Page 16 of Claiming Her Cougar
If neither of us is looking to date, then what are we doing here?Why can’t I stay away?
The air around us becomes thick, awkward.She dips more fries into sauce, and I gnaw on a garlic knot, looking for a less sensitive topic of conversation.
“Did you want to go the Flyers game tomorrow night?”
Her head shoots up, and her eyes go wide.
Damn.It must have sounded like I was asking for a date.Way to make an awkward silence more awkward, Liam.Wait…was I asking her on a date?
“Morgan Development has a box, and we can sit in there.The Flyers are playing Dallas.”
Not a date.I’m inviting her to a coworker thing with other coworkers.Unless she thinks it’s a date.I’m okay with her thinking it’s a date.
“Do you work for Morgan Development?”Mallory asks.“I thought maybe you worked for the company that helps care for the building.”
I freeze with a chicken finger halfway to my lips, dripping honey mustard back on my plate.She doesn’t know who I am?She’s having lunch with me, thinking I’m a maintenance worker?Not that there’s anything wrong with working in building maintenance, but my title of Vice President of Operations is usually considered more impressive.
“I work for Morgan Development.I’m in outlet operations.That’s why I’m going out of town.I’m checking out the centers in Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia to make sure things are running smoothly.The seasonal decorations are how they’re supposed to be.That everything looks good, making sure the centers are operating as they should be.”
“Oh,” Mallory says, “like maintenance but for the outlets, not just the corporate office.”
“Sure.”I need to tell her who I am, but it’s so nice to be with someone who likes me for myself, not because I’m a Morgan.Not because I’m wealthy, or because I could get us a table at any restaurant in any casino in Atlantic City just by requesting a reservation for William James Morgan III.She wants to get to know the Liam who changes light bulbs and drives an old pickup truck and will share an appetizer platter at a pizza place.I don’t want to give this up yet.I’ll tell her soon.Maybe when I get back from my trip.
“Anyway, did you want to go to the game?We don’t have to sit in the box.I can get tickets for regular seats if you’d rather.”
“No, that’s silly.I’ve never watched a game from a box.I’m usually in the upper nosebleed section.It won’t be weird having me there?”
“Why would it be weird?I have an extra ticket, an invitation to sit in the box, and can bring a guest.I’d like to bring you.You’re a fan.We’ll have fun.”
“Do they give out tickets often?I was new during last year’s hockey season, and being downstairs, I never knew what was going on upstairs.”
“Now that you’re upstairs, you’ll be in the thick of things.When there are extra tickets, they’ll offer them to the different departments.We’ll have to make sure you’re on the distribution list so you know about them.”
“I’d really like to go, thank you.”Mallory’s smile is sweet and shy.“Since I live out in the boonies, it would probably make sense to meet somewhere and ride together.Want to meet at the mall?We can jump on the expressway.”
I’d rather pick her up from her home, but I don’t want to push it.“That works.”
“I gotta get back to the office.This was nice.Thank you,” Mallory says as she checks the time on her phone.We’ve somehow eaten almost everything as we talked, leaving an onion ring, a chicken tender, and a few fries.The garlic knots are long gone.
I gather our plates and carry them to the trash can, dumping the leftovers in the bin.
“I’ll follow you back.I have a few things to do there.”I hold the door for her to exit, then walk Mallory to her car and stand by her door as she opens it and gets in.
“I’m looking forward to going to the game tomorrow.See you at the office.”She pulls her door closed, and I head over to my truck and get in.She gives me a wave and backs out of her space before exiting the parking lot.
I start my engine and sit there.I should have told her the whole truth.She’s going to find out who I am, and she’ll wonder why I didn’t just tell her.How do I explain I assumed she knew who I was without sounding like a pompous jerk?Is she going to accept that I was enjoying the anonymity and didn’t want to give it up yet?Or is she going to think I was trying to make a fool of her?I’ll tell her on the way to the game.That way, she knows before we’re with everyone else and has time to process it.We’ll have a good time, and she’ll see it doesn’t matter what my last name is.Yeah, that’s a plan.Putting my truck in gear, I back out of my spot and drive back to the office.
6
MALLORY
Oh boy.Lunch with Liam went better than I expected.He’s funny and sweet.Goodness knows he’s hot.I already know all those muscles he has aren’t just for show.I flush, remembering him pounding into me against that wall in Vegas.He supported my weight like I was a feather.Neither of us wants to date, so maybe we could just do a casual thing.It’s not like he’s a guy I can take home to my parents.He’s a cougar shifter and a maintenance guy.I’m not a snob, but if my parents have a hard time with me being a paralegal, I doubt they’re going to be impressed with me dating someone who changes light bulbs and makes sure signs are properly placed as a career.I know I promised Valerie not to date a coworker, but we are in completely different departments.The situation is nothing like hers.A guy from the operations department isn’t going to impact my job in the legal department.
I take my purse up to the new office.They’ve delivered our computers, so I sit down and log in to make sure there isn’t anything pressing to deal with.Daphne returns from lunch as I’m logging out.We need the files up here so we can do the few new things that Miller, the attorney we work with on collection matters, has dictated, so I tell her I’m going back downstairs to finish loading the carts.
“I’ll come with you.There isn’t anything to do up here until we have the files.We could each take a different section of shelves and load a cart,” she suggests.
I rise and grab my phone.“Sounds good.”
