He donned a black cowboy hat, contrasting that boyish blond hair. His body was lean and hard, his biceps just large enough to strain the fabric surrounding it. His hips narrowed in beautifully. Stepping back, she watched as Vivian sashayed up to him. "Hi there. I take it you're not from around here." He jerked his head away, Amy able to get a much better view of his face. His face was beautiful. Not overly masculine, or overly boyish, simply... adorable. "No ma'am, I'm not. I’m from Texas." He inclined his cowboy hat to Vivian, Amy cringing at the sound of his accent. It made her think of Mary Anne... again. "My name's Colton Young." Vivian arched her back more. "I'm Vivian Coutier. Nice to meet you, Mr. Young." He reached down, grabbing her hand to place a gentle kiss. It stung Amelia, not being able to be so brazen as to encourage a man to flirt with her. "The pleasure is most definitely all mine, Miss Coutier. It is 'miss', isn't it?" "Why, yes it is." Vivian's voice dripped with sexuality. Amy huffed. She’d had enough of her emotions for the day. She wasn't about to allow jealousy and envy to join the ride. Reluctantly, she stepped forward, refusing to meet his gaze. She walked around them and sat quietly at her desk, which was a bad idea. His butt that fit so perfectly into those tight wranglers was right at eye level. Then he turned. "You alright, miss?" She didn't know how to answer. Was it her awkwardness around a man that he picked up on, or the tear streaks that were still evident across her skin? She heard Vivian move closer, whispering loudly in his ear. "Her best friend just died about a couple weeks ago. She just got back from the funeral this weekend."

​

Parker wanted to smack this Vivian character, whispering loud enough so that Amelia could hear her. She was arrogant and self-inflated. He watched as Amelia reached for her photo, hands shaking. Vivian leaned in again. "We're probably making her uncomfortable. She gets shy when she’s uncomfortable. Let's go grab some coffee from the break room." Vivian attempted to lace her arm with his when he pulled away. "I tell you what, Miss Coutier. A cup of coffee sounds mighty delicious right about now." He flashed a wickedly charming grin, "Two creams, one sugar." He tilted his gaudy cowboy hat to her, the one Ferril had insisted on. "I'd be most obliged." The embarrassment on Vivian’s face pleased him. Her rude behavior to a woman grieving caused him to lose respect for every inch of that gorgeous body. Vivian attempted a courteous smile and turned. He looked back at Amelia, catching the last dab at her eyes. Parker leaned down, gently taking the picture from her hand. They looked so happy, standing in front of the Statue of Liberty, arm in arm with their caps and gowns on. "You two look like you’re having fun." "It was our graduation day. College, I mean.” She sniffed back another tear before continuing. “We kept saying that we were being liberated.” She laughed lightly at the memory, causing Parker’s heart to warm at the thought of Mary Anne’s laugh. “It was her idea, ya know. To take a picture at the Statue of Liberty? She said ‘what better place to celebrate our liberation than at the most beautiful symbol of freedom this country has’. She was always so happy, but scared of heights.”

​

She laughed a throaty, tense laugh before continuing on. “She refused to go into the Statue of Liberty, so that’s the best I could get out of her.” He laughed softly with understanding. “Besides my parents, she was the only person in this world I could trust. The only person that knew me." Her voice broke. She bit her lip, a long scar becoming more visible with the pressure. It made him wonder what had happened there but wasn’t about to ask her. "I'm sorry. I don't usually talk about..." She stood up abruptly. "I'm sorry, excuse me." She turned and ran, her fiery hair slipping from the french twist as she left him there, bewildered. "You won't get a thing from her." He turned to see Jerry’s secretary, Miss Radnedge, walking up to him with a sinister grin. Her long brown hair cascaded down her back, big blue eyes batting at him with an innocent desire. Parker grinned, attempting a seductive smirk he didn't feel. "Why do you say that, Miss Radnedge?" God, he felt like an idiot talking like a Texan again. Damn Ferril.She moved closer to him, teasing the buttons of his shirt. "She doesn't date." Her eyes danced with her nugget of information. "A year ago, this guy, Remi, took her on a couple of dates. On their second date, when he tried moving to second base, she freaked out." She moved in closer. "She told him she was still a virgin." She laughed loudly, "Can you believe that? Being twenty-eight and still a virgin?" She patted his chest. "Remi wasn’t about to go there after that. Do you have any idea how clingy a woman would be after holding onto her virginity this long?” Esme rolled her eyes. “I can’t imagine, really. I feel sorry for the sucker that gets stuck with that one.” She laughed, “You can just call me Esme, by the way. Miss Radnedge is far too formal."

