Ready for Romance

“I have faith in you. You’re a natural, Cath.” It was true, her friend had a knack for the dramatic, and that had always made their friendship so interesting.

Cathy laughed softly. “How can I fail, when both you and my mother are convinced I’m destined for stardom? Now, before we get off the subject, how did the interview with Damian go?”

“Really well, I think.” Damian had dominated her thoughts all afternoon. He’d changed, she decided, or perhaps she was the one who was different. Whichever, she found herself enthralled by the man. The thought of working with him excited her.

“What about the younger brother?”

“Actually I’ll be working directly for Evan.”

Cathy must have noticed the hesitation in her voice because she asked, “Does that worry you? What’s the matter? Do you think you’re going to make an idiot of yourself over him—again?”

So much for Jessica’s delicate ego. “No way. I was fourteen years old, for heaven’s sake.”

After she’d hung up, Jessica slipped a CD into the player, choosing an invigorating medley of jazz hits, and set about fixing her dinner. She whipped together a hot chicken-and-spinach salad and stood barefoot in her kitchen, humming along to the music, her heart singing its own melody.

Later that evening, she relaxed with the paper. Despite her best efforts, her thoughts drifted to Damian. The last thing she wanted was to make a fool of herself over another Dryden.

To the best of her knowledge, the source of which was her mother, Damian wasn’t currently involved in a relationship. Joyce Kellerman said that Lois Dryden had complained that her elder son didn’t take enough time for fun in his life. What Damian needed, Jessica decided now, was to fall in love with a woman who would take his mind off his work. Someone fun. Someone who would make him laugh and enjoy life. Someone who appreciated him.

An hour later, as she was getting ready for bed, Jessica realized she’d spent most of the evening thinking about Damian. Well, quite understandable, she rationalized. After all, he was head of the firm she was working for.

THE FOLLOWING DAY , Evan didn’t show up at the office until well after eleven. As she had previously, Mrs. Sterling fussed over him as though he were the prodigal son the moment he waltzed in the door.

“Good morning, Mr. Dryden.” Mrs. Sterling gushed, nearly leaping from her chair. “It’s a beautiful day, isn’t it?”

Evan seemed to need time to think about this. “I hadn’t noticed, but you’re right, it is a gorgeous day,” he said as he reached for his mail and leafed through the envelopes.

He was on his way into his office when he noticed Jessica sitting at her desk. She felt his scrutiny and was pleased that she’d dressed carefully, choosing a smart-looking flowered silk dress with a blue jacket. In her heels, she was nearly as tall as he was.

“Good morning, Mr. Dryden,” she offered.

“Evan,” he insisted. “You can call Damian Mr. Dryden if you insist, but I’m Evan.”

“All right. Good morning, Evan,”

“It is a good morning, isn’t it?” he asked, giving her a roguish grin. Jessica couldn’t help but respond with a smile of her own. She hadn’t noticed it so much the day before, but there were definite changes in the Evan she remembered. He was thinner and his smiles didn’t quite reach his eyes. Another thing she couldn’t help noticing was the way everyone walked on eggshells around him. Mrs. Sterling had made a point of letting her know Evan’s work load had recently been cut, and Damian had said Evan hadn’t yet recovered from a broken relationship. It must have been pretty serious, she mused.

“It’s been a long time since we’ve had a chance to talk, hasn’t it?” Evan asked, walking over and sitting on the edge of Jessica’s desk.

“A very long time,” she agreed, praying with all her heart he wouldn’t resurrect her girlish antics. It’d been embarrassing enough to have Damian do it.

“I think we should make up for lost opportunities, don’t you? Tell you what—I’ll treat you to lunch.” He checked his watch and seemed surprised at the time. “We’ll leave in half an hour. That’ll give me enough time to clear whatever’s on my desk.”

“You want to take me to lunch?” Jessica asked. “Today?”

“It’s the least I can do,” Evan said with a shrug. “I’ll have Mary make reservations.”

“But—”

“That’s an excellent idea,” Mrs. Sterling interjected, clearly pleased.

