A Match Made in Mystery (12 page)

She wanted more of this feeling.

She didn’t wait for him to reach her lips; instead, she turned her head to find his mouth, searching intently, knowing that a mere kiss wasn’t going to satisfy the desire raging like a wildfire in every cell of her body.

But he pulled back.

She tightened her grip on his shoulder, trying to encourage him to return to what he’d started.

“I’m thinking we’ll fit together just fine.” His voice was husky with need, but he didn’t kiss her. “I just don’t think this is the place. Not with Gerald wandering around.”

It was her turn to pull back then as the reality that they weren’t the only two people in the world sank in. She snatched her hand back from his shoulder, her cheeks warmed and she looked away, mortified by her behavior.

Brady slid his hand, which still rested on her elbow, down to her hand, intertwining his fingers with hers. “Perfect fit.” He gave her a gentle tug so she’d follow him and moved deeper into the file room.

Scanning the file labels, he let go of her hand and hopped up on a stepstool. After a minute’s searching, he found the folder and jumped down, brandish it victoriously. “Got it.”

Not trusting herself to speak coherently, considering her synapses seemed to be misfiring after their almost kiss, all she could do was nod her encouragement.

“Legally, I can’t let you look at this,” Brady told her. “Let’s take this back to my office. It looks like going through this make take a little while.”

Amy hoped it took forever, because once they figured out what her inheritance was, she wouldn’t have an excuse to spend time with the man she was
certain
she’d already fallen for.

Leaving Amy in his office, Brady went in search of Gerald’s coffee. Not that he was thirsty, but he’d needed an excuse to put some distance between himself and the woman he was desperate to make love to… even in a file room.

When he got back, balancing two steaming cups and a plastic sleeve of chocolate chip cookies, he was not happy to find Gerald in his office and Amy laughing at something he’d said.

Brady did his best to ignore the wave of jealously that tightened his chest. Striving to keep his tone light, he interrupted their conversation. “A little help?”

Both hurried over to help him.

Oblivious of Brady’s tension, the remnants of amusement twinkled in Amy’s eyes. Gerald, on the other hand, looked worried. No doubt because he’d been caught flirting.

“Did you need something, Gerald?” Brady asked coldly.

“I know you’re busy.” Gerald fiddled nervously with his bowtie.

“I am.” Brady stared him down, willing him to leave.

Gerald held his ground. “It’s just that this is sort of time sensitive.”

“As is Ms. Winn’s business.”

Gerald flashed an apologetic smile at Amy. “I’m sure it is, but—”

“Actually it’s not,” Amy interrupted.

Brady frowned. “Considering I’m here on a Saturday, I would say it is.”

She met his gaze and tilted her head to the side, silently letting him know that she knew he wasn’t there for business, but rather for personal reasons before saying, “I’m here six months early. If that process server wasn’t dying, I wouldn’t even be in possession of the letter that brought me here. I’m in no rush and surely you can spare Gerald a couple of minutes.”

“Fine,” Brady conceded. “What’s so important, Gerald?”

Instead of speaking, Gerald placed the folder he held on Brady’s desk, flipped it open, and pointed.

Rounding his desk, Brady sank into his chair and read what the associate had indicated, keenly aware that both Amy and Gerald were watching him.

He read it twice, making sure he understood correctly as his blood pressure skyrocketed. What the hell was Eric up to?  Looking up, he focused on Gerald who waited anxiously for his reaction. “Son of a bitch,” Brady muttered.

Gerald nodded.

“Son. Of. A. Bitch.” Brady leaned back in his chair and raked his hand through his hair.

“I had to tell you,” Gerald said quietly. “I couldn’t just pretend I hadn’t seen it.”

Brady nodded. “Does anyone else know?’

He shook his head.

“You were right to come to me. I’ll take care of it.”

“How?” Gerald asked curiously.

Brady swiveled in his chair so that he could glare out at the city skyline instead of at the damning file on his desk.  “I’ll figure something out.”

“Well if you need anything…” Gerald said awkwardly.

Even though he had his back to him, Brady could tell that the bowtie-loving associate was moving toward the door of the office.

