alone today,” he smiled.
She saw tiny lines at the corner of his remarkable eyes when he smiled. She suddenly wanted to reach out and caress them. She started.
“Where had that come from?” she wondered.
She had not had that kind of thought in years. Was it possible that she was attracted to this man? She hoped not. He was so far out of her league and she hadn’t a snowball’s chance in hell of drawing his romantic interest.
“But still; what if?”