 

Her distasteful humor irritated him, but he had to remember his back story. He was a player with a newly inherited bank account. He loved women and money, and hecould tell by Esme’s attire that she was a bit of a fan of the latter. He needed to keep up appearances. Parker grabbed her hand, moving in closer and dropping a kiss on her fingers softly. He placed his hand delicately along his hat, tipping it towards her. "It was sure nice to meet you Miss."

 

He turned and walked away. God, it was going to take him forever to get rid of his accent again.He went in search of Amelia. One thing he noticed right away? She definitely couldn't have been the culprit. Her mourning was too authentic to be anything but. He turned towards the offices that he had been in earlier when discussing his financial future with Mr. Saxton, stopping short when he saw Amelia at the end. She turned, sucking her breath in sharply. "I'm sorry. I overreacted." His mouth turned up slightly,

"No apologies miss. There's nothing harder than getting over the death of someone you love." He was working through it himself. Her rigid stance softened as Parker moved in closer, inch by delicate inch. He felt as if he was approaching a frightened kitten. "So you two were pretty close, huh?" She nodded, looking down at her simple tan shoes. Standing a few feet from her, he realized just how muted her features were in the DMV photo than in person. With obviously minimal effort, she reminded him of an elegant ballet dancer, minus the confidence. "How long did you know her?" A petite smile fell along her fair skin. "Since I was eighteen. She was my dormmate." Her eyes met his cautiously before continuing. "We were dormmates our first year. I was terrified of her at first. She was so rambunctious, so fearless." She sighed and turned herself completely towards him as her guard fell. "Then I wanted to be like her. I wanted to stop being so cautious and afraid, and the more I got to know her, the better I was. Around her, anyway. I'm still not comfortable around other people. Apparently I’m not comfortable alone, either,”she mumbled.

​

His obvious confusion had her stumbling. “I’m just not adjusting too well to being by myself." She seemed ashamed of that fact, which peaked his interest. He leaned against the wall, crossing his arms. "What are you so afraid of, Amelia?" Her eyes narrowed onto him, "How do you know my name?" Her guard shot up as quickly as the words passed through her lips. Parker cursed himself for the slip up. That wasn't like him. He was usually so good at keeping his knowledge of the secrets around him, and then to slip up and use her full name? He chuckled casually, "One of the girls in the office told me." Her head cocked to one side, “Everyone here knows me as Amy. Who told you my real name is Amelia?”His mouth twisted into an innocent grin, “I believe her name is Miss Radnedge?” He shook his head. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you, miss." He tilted his hat towards her like a good cowboy would. "It was nice talkin' to ya." He turned slowly and began walking down the hallway, the sound of his boots the only thing he could hear. Then the sound of those short heels tapping, then stopping, like she was fighting an invisible war. "I... I didn't catch your name." Her soft voice echoed down the hall, stopping his boots immediately. He turned his head slightly and smiled as she walked closer to him. "You know mine, right?" He wanted to chuckle at the sweetness of her attempted sass. The woman didn't have a sassy bone in her body. He cleared his throat as he turned himself towards her. "It's Colton Young, ma'am. And it surely is a pleasure to meet you." He walked back to her, reached out, and grasped her hand. The skin was so soft and delicate, like the petal of a rose. He leaned down, Amelia jerking her hand nervously. He didn't let her go. Instead he smiled, pulling her hand closer for a tender kiss.