“You know where to find me,” Gerald said. “It was a pleasure to see you again, Ms. Winn.”

“Amy,” she corrected. “And thanks for the coffee.”

“My pleasure, ma’am.”

Brady rubbed the side of his head, trying to banish the tension headache he could feel forming. If he didn’t do this right, the firm could be in big trouble. If he handled it the wrong way, he could lose his job and a positive reference for a new job.

He didn’t know how long he’d stared out the window, but suddenly he remembered that Amy was sitting behind him.

He spun the chair around to face her. “I’m sorry about that.”

She shrugged, her dark eyes searching his face. “Stuff happens. You should try the coffee.  It’s good. It might help your headache.”

“How do you know I have a headache?”

“Because you’re trying to bore a hole through your skull with your fingers.” Putting her coffee down on the floor, she stood up, walked around his desk and held out her hand, palm upward. “Give me your hand.”

He hesitated, thinking that what he really wanted to do was grab her wrist, pull her into his lap, and continue that kiss from the file room. He was pretty sure he’d forget about his headache, and Eric, and the rest of the world if he did.

“C’mon,” she teased with a warm smile. “I’m not going to hurt you.”

He placed his hand in hers and it felt like a jolt of electricity jumped between them. He knew she felt it too from the way her entire body stiffened and her smile faltered.

Wordlessly, she grabbed his hand, behind the webbing between his thumb and forefinger, and squeezed hard.

“Ouch,” he complained mildly.

“It’s an acupressure spot. It should help.”

“If you say so.”

She chuckled, the sound a balm to his frayed nerves. It did more for relieving his tension than her ministrations. He found himself taking a deep breath and relaxing.

Convinced she’d done her job, Amy released his hand and sat back.

Brady’s gaze strayed toward the file Gerald had brought him. “I really am sorry about the interruption.”

“It seemed important.”

“It is.”

“Eric?”

He looked at her sharply. “How do you know that?”

“Because you grit your teeth at the mere mention of the man,” she teased with a soft smile. “I could practically hear your molars cracking.” Growing serious she added, “I meant it when I said my thing, whatever it is, isn’t time sensitive. Do what you need to do. I can come back in six months and get this sorted out.”

“No!”

The intensity of his tone startled them both. She pressed herself back in her seat, eyeing him warily.

Striving to keep his tone light and even he explained, “I just meant we don’t have to do that.”

Her gaze bored into his, trying to figure out what he wasn’t saying.

“I’m enjoying this,” he confessed.

Relaxing, she nodded. “Of course. It’s fun figuring out a secret code, tracking down a hidden message.”

He’d meant that he was enjoying spending time with her, but decided to go with her conclusion so as not to scare her off. “We’ve practically got a decoder ring and a treasure map. What else could we want?” He turned back to the folder they’d found.

It didn’t take long to find the clue Milton Willen had left in the Ellis v. Snyder file. It was labeled clearly:
S. Winn—Allegiance Bank—
Box 791

“Got it!” Brady crowed triumphantly. “Now it’s time for you to meet my mom.”

“Great,” she muttered, frowning at her cellphone.

He wasn’t sure if her ‘“great”‘ was a reaction to him or her phone. “Something wrong?”

“It’s the restaurant. No doubt they want me to work tonight.”

Brady’s previous sense of triumph evaporated into disappointment. Striving to keep his tone light, he asked, “What are you going to do?”

He grit his teeth to keep from telling her to take the night off. To spend it with him. He could only hope she wanted to as badly as he did.

Amy weighed her options. Saturday nights
were
the best for earning tips, but Brady
had
spent his day off helping her.

Her phone stopped buzzing. She could imagine the pitiful message Adrian would leave. No doubt it would successfully leave her feeling guilty for not keeping her promise to Bea.

Glancing up, she found Brady staring at her. His expression, shuttered tighter than a house before a hurricane, revealed nothing of what he thought or felt.

“You probably have plans for tonight,” she suggested awkwardly.

He shook his head, his blue eyes never leaving her face. “I don’t, but I thought we could go get the key and maybe grab something to eat.”

Amy squeezed her phone, suddenly having the urge to throw it against the nearest wall, just so she could tell Adrian she’d never gotten his message.

