Match Point
I look up in time to catch Mac's eye as she passes my office on her way to court. She gives me a quick smile, but doesn't stop, and in a moment she's gone. I lean back in my chair and stare thoughtfully at the empty doorway. Something tells me she's on to me. She hasn't said anything about it. Not so much as one word. But it's there in the way she acts – in the way she looks at me. I don't think I can explain it, even to myself, but my gut tells me she knows that all those little gifts have been coming from me. "Earth to Harm . . . " Sturgis is flapping his hand in front of my face, looking for all the world like he's about to take flight. I shake my head, soggy dog style, and meet his knowing grin. "What?" I'm defensive, but that only makes him grin even more broadly. "You were daydreaming again." "I was not." "You were." He tilts his head to one side and looks at me consideringly. "You've been doing a lot of that lately, now that I think about it." "Sturgis. I'll say this once. Listen carefully, because I'm not going to repeat it." I pause for a beat, making sure I have his undivided attention. "I. Do. Not. Daydream." He fires his answer at me before the last word fades to silence. "Yes. You do." He holds up his hands in a gesture of self defense before I can launch into a tirade. He knows me so well. "It's ok, Harm. I don't mind. In fact . . . " He trails into silence, evidently reconsidering what he'd been about to say. I fold my arms across my chest and stare him down. "In fact . . . .what?" "You know what? Nevermind." He stands up, but I'm faster. I'm leaning against the neatly closed door before he can move around his chair. "In fact what, Sturgis?" I force a creditable amount of stern determination into my voice, and he subsides into his chair with a groan. "When am I going to learn . . . ?" The question is rhetorical. I don't bother with an answer. I also don't move away from the door. "Are you going to tell me what you were talking about, or am I going to have to beat it out of you, my friend?" He knows I'm only half joking, and he sighs in resignation before he speaks. "I was just going to say that I thought it was . . . " Long pause here. I keep quiet. No way am I going to make this any easier for him. He finally speaks again, but the word comes out on a cough, and I almost miss it. " . . . cute." He's got his back turned to me when he says it because I'm still standing guard, so I can't see his face, but his shoulders are shaking, and something tells me he's laughing. "Did you just say what I think you said?" I try to make my voice low and dangerous, but I think he must hear the humor underneath the steel, because he throws a grin at me. "I said exactly what you think I said." I give up on the guard dog stance and go back to my chair, dropping into it with a resigned sigh. "That bad, huh?" He takes pity on me – finally. "Only to someone who knows you as well as I do, buddy. No need to panic. Besides, Mac has been laying it on pretty thick this week." That straightens my spine and brings my head up in a hurry. "What are you talking about? "Come on, man . . . you haven't noticed?" "Noticed what?" Sturgis shakes his head at me with an expression of amused tolerance. "Buddy, when it comes to Mac, you are completely clueless, you know that?" That shot hits a little too close to home. "Forget about that. What haven't I noticed?" "She's been flirting with you!" It's my turn to be amused. "You're imagining things." "Are you sure about that?" "Positive." He gives the ceiling a 'why me' look before he speaks again. "You know what? I've got work to do. You're on your own." He's out the door before I can stop him, not that I even care to try. Truth is, the sigh of relief that escapes me when he's gone is heartfelt. Yeah. I've noticed her flirting. It'd be kind of hard not to. I think back to the Brumby days, remembering how I used to feel when I'd see her direct one of those doe eyed looks at my nemesis. It used to make my blood boil and my hands clench into fists. Funny thing is, when I catch her looking at me that way, my blood still boils, but the only thing my hands want to do is grab her, pull her close, and never let her go. It's time to take this a step further, but I don't want to push too hard too soon. The thought crosses my mind that this approach would seem totally illogical to anybody else - after all, I've already waited eight years. Why take things slow now? Because she's worth it. That's why. This woman, and the possibility of what we might be able to have together, is worth every moment of time and every ounce of effort it takes to win her over. Eight years of friendship, of sparring, of working together and yes, of hurting each other – you can't change that with a few simple words and a roll in the sack. I know I could try that route. I could blurt out the fact that I love her, seduce her into bed, and hope for the best, but that wouldn't be right. No. I want to court her. I want her to know how much I value her as a person and as a woman before I take that next step. So, where to go from here . . . I tap my pencil against my legal pad, hardly aware of the motion as I puzzle over my next move. Is it time to ask her out on a real date complete with candlelight dinner and dance floor? No. I don't think it is. Not yet. I'm thinking casual and familiar. After all, as far as I know she's still dating Webb. She certainly hasn't said or done anything to indicate otherwise. That being the case, if I jump to asking her out on a full fledged date it might look like I'm nosing my way onto another man's turf. She doesn't love him. She told me as much. But she didn't say she was ready to let him go either, and she certainly hasn't given any overt indication that she wants more from me than friendship. For this reason, I need to put my wants on a back burner for a while and take it slow, see where it leads. So . . . casual it is. Just then, Mac walks past on her way back from the courtroom, and I glance at my watch in dismay. Have I really been mooning over her for that long? With a sigh and a rueful shake of the head, I acknowledge that my productivity is nonexistent this afternoon. Oh well. I'll make it up later. For now, I need to catch her before she gets all the way back to her office. "Mac?"
Beauty and the Beast Collection
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