 

 

He wanted more, which was a desire he couldn't quite explain. He had met plenty of women in his line of work, dealt with desires and lust on a daily basis while undercover. Why she was different, he couldn't quite explain. Perhaps it was her innocence, or her lack of social skill, but he had a feeling deep in his gut that told him... her not throwing herself at him was what got his attention more than anything. He looked up and smiled as a scarlet blush warmed her face. "I hope you know, Amelia, that it really has been a pleasure meeting you. I'm not just sayin' that." She lifted her left hand to her mouth, nibbling nervously on her finger nail. He noticed the slight indent on her middle finger. Left-handed. And her nails were so short, he knew she bit them when she was nervous. Good bit of insight for the future. He could sense her desire to say something, to respond in kind, perhaps? But her nerves wouldn't allow it. He watched as her olive eyes dimmed with defeat. He felt bad, being the cause of such turmoil, but at least the grief had left her for a time. "I hope to see you again real soon." His eyes sweltered with heat before turning around. "Mr. Young?" He stopped, choosing not to turn back to her. "Colton." She hesitated before speaking again. "Colton... Thank you... for being so kind to me." He turned his head, a handsome grin spreading. "No need to thank me for something that comes so naturally, Dulcinea." Her brows furrowed. "What's 'Dulcinea' mean?" He looked over his shoulder again, piercing her with those beautiful aqua eyes. "Perhaps I'll tell you during our next conversation." Parker left her there to stew on that while he began to panic. Did he seriously just use that endearment? Of all the endearments in the world he could have possibly used, he used the one that would have sent his mother in a fit of hysteria seconds before planning his future wedding? The idea of getting married sent a shiver of fear down his spine. His mother would love nothing more. She had been nagging him for years now. He, on the other hand, didn’t want to get married. He was content with his life being the way it was. If he got married, he would have to consider how his life choices would affect that other person. As it was, he only had to contend to dealing with his mother’s rantings about how dangerous his job was, especially since he left forensics to try his hand at undercover work. That decision alone almost gave her a heart attack.No, he was fine with where he was, how his life had turned out. Maybe some time in the far future, when he wasn’t as strong, not as fast or clever, or when he took himself out of the field, he would think about settling down. As it stood, he was nowhere near ready to settle down. He looked back to the hallway, Amelia staying back as if unsure of what she should do. His heart skipped a beat at the sight, and something took over him. He wanted to make her smile again. He wanted to see her happy. He tapped his fingers against the tight fabric of his jeans thoughtfully before turning towards her cubicle. He snagged a piece of blank paper, ripped a piece off, and wrote a little note to her. Just a little something, but hopefully it would bring a smile to her face.He walked away quickly and around the cubicles, catching sight of Gerold Saxton, whom he had spoken to earlier. “Hey Jerry. I got a couple more things I would like to talk to you about, if you don’t mind. Some investment opportunities, ya know?” He repositioned his cowboy hat and leaned against a cubicle as Saxton turned with a grin. His flush, swollen cheeks made him look sick, but his eyes defied that thought. “It’s just a couple of friends o’ mine were wantin’ to start a business. Was thinkin’ about helpin’ ‘em out.”His lips quirked up, showing his perfectly straight teeth. “Of course, Mr. Young. We can go over the details. Before I can truly help you with that, though, I will need to know some things about the company that they plan to start. I have a meeting in about ten minutes, but if you’d like, we can pencil you in for a consultation on the matter tomorrow. If you could call your friends and get some inform-” Gerald’s voice fell into the background while Parker’s eyes wandered to Amelia as she walked back to her desk. She fingered a strand of fly away hair before pressing her conservative business suit straight. Her clothes seemed tailored just for her, mapping out all of the delectable places he would like to discover. Then she picked up the note. She glanced at it quickly before turning herself eagerly to her computer. His throat caught, curious as to what she was doing. She seemed rather determined. Could Mary Anne have shown her pictures of him when they were in high school? That was a dumb question. Of course she did. She loved pictures almost as much as she loved herself. Could Amelia have recognized him from Mary Anne’s pictures? Fear gripped his chest as Amelia’s eyes widened. This could be bad.