She’d slung the strap of her bag onto her shoulder and was getting ready to rise when her tormentor stepped out of his office and stood by the door. As she’d come to expect, he was not looking happy.
Golden froze then sank back into her chair, hoping against hope that he would not ask her to work late. Not tonight, please Lord. I can’t take much more of this.
“Miss Browne,” he said then cleared his throat. “Golden. There’s something I need to ask you.”
“Yes?” Clutching her handbag to her lap she held her breath. He hadn’t called her Miss Browne since her first day on the job. He must really be upset with her. Was he about to fire her? At the thought her heart quickened pace.
“Would you...” Reed’s frown deepened and he raised a hand to rake his fingers through his hair. “Would you like to have dinner with me? This Saturday night? If you have the time?” Each question came out more rushed than the one before as if he wanted to say it all before he chickened out.
But if there was one thing Golden knew about Reed Davidoff it was that he was no chicken, not a man like him who took huge business risks every day, calculated risks that invariably paid off, making him a very rich man. Right now he was nervous, that was all, and as far as Golden was concerned that was so sweet. Her boss was human, after all.
And then the enormity of his question hit her. Reed had just asked her out. Her. A nobody and probably the least sophisticated of his employees. Had she heard him right? “Dinner?” she asked, her voice breathless. “With you?”
His glare deepened into a full-fledged scowl. “You don’t have to say yes. I don’t want to force you to do anything you don’t want to do.”
“But I do,” she said quickly then she caught herself. It would not do to seem too eager. She drew in her breath and when she spoke again her voice was steady. “I would love to have dinner with you.”
The scowl lightened somewhat but it still qualified as a frown. “You do? Are you sure?” He cocked his head to one side as he looked at her. “You’re not just saying that because I’m your boss?”
Smiling, she shook her head. “I would have said yes even if you didn’t sign my paycheck.”
To her relief that brought a smile to his face. It was the first time she’d seen him smile all week. “Good. I’ll pick you up Saturday evening, six o’clock. You can give me your address on Friday.” And with that he turned and walked back into his office, closing the door behind him.
Alone again, Golden sagged back into her chair and gave a soft sigh of relief. She finally had the answer to her boss’s mysterious behavior and it was an answer that filled her heart with joy. Reed liked her. So much, in fact, that he’d asked her out on a date.
Now the burning question was how to pull this off without her overbearing stepfather finding out.
CHAPTER NINE
Golden didn’t let the evening end before she dashed over to Sunnybrook Nursing Home to give Claire the good news. Normally she would have waited until the weekend but this was just too wonderful to keep to herself. The most eligible bachelor in all of London – well, as far as she knew – had asked her out. Why, she had no idea but now was not the time for questions. Now was the time for celebration.
And who better to celebrate with than someone who understood her, someone with whom she could speak freely without fear of any of it getting back to a certain person, namely her stepfather.
“What a lovely surprise.” Claire’s face light up as Golden walked into the room. “What brings you here in the middle of the week?”
“Love.” The word slipped out, shocking Golden into momentary silence. Now where had that come from? “I mean, good news,” she stuttered, trying to cover her awful slip of the tongue. “I came over because I wanted to tell you about something wonderful that happened.”
“Well, don’t keep it to yourself, child. Sit.” Claire waved her over to the empty chair, eyes eager, a wide smile on her face.
Golden smiled back, relieved that she seemed not to have noticed the blunder. If she’d picked up on that one Golden knew she would never hear the end of it, not for a long, long time. In a place like Sunnybrook Nursing Home there was not much to keep one busy and the primary form of entertainment was gossip. Golden’s slip would have been the topic of many a conversation, she was sure.
Now, at least, she would have the chance to share her news in her own way and love had absolutely nothing to do with it. How could she love a man she’d known for all of two months? Her mind and her tongue were playing tricks on her, that was all.
“I don’t know if I should tell you this,” she began and grinned as she watched her adoptive grandmother squirm. She was being naughty, torturing Claire like this, but it was so much fun. At the old woman’s glare she caved in. “Okay, okay, I’ll talk. I...” she said, dragging out the word, “was asked out,” she raised her eyebrows, “on a date. My very first date.” As she said the words Golden almost clapped her hands in delight, she was so thrilled. She held it in, though. Of course she wouldn’t do anything as childish as that.
Instead of lifting, Claire’s frown deepened. “What are you saying? You’ve never been out on a date before?”
Golden felt the blush rise in her cheeks. She couldn’t help it. This was an embarrassing situation to be in. How many twenty-year-olds were as backward as she was, where men and dates were concerned? She had Dunstan Manchester and his rules to thank for that. Her lips tightened at the thought.
“No, not yet,” she said, her voice subdued as she fought to swallow her shame, “but all that’s going to change soon. This Saturday night.” Just saying the words made her feel bright again and the smile slipped back onto her face.
“Well, it’s about time,” Claire huffed. Then her face cleared. “So who is the lucky young man?”
“My boss. Reed Davidoff.”