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Chapter Thirty-One

R oderick was lurking by Philippa’s office door. She sighed and ushered him in, questioning, not for the first time, the wisdom of glass doors on offices. She couldn’t pretend she hadn’t seen him.

“Morning, Philippa, how are you?” He plonked himself into a seat opposite Philippa’s desk.

“I’m fine, thanks. What can I do for you?” she asked.

“I just thought I’d check in and see how you’re getting on with that bid for the finance firm. The presentation is this afternoon, right?” He was trying to communicate a casual air but was clearly very aware of when the meeting was taking place.

“Yes, that’s right. I think we’re in a good place,” said Philippa, looking down at her notes.

“Is there anything I can do to help?” Roderick seemed keen to be involved.

Philippa gave him a wry smile. “Well, if you’re free at half past two, you could come and be in the room and help answer any questions Gerry and his team have.”

“Sure, I’ll check my calendar,” he said, making a show of taking his phone out. “Yes, I think I can squeeze that in.”

“Very good of you,” said Philippa. “You, me and Sienna. No doubt we’ll make a formidable team. I’ll send you over the slides.”

“Awesome,” said Roderick, unable to keep the triumphant smile from his face.

Philippa’s phone beeped. Alex: “Can I see you tonight? x”

Philippa looked up at Roderick. “Ok, well, we’ll gather here at twenty past and then head over to Gerry’s office. See you shortly.”

Roderick nodded and stood up. “Right you are. See you then.”

Once he’d left the office Philippa smiled, relieved to hear from Alex.

They’d shared a couple of texts since the night they’d spent together, but no plans had been made to meet up.

She desperately wanted to see Alex again, but didn’t want to overwhelm her.

She picked up her phone and responded straight away.

“I’d love to,” she wrote. “I’ve got the presentation later today, but I’ll drop you a line when we’re done. You could meet me in town? x”

“Deal. Good luck! You’re going to smash it x” responded Alex. Philippa hoped she was right.

Sienna knocked on the door, signalling that a client was ready for Philippa.

It was a complicated divorce case, with a complex financial settlement involving all kinds of assets.

Philippa needed to stop thinking about the woman who had kissed her on Monday night and start thinking about court orders.

She waved at Sienna to let the client in.

Sienna returned a few moments later with the client and passed Philippa a file of papers. This was a two-person job. Philippa opened the file, impressed with the quality of the work Sienna had done so far.

The day passed quickly, and before long Philippa, Sienna and Roderick were strolling along Colmore Row towards Gerry’s impressive building.

The receptionist there was ready for them and showed them straight up to a top floor office with panoramic views of Birmingham.

Gerry was there, along with four of his colleagues.

“Welcome, Philippa,” he said, shaking her hand. “I hope you’ve been offered a drink.”

“We have,” said Philippa. “Let me introduce my team to you.”