“I…I’ve only just started work,” Jessica said. “I’d enjoy lunch, perhaps in a week or so, after I’ve settled into the job.” The last thing she wanted was to give Damian the impression she was already slacking in her duties.

Evan pressed his thumb to her chin and gazed deeply into her eyes. “No buts, and no arguments. We’re going to lunch and you can fill me in on what you’ve been doing for the last five or six years.”

Mrs. Sterling followed Evan into his office, looking inordinately pleased with the turn of events. She returned a few minutes later, casting a delighted look in Jessica’s direction as she picked up her phone and called the restaurant to make reservations. Evan chose Henri’s, one of Boston’s finest, well-known for its elegant dining. It also happened to be a good fifteen-minute drive from the office, which meant they were going to be out for lunch much longer than usual.

“I doubt we’ll be back in an hour if we have lunch at Henri’s,” Jessica felt obliged to say.

“Don’t worry about it. You’ll make it up another time, I’m sure.”

“But this is only my second day. I don’t want to give the wrong impression.”

“My dear, Mr. Dryden is your boss. If he wants to take a leisurely lunch with you, don’t argue. You should be counting your blessings, instead.”

“I know but—”

“From what I understand, you two are old family friends,” Mrs. Sterling interrupted. “It’s only natural for him to want to personally welcome you into the firm.”

It seemed the reservation had barely been made when Evan reappeared. “Are you ready?”

Jessica blinked back her surprise. “Yes, of course, if you’ll give me just a moment.” She finished typing her notes into the computer, stored the information and pushed back her chair.

Evan took her elbow and told his secretary, “We’ll be back in a couple of hours.”

They were on their way through the corridor leading to the front of the office when Damian appeared. His gaze shifted from Evan to Jessica.

“Jessica and I are on our way out to lunch,” Evan explained. “Do you need me for anything?”

“No. You two go on ahead. I’ll talk to you later.”

Damian nodded, and it was all Jessica could do not to blurt out that this lunch date hadn’t been her idea, but there wasn’t the opportunity and she doubted it was necessary anyway. Damian must have known she hadn’t invited herself out to lunch. Nevertheless, she didn’t want him to think ill of her.

“We’ll probably be late getting back,” Evan said to his brother, guiding Jessica out of the office.

They arrived at the restaurant by taxi and were seated immediately. The ambience was formal, with soft chamber music playing unobtrusively in the background. The waiters, who dressed like diplomats, were attentive, the tables were well spaced, and the meal was served with a good deal of ceremony.

Evan seemed disinclined to talk about himself, asking her a series of questions about school, her friends and activities. He appeared attentive, but she suspected his thoughts were far removed from her and their lunch. At least he didn’t dredge up the past and her infatuation with him. She could have kissed him for that.

After their dishes were cleared away, Evan took out a pad and pen. “I’m going to be working on a civil suit that’ll demand a fair amount of research,” he told Jessica. His eyes were bright with an enthusiasm she hadn’t seen before. “The case involves Earl Kress—you might remember reading about him.”

“Of course.” The unusual details of the case had filled the local news for weeks. The twenty-year-old former athlete was suing the Spring Valley School District for his education.

Jessica wished she’d brought along a pad and pen herself. She listened, enthralled, as Evan explained the details of the suit. It seemed Earl was a gifted athlete and the key figure in three of the school’s biggest sports—football, basketball and track. In order for him to participate in these sports he had to maintain a C average. Unfortunately Earl had a learning disability and had never mastered reading skills. Although he’d graduated from high school and been awarded a full scholarship, he was functionally illiterate.

Evan explained that the school district had pressured Earl’s teachers, and they’d been forced to give him passing grades. After he graduated from high school, he went on to college, but a severe knee injury suffered during football training camp effectively ended his career. And within the first two months of school, Earl flunked out.

“That’s so unfair,” Jessica said when Evan finished. If Damian was concerned about his brother, she thought, then offering Evan this groundbreaking case was sure to take his mind off other things. It would give Evan purpose, a reason to come to work in the morning, the necessary incentive to look past his personal problems.