Page 89 of One Night Only
He looks dramatically away. “You wouldn’t be interested.”
“Fine.”
“It’s a singles night,” he says instantly. “Well, more of a singles lunch. Or I guess it’s a brunch.”
“You invited a high schooler to your singles lunch?”
“Brunch. And to work at,” he adds. “Not to participate in. It’s for charity. We host it at O’Shea’s twice a year. Elena is an excellent cook. She helps out with the snacks.”
“Sounds like fun.”
“It is fun. You want to help out?”
“Me? No.”
“Because you hate charity?”
“I have things to do.”
He’s silent for a moment and I think he’s moved on when he asks his next question.
“With that guy?”
I blink in surprise. “You mean Matthias?”
“Are you with him?”
“No. I’m notwithhim.” My voice is light but I drop the photos and move further away from him. “I think we need to talk about what happened between—”
Declan groans, cutting me off and I twirl to face him, instantly annoyed again.
“You’re my client now,” I say. “Which means there are rules and boundaries and all sorts of things. I need this work. I don’t want to mess it up.”
“You’re not going to.”
“Exactly. I’m not. I won’t.”
Declan sighs, raking a hand through his hair. “Okay,” he says. “I get it. We’ll keep things professional.”
“You promise?” I push. “No more flirting or showing up to my office unannounced?”
“I already apologized for that.” But he nods. “I promise.”
“Thank you.” I take a breath, feeling better. “I think it will be better for both of us with everything so…” I trail off, watching in confusion as he grabs his messenger bag from where he left it on a chair. “Where are you going?”
“To find Elena,” he says. “If you’re out of the picture then— Ow!” He laughs, dodging out of my way. “Always hitting me.”
“That’s not funny.”
“Youarejealous. I like it.”
“Declan—”
“I know, I know,” he says. “I’m professional.” He smiles at me. “Saying that… I really could use your help next weekend. As a friend,” he adds. “It’s a busy morning and run by volunteers. If you have an hour or two free on the Sunday, I’d really appreciate it. It’s just handing out food, shaking a bucket, that kind of thing. You’ll get a free drink.”
“I’ll think about it.”
“That’s a yes.”
