Catch - Deborah Bladon Page 0,31

hug. This one is just as aggressive as the first. Earl looks like he’s about to join in, so I take a step closer to the women. “I’ll walk you out, Maren.”

“What a fine man you are.” Patrika wiggles her eyebrows. “We’re going to have a mess of fun at the party.”

Maren sighs. “It was lovely to see you all.”

I’m on her heel the second she starts toward the door. I follow her silently to her desk as she opens the bottom drawer to grab her purse and phone.

By the time we’re at the elevator, I’m wondering if I’ll ever see her again, so I board it after her once the doors open on our floor.

As soon as they glide shut, she turns to me. “What are you doing? You can’t just leave the Newmans like that.”

I press the button to take us to the lobby. “They’ll be fine.”

She locks her gaze on the elevator doors. “Are we going to their anniversary party?”

Shoving both hands in the front pockets of my pants, I nod. “We are.”

Still staring straight ahead, she whispers. “They think we’re a couple, Keats. They’re celebrating something very special, and we’re deceiving them. It feels wrong.”

“It’s one evening. This could put me on the fast track to representing Fletcher.”

“Once you sign him, we’ll tell the Newmans we…”

I finish the sentence for her. “Broke up. I’ll tell them you dumped me.”

I watch as she cracks a smile. “We’ll think of something to tell them.”

“This isn’t ideal, Maren.” I lower my voice. “I know that. I fucking hate lying.”

She turns to face me, just as the elevator reaches its destination. “That’s a hundred dollars to the fund, Keats. They seem like nice people. I hope we’re doing the right thing.”

I motion for her to exit first as the doors open. “That party is another chance for me to show them that I’m the agent who will fight tooth and nail to get their son what he deserves.”

She stays in place. “I know what it feels like to want something very badly. I know you want Fletcher as a client.”

I want to know what she wants very badly. I’ll get it for her. I’ll get her ten of them if it makes her smile.

“I can help him build his career,” I state without reservation. “He’ll be in the right hands with me.”

She reaches to press the button to hold the doors open. “Go back to the office, Keats. Don’t keep them waiting.”

I glance at the lobby to see Pace on the approach. “What the hell?”

“You swore, so that’s a hundred dollars. I asked Pace to drop by to meet Fletcher face-to-face.”

Jesus. This woman is incredible. I asked Pace to join us too, but he claimed he had plans he couldn’t break. Fletcher is going to be over the moon when he sees his idol walk into my office.

“Maren!” Pace calls as he nears us. “I’m here just for you.”

She motions for him to step into the elevator. “I can’t thank you enough, but I need to leave.”

The smile on his lips disappears. “Seriously? You’re leaving me with this guy?”

“You two will be just fine.” She steps off the lift. “Have fun.”

We both stare after her as she walks away while the doors slide shut.

Chapter 22

Maren

I scoot around Dudley as I head out of my bedroom. I’m showered and dressed for the day. I didn’t put much effort into how I look this morning. I don’t have the energy. I spent most of last night tossing and turning in my bed.

When I got home from work yesterday, Arietta wasn’t here, so I paced the living room floor talking to myself until she opened the door.

Self pep talks are something my mom taught me. I’d catch her walking up and down the hallway in our penthouse when I was a child.

Sometimes she was trying to convince herself that she would pass over a piece of chocolate cake after dinner. Other times, I’d listen as she questioned whether she was a good mom.

I always stepped in when that happened. My mom devoted herself to me when I was growing up. She walked away from a promising career as a psychologist to stay home and care for me.

When I was twelve, she went back to work, and the light that had dimmed inside of her was bright again.

For years, she was always the person I’d go to for advice. That changed when she retired. I didn’t want to burden her with my problems when