Free UpAndComing by Christi Ann Page A

crook of his elbow.
    “Ahhh.” She smiled, understandingly. “If I do good, do I get
rewarded?” she whispered in a childish voice as they walked across the room.
    With a smile, he replied, “Don’t you always?”
    They neared the executive and his guest, and with a beaming
smile, Callie immediately engaged the brunette in conversation.
    “Phillip, are you enjoying the festivities?” Donahue held
out his hand.
    “Yes sir,” Phillip replied, shaking the man’s hand. “Mr.
Donahue, you remember my girlfriend Callie Reynolds.” Phillip placed his hand
at the small of Callie’s back, glad he got the words out without choking on
them.
    Callie smiled, turning to give him a quick glance. The “G”
word hadn’t gone unnoticed. He hoped like hell she didn’t try to read anything
more into it than being part of the façade he wanted to maintain.
    “Phillip, you remember Anna Beth, don’t you?” Donahue asked
as the ponytailed brunette turned to them.
    Phillip’s heart raced as he searched his memory, coming up totally
blank. How in the hell could he forget meeting such a gorgeous woman?
    The woman slapped Donahue’s arm. “Now, Daddy, stop that,”
she said in a sexy Southern drawl. Her deep-blue eyes met Phillip’s gaze as a pink
flush flooded her cheeks.
    Donahue let out a deep chuckle.
    “He knows I haven’t been to this office since I was in high
school, but he thinks putting everyone on the spot is cute.” She gave her
father an annoyed reprimanding stare.
    “Of course. Nice to see you again Anna Beth. It has been…a
while.” Feeling a touch of heat in his own cheeks, Phillip stayed calm. “You’ve
met Callie.”
    “Yes, I have.” The two went back into shoe talk.
    Phillip gazed at the girl he had barely noted years ago, now
very much a woman and very much all grown up, the transformation mesmerizing.
    “She has changed a bit.” Donahue stood shoulder to shoulder
beside him.
    “Yes sir,” he managed, not really knowing what else to say.
    Donahue cleared his throat.
    Phillip shook his head, realizing he was staring too intensely.
“Can’t believe I didn’t recognize her. I’m usually very good with names and
faces.”
    “She got her looks from her mother.”
    “Obviously.” The word slipped out.
    Donahue let out a small chuckle.
    “No disrespect, sir.” He attempted a save.
    “None taken. Wish she wasn’t as much like me as she is.”
    Phillip looked at the man, not understanding.
    “She’s about to graduate from Harvard Law. Wants to be a
cooperate lawyer like her old man.” Donahue shook his head.
    “Impressive.” Brains and looks. “She staying out
East?”
    “She’s fielding offers from several East-Coast firms.”
    “Which way’s she leaning?” Phillip could always take a
flight out East for a little accidental-on-purpose meeting.
    “Doesn’t matter now, thankfully.” Donahue took a long sip of
his drink. “Her plans are about to change.”
    “Change?”
    “Tomorrow she’s getting engaged to Brady Pelican.” The
statement brought a satisfied grin to the man’s usually stern face. Obviously
he was quite proud of her for catching one of the most eligible bachelors in
the state. More so it seemed than that of her educational or career
achievements.
    What a dick. “Brady? Ernest Pelican’s youngest son?”
Phillip knew the Pelicans all too well, having represented the eccentric Ernest
Pelican on two potential multimillion dollar mergers. Both of which Pelican had
ultimately rejected.
    “Tickled the hell out of me when Brady asked for her hand.
Her mother and I are relieved she will be staying here in Dallas after all.”
    “And he’s popping the question tomorrow?” Not sure why he
even asked. Phillip couldn’t help but wonder if Anna Beth was equally tickled.
    He gave a nod. “When are you going to pop the question? I
don’t see a ring on your woman’s finger, yet.”
    Phillip cleared his throat. “