Kate Hoffmann - Brian

"Kind of," Lily said.

"The way I see it, you have two choices," Emma said. "One, you can dump the guy and focus on your work and come back here and have the job of your dreams. Or two, you can call DeLay, tell him you want out, he'll fire you and you'll lose your house and your car and never be able to buy another pair of designer shoes in your entire life. What's it going to be?"

Now that Emma laid the options out so clearly, Lily could see the choice should be quite easy. "There is one other option. Richard Patterson finds out I'm dating Brian Quinn and he fires me and then Don DeLay fires me. And then my life falls apart."

"Do you honestly think that's a possibility?"

"If I get fired, we could always start a firm of our own, like we've talked about. Wouldn't that be a great idea? Carsten Gallagher Public Relations. I'll even give you top billing."

"Lily, don't bother coming home this weekend. I'm going to come visit you. We'll shop, we'll have lunch and we'll get this straightened out."

A knock sounded on Lily's office door and she turned away from the window. "I have to go," she said. "I'll call you tonight and we'll talk more. Bye, Em." She hung up the phone and drew a deep breath, fully expecting to see Richard Patterson on the other side. "Come in."

Marie opened the door and stepped inside. "There's a delivery for you, Miss Gallagher. Do you want it in here?"

"Of course. Is it that media report I sent for?" Lily asked, rearranging the folders on her desk.

But when Marie reappeared in the door, she held a huge bouquet of flowers, a beautiful mix of pink and cream-colored roses. "It's really pretty. There's a card. Would you like me to read it?"

"No, I know who they're from."

Lily stood, took the flowers from Marie and set the vase in the middle of her desk. "They are pretty." She took the card and slid it out of the envelope. Scrawled in a masculine hand was a message from Brian. Missing you, he wrote. Dinner tonight? She forced a smile, then slowly sat down, her view of the door completely obscured by the size of the bouquet.

They hadn't spoken since the night of the fireworks and Lily had almost hoped he'd stay away. She'd spent the entire weekend trying to focus on anything that would take her mind off Brian Quinn and her impending termination. And she'd nearly convinced herself that whatever happened, she'd deal with it-alone.

If she only knew how she really felt about Brian, then she might have considered a future with him. But her history with men made it hard for her to trust her own feelings, much less the feelings of a man she barely knew. Yes, there was an undeniable attraction between them, but it wasn't love!

"Mr. Patterson's secretary just called," Marie said. "He wants to see you as soon as possible."

A knot tightened in Lily's stomach and she suddenly felt nauseous. "Fine, Marie. Tell her that I'm on my way."

Mrs. Wilburn was a loyal employee. It wasn't a surprise that she couldn't keep something like this to herself. Patterson would fire her and then DeLay would fire her and her life, as she knew it, would be over. Lily's heart slammed in her chest. She'd never been fired before. She wasn't sure what to expect.

Lily hurried to the elevator, but then noticed the Out Of Order sign. As she trudged up the steps, she wondered if she should make a preemptive strike. If she quit before Richard Patterson had a chance to fire her, then at least she could say she'd resigned. She wouldn't have a black mark on her résumé.

She approached Patterson's office and Mrs. Wilburn gave her a haughty look, then nodded. "He's ready for you," she murmured. "You can go in."

Lily knocked softly on the door then stepped inside, preparing herself for the worst. But when she saw Richard sitting behind his desk, he was grinning. Lily returned his smile hesitantly. "Good morning."

"Sit," Richard said. "I just wanted to catch up with you and tell you what an outstanding job you're doing."

Lily stifled a gasp. "Thank you," she murmured, trying to hide her complete astonishment.

"Mrs. Wilburn told me that she saw you with Brian Quinn, Friday night. She was quite bothered, but I've always said 'Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer.' I'm glad to see that you're willing to do what's necessary to keep an eye on him."

"Of-of course," Lily replied.

He cleared his throat. "Now, I don't care to know the details, but the fact that you're willing to go… the extra mile is admirable. Keep him distracted. Good plan." He smoothed his hands over the surface of his desk. "So, carry on. Do what you have to do."

"Right," Lily said. She turned and walked out of the office on wobbly legs, then continued past Mrs. Wilburn to the stairwell. When she reached the stairs, she willed herself to calm down. "This is just perfect," she muttered. "I didn't lose my job and he doesn't think I'm a traitor. Instead, he thinks I'm a slut."

Lily groaned and sat down on the first step. Well, she now had official permission to have another night or two of hot sex with Brian Quinn. Lily pushed to her feet. So why did that suddenly seem like the last thing she wanted to do?

Brian walked into the diner and glanced around at the patrons seated for an early lunch. The place was a favorite hangout for media junkies, offering quick lunches and bottomless cups of coffee and 24-hour CNN on the television. There were plenty of empty spots at the counter so he grabbed a stool and sat down, figuring he and Sean could snare a table when his brother arrived.

He ordered a Coke, then pulled out his cell phone from his pocket and punched in Lily's number at work. But, before the phone rang on the other end, he hung up. He needed to let Lily deal with her business problems on her own. Since he'd left her Friday night, he'd been preoccupied with worries about her. She had been so upset when she'd walked away, so certain that being seen in public signaled the end of her career.

Brian grabbed a menu and stared at it. He didn't want to see Lily hurt, but there was no denying that his interest in her was causing a problem-in both their lives. Last week, they'd spent nearly every free moment together. It hadn't taken long for Brian to realize that his feelings for Lily ran deep-much deeper than simple lust.

He'd never meant to fall in love, but he was coming dangerously close to doing just that. He looked forward to seeing her and felt restless when she wasn't near. He loved the sound of her voice and the way her face lit up when she smiled. And when she touched him, every nerve in his body came alive.

Brian closed his eyes and drew in a deep breath, then tried to focus on the menu again. He'd call her after work and hopefully, her worries about Mrs. Wilburn would have been eased or maybe forgotten entirely. "Or maybe, she'll be out of a job and looking for someone to blame," he murmured to himself.

"You're Brian Quinn."

The man who spoke sat down next to Brian and Brian sighed inwardly. He'd just wanted to have a quiet lunch. But with his face on the side of every bus in Boston, it was tough to walk around unrecognized. He reached into his pocket for a pen. Hopefully all the man wanted was an autograph. He turned and smiled. "Yes, I am."

The man sat down on the stool beside him. "I saw your report on that building inspector who was taking bribes. That was great work." The man held out his hand. "I'm Jim Trent. I'm the city editor over at the Globe."

Brian tried to contain his surprise. "Hey. It's good to meet you. I read the Globe. I love the Globe. I used to work at the Globe."

"You did?"

"Yep, when I was in high school and college. I used to load the trucks. But that was more than ten years ago. You weren't there then. Marcus Reynolds was city editor. He was great, but I think you're doing a better job. Harder hitting pieces, tighter writing."