“But I understand if you feel like you have to go,” Brady said softly.

Realizing how much she didn’t want her day with him to end, she shoved the phone back in her purse. Busy Bea’s could survive a day without her. Perhaps her absence would even help Adrian see he needed to change his ways. She smiled uncertainly at Brady. “If you’re sure it’s no bother…”

The heart-stopping grin he flashed back at her erased any doubts she’d had about her decision.

“Can we eat first? I’m starving,” he asked with boyish enthusiasm.

“Sounds good.”

Two hours later, having shared a “loveboat” of sushi and many laughs, they drove toward the home of Brady’s mother.

“It’ll be a little chaotic,” he warned. “Stick by me and you’ll be just fine.”

“Chaotic?”

“I told you, I’m the youngest of six. There’s no telling how many of my siblings, their significant others, and their kids will be milling about. We don’t really go for formal family dinners. It’s more of a free-for-all. Since it’s Saturday, it’s pizza night. Who knows who might be there.”

Amy watched his profile carefully. He didn’t speak of the chaos in an amused tone, rather he seemed to be slightly annoyed.  “We don’t have to go tonight,” she offered. “If a quieter time would be better...”

“There are no quiet times when it comes to my family,” he muttered bitterly.

“I guess it’s one of those ‘Be careful what you wish for’ things,” she mused. “Growing up, it was only ever me and my mom. I used to dream about what it would be like to have a big family. Never having to be lonely.”

Brady snorted. “Trust me, even in a house filled with people, you can be lonely.”

Instinctively, she reached out and placed her hand on his forearm, wanting to comfort him. She could feel his muscles work as he adjusted the steering wheel. “Were you?”

“Was I what?” he asked, glancing down at where they touched, clearly distracted by their physical contact.

She squeezed his arm. “Were you lonely?”

He nodded. “What about you?”

“When my mom wasn’t home because she was working I was,” Amy confessed. “But when she was there, I was her sole focus and I sometimes felt smothered by all that attention.”

“Now that,” Brady admitted, “is something I’ve never experienced. When you’re the youngest, everyone in the family parents you, which means your actual parents don’t have to invest that much time.”

Amy winced at the obvious pain in her voice. “I’m sorry.”

Brady remained quiet for a long moment, his jaw muscle twitching as though he was fighting not to say more.  Finally he spoke, “Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t have a terrible childhood. My parents loved me. My brother and sisters are a pain, but for the most part, they meant well, too.”

“But you were lonely,” Amy whispered.

He nodded tightly.

“And you still are?” she asked.

He chuckled softly, but there was no amusement in the sound. “Aren’t you?”

Amy turned away and stared out the window, wondering how she’d ended up in such an intimate conversation with a man she’d only met the day before.

“Sorry,” Brady murmured. “My inquisitiveness is a plus with my job, but can be overwhelming in private. Here we are. Full house tonight. The impromptu used car lot gives it away every time.”

She chuckled at his apt description. A myriad of cars were parked on the driveway and in the yard of a sprawling ranch.

Instead of parking there, Brady continued down the street and parked behind a black panel van in a driveway three doors down.

Catching her inquisitive look, he explained, “I like to be able to make a quick getaway. This is my friend Jackson’s place. He doesn’t mind me parking here.”

He slowly climbed out of the car.

She followed suit. “Do you often have the need for a quick getaway?”

Instead of answering, he said, “I hope you like pizza.”

Before she could remind him they’d just eaten sushi, Brady was hit squarely in the chest with a basketball.

He blinked, surprised, but didn’t seem annoyed.

“You missed the game,” a male voice accused from behind Amy.

Turning to see who’d thrown the ball, she came face-to-face with a handsome man who flashed a killer smile at her.

“But if she’s the reason you missed the game, you’re forgiven.” The stranger winked at her.

Warmth flooded Amy’s cheeks.

“She is the reason,” Brady replied, calmly picking up the ball from the ground. “Amy Winn, I’d like you to meet my oldest friend, Jackson.”

Slightly confused, Amy automatically extended her hand and murmured, “Nice to meet you.”