Read The Messy Maiden for Free Online Page B

careless. And also for making it so she could quietly decline and neither of them ever had to mention it again. She stared at the invite for a while, undecided. Dating was a complication she literally didn’t have time for. Did that mean she was destined to be dateless until she shut down the website? That didn’t seem fair, and yet that was turning into her reality. Dates usually happened when she was working online.
    Except for lunch.
    Lunch was fairly safe. It wasn’t like they were going to start talking sexual fetishes—and if they did she was out of there. That was not a first date topic. Or even a second date topic.
    She ignored the request and responded to a few emails, typed up three letters, and then watched as Ian walked past her desk on his way to get coffee. It was only when he’d gone past that she released the breath she’d been holding. He hadn’t said anything; he hadn’t even glanced at her…okay he’d been talking to another auditor about one of their clients but still. Not even a glance?
    Was he ignoring her until she accepted the invitation?
    Maybe he was playing it cool at work, that was the smart thing to do, but he’d been quite happy to come after her on Friday night. The memory of him calling out her name still made her smile and her heart flutter in delight.
    He walked back to his office alone, his charcoal grey suit immaculate and hiding what must be great body if he truly cycled. His dark hair was pushed back, the ends almost brushing his collar. His stubble was carefully trimmed. No, not classically handsome as there were too many edges. However she suspected that he’d caught the gaze of more than one female in the office. This time as he passed her desk he gave her a small smile. Nothing more than a polite acknowledgement that she existed. It set her heart racing anew.
    God she was pathetic. Insta-lust in the workplace was never a good idea. Even if was only her work place temporarily. Three more weeks.
    The idea of multiple lunch dates with him was far too appealing. Just lunch. They didn’t have to do anything else. It would be nice to date…a real date with a real person who wasn’t using a fake name and hiding their identity.
    The older secretary cleared her throat and Saskia realized that she was still gazing into space where Ian had been.
    Before she could change her mind she accepted the meeting.

    W ednesday was usually a nothing day of the week. Halfway to the weekend. Saskia didn’t like wishing her life away—and trying to race through five days just to live it up on two was exactly that—but this week Monday and Tuesday had really dragged their heels.
    She tried not to dress any better, but she made sure that instead of being in strictly boring office wear she put on nice underwear, not that he was going to see, and nicer earrings. Small things that he wouldn’t notice, but that made her feel like this was less of a business lunch and more of a date. Things that made her feel special.
    By agreement she waited until he’d left the office before she went to lunch. He’d picked a café a short walk away and had taken a table away from the counter. Should anyone walk in hopefully they’d be too busy reading the specials board to notice them.
    She, however, spotted him straight away. He already had menus on the table and a bottle of water. Given that they only had one hour that was a smart move. Should she have expected less from him? Of course he’d be organized so they could make the most of the time they had.
    A smile formed on her lips and her chest grew tight as she walked over. She couldn’t help it. When she looked at him her body took over and her brain seemed to switch off. It took a moment, but she realized she had the first date jitters. Unlike the last couple of dates she’d been on, which had been set up by her well-meaning friends, she was hoping that this went well and that they’d get to do it again in the near future and she hadn’t even sat