Entwined With You

He went all out.”
    Startled, I blinked at him. “You said no?”
    “I said not yet. I was just starting to get my legs under me here at the agency, he was starting to get some really lucrative referrals, and we were picking up the pieces after a painful breakup. It seemed like the wrong time and I wasn’t sure he wanted to marry for the right reasons.”
    “No one ever knows that for sure,” I said softly, as much to myself as to him.
    “But I didn’t want him to think I had doubts about us,” Mark went on, as if I hadn’t spoken, “so I blamed my refusal on the institution of marriage, like a total ass.”
    I suppressed a smile. “You’re not an ass.”
    “Over the last couple years, he’s made more than a few comments about how right I was to say no.”
    “But you didn’t say no. You said not yet, right?”
    “I don’t know. Jesus, I don’t know what I said.” He leaned forward,resting his elbows on the desktop and dropping his face into his hands. His voice came low and muffled. “I panicked. I was twenty-four. Maybe some people are up for that kind of commitment then, but I … I wasn’t.”
    “And now you’re twenty-eight and ready?” The same age as Gideon. And thinking of that made me quiver, in part because I was the same age Mark had been when he’d said not yet and I could relate.
    “Yes.” Lifting his head, Mark met my gaze. “I’m beyond ready. It’s like some timer is counting down the minutes, and I’m getting more impatient by the hour. But I’m afraid he’s going to say no. Maybe his time was four years ago and now he’s over it.”
    “I hate to sound trite, but you won’t know unless you ask.” I offered him a reassuring smile. “He loves you. A lot. I think your odds of hearing yes are pretty darn good.”
    He smiled, revealing charmingly crooked teeth. “Thank you.”
    “Let me know about those reservations.”
    “I appreciate that.” His expression sobered. “I’m sorry to bring this up when you’re going through a tough breakup.”
    “Don’t worry about me. I’m fine.”
    Mark studied me a minute, then nodded.
    “Y OU up for lunch?”
    I glanced up into Will Granger’s earnest face. Will was the newest assistant at Waters Field & Leaman and I’d been helping him settle in. He wore sideburns and square-framed black glasses that gave him a slightly retro beatnik look, which worked for him. He was super laid-back and I liked him. “Sure. Whatcha feelin’ like?”
    “Pasta and bread. And cake. Maybe a baked potato.”
    My brows rose. “All right. But if I end up passed out and drooling on my desk from a carbohydrate coma, you’d better get me out of trouble with Mark.”
    “You’rea saint, Eva. Natalie’s on some low-carb kick and I can’t go another day without starch and sugar. I’m wasting away. Look at me.”
    Will and his high school sweetheart, Natalie, seemed to have it together, from the stories he told. I never doubted he’d walk on hot coals for her, and she seemed to look after him as well, although he grumbled good-naturedly about her fussing.
    “You got it,” I said, suddenly feeling wistful. Being separated from Gideon was torture. Especially when surrounded by friends who were invested in relationships of their own.
    Noon rolled around and while I waited for Will, I sent a quick text to Shawna—Mark’s almost-sister-in-law—asking if she was available for a girls’ night out on Saturday. I’d just hit the send button when my desk phone rang.
    I answered briskly, “Mark Garrity’s office—”
    “Eva.”
    My toes flexed at the sound of Gideon’s low, raspy voice. “Hi, ace.”
    “Tell me we’re okay.”
    I bit my lower lip, my heart twisting in my chest. He had to be feeling the same unsettling rift between us that was troubling me. “We are. Don’t you think so? Is something wrong?”
    “No.” He paused. “I just had to hear it again.”
    “I didn’t make it clear last night?”
When I was clawing at your back …
“Or this morning?”
When I was on my knees …
    “I needed to hear you say it when you’re not looking at me.” Gideon’s voice caressed my senses. I turned hot with embarrassment.
    “I’m sorry,” I whispered, feeling awkward. “I know you get annoyed with women objectifying you. You shouldn’t have to put up with it from me.”
    “I would never complain about being what you want, Eva. Christ.” His voice turned gruff. “I’m damned glad you like what you see, because God