Chapter 258
**Sara**
I stood frozen, my feet cemented to the sidewalk. The logical part of my brain tried to reason - maybe she was just a colleague, a friend, someone who gave enthusiastic hugs to everyone. But the knot in my stomach wasn't buying it.
Their conversation continued, her hand lingering on his arm in a way that made me want to march over and remove it, preferably with a crowbar. I caught fragments of laughter carried on the evening breeze, though the words themselves were lost in the city noise.
A bus roared past, breaking my trance. What was I doing? Standing here like some creepy stalker, spying on Tom? I wasn't that person. I refused to be that person.
The woman finally stepped back, her perfectly manicured hand dropping from his arm. They exchanged a few more words before she clicked away on her designer heels, disappearing around the corner.
I took a deep breath, squared my shoulders, and crossed the street. Tom was leaning against his car, typing something on his phone.
"Fancy meeting you here," I called out, proud that my voice stayed steady. "This wouldn't happen to be that ride you mentioned this morning, would it?"
He looked up, his face breaking into that irritatingly perfect smile. "Maybe I just missed you."
"In the no-parking zone? How romantic." I gestured to the clearly posted sign above his car. "Nothing says 'I missed you' quite like potential parking tickets."
"I live dangerously." He pushed off the car, closing the distance between us. "How was your day at work?"
"Oh, you know. Lots of spreadsheets." I emphasized the last word, watching his eyes darken slightly. "Though not quite the kind you were suggesting this morning."
His hands found my waist, pulling me closer. "We could always fix that."
I placed my palm against his chest, keeping a small distance. "Who was your friend?"
"Friend?" His brow furrowed.
"The woman who just left. The one with the very enthusiastic greeting style."
Tom's expression cleared. "Oh, that's just Skylar. We were classmates back in high school."
"Ah." I watched his face carefully. "So you came here to meet your classmate and do some flirting?"
He laughed, his hands tightening on my waist. "Actually, I came to pick you up. Skylar works in that building." He nodded toward the glass tower across the street. "Pure coincidence running into her."
"What a small world." I glanced at the building he indicated, then back at him with narrowed eyes. "Is that why you suggested getting an office in my building earlier? Is it a convenient location to visit your old classmate?"
"Sara Parker," His voice dropped lower, a hint of amusement coloring his tone. "Are you jealous?"
"No!" I stepped back, crossing my arms. "Why would I be jealous? I don't care if your classmate wants to throw herself at you in the middle of the street."
"Throw herself?" He raised an eyebrow. "It was a hug."
"A very long, very touchy-feely hug."
"You're definitely jealous."
"I am not." I lifted my chin. "I'm making observations. Like how her hand stayed on your arm for approximately three years."
"You were counting?"
"It was hard to miss while I was standing there like an idiot, watching the show."
His smile widened. "So you were watching us?"
"Only because you were blocking traffic in the no-parking zone. I was concerned for public safety."
"How civic-minded of you." He reached for me again, but I dodged his grasp.
"I'm just saying, if you're going to have curbside reunions with your classmates, maybe pick a legal parking spot next time."
Tom ran a hand through his hair, that infuriating smirk still playing on his lips. "I honestly had no idea she worked here. I came to surprise you, and she practically ambushed me the moment I stepped out of the car."
"Ambushed you?" I arched an eyebrow. "Did she jump out from behind a potted plant?"
"More like squealed my name across the sidewalk. You know how some people never outgrow their teenage enthusiasm?" He shrugged. "That's Skylar."
"Uh-huh." I studied his face, searching for any hint of deception. "And you just happened to park here, completely by chance?"
"I texted you earlier asking what time you finished, remember?" He pulled out his phone, scrolling through messages. "See? 'Done at 5:30?' That was me planning this surprise pickup."
I glanced at my own phone. There it was - a message I'd completely missed during my spreadsheet-induced coma.
"Oh."
"Yeah, oh." He stepped closer, his fingers brushing my cheek. "Can we stop discussing my alleged parking spot rendezvous and get going? Unless you'd rather stand here until I actually get a ticket."
As if on cue, a parking enforcement vehicle crawled past, the officer inside eyeing Tom's car with predatory interest.
"Fine." I moved toward the passenger door. "But only because I'm saving you from a fine. Not because I believe your surprise pickup story."
Tom opened the door for me, leaning in close. "You're cute when you're jealous."
"I told you, I'm not-"
He cut me off with a quick kiss, then closed the door before I could finish protesting. I watched him round the car, that confident stride making my stomach do little flips despite my irritation.
"So," he said, sliding into the driver's seat, "where to?"
I buckled my seatbelt, trying to maintain my dignified outrage. "Somewhere with legal parking?"
His laugh filled the car as we pulled away from the curb, just as the parking officer made his U-turn.
The evening traffic crawled along, giving my brain plenty of time to replay that hug on repeat. Maybe I was being ridiculous. People hugged. It was a normal human interaction.
"You're doing it again," Tom said, his eyes fixed on the road.
"Doing what?"
"That thing where you're thinking so loud I can practically hear it."
I shifted in my seat. "I don't think loudly."
"Your nose scrunches up when you're overthinking. It's been scrunching since we left."
My hand flew to my nose. "It does not!"
"It absolutely does. Like a frustrated rabbit."
"I do not look like a rabbit." I crossed my arms, then quickly uncrossed them when I realized I probably looked like a pouty teenager.
Tom navigated around a delivery truck. "So, are you going to tell me what's bouncing around in that head of yours, or should I guess?"
"Nothing's bouncing. There's no bouncing happening anywhere."
"Skylar's married, by the way."
I whipped my head around so fast I nearly gave myself whiplash. "What?"
"To a corporate lawyer. They have two kids and a golden retriever named Pickle."
"I didn't ask."
"No, but your nose was about to scrunch right off your face."
I slumped in my seat, heat creeping up my neck. "I wasn't... I mean... Pickle?"
"The dog ate an entire jar of them as a puppy. The name stuck."
A laugh escaped before I could stop it. "That's actually kind of cute."
"See? Nothing to be jealous about. Unless you're worried about me running off with Pickle?"
"Oh, shut up." But I was smiling now, the knot in my stomach loosening. "I wasn't jealous. I was just concerned about your parking habits."
"Mhmm. Very concerned. That's why you were counting the seconds of a friendly hug."
"I wasn't counting! I was conducting a traffic study."
Tom's shoulders shook with suppressed laughter. "A traffic study?"
"Yes. Very important research on the impact of illegal parking and excessive hugging on downtown congestion."
"And what were your findings, Professor Parker?"
"That some professors are too smug for their own good."
He reached over and caught my hand, bringing it to his lips. "And some MBA graduates are adorably terrible at hiding their jealousy."
I tried to pull my hand away, but he held on, his thumb tracing circles on my palm. "I'm not adorable. I'm fierce and professional."
"Of course you are, bunny nose."
"That's it. I'm walking home."
But I didn't move to take my hand back, and we both knew I wasn't going anywhere. The traffic inched forward, and I found myself relaxing into the comfortable silence, watching the city lights begin to twinkle in the growing dusk.
Maybe I had been overthinking things. Just a little bit. Not that I'd admit it out loud - his ego was big enough already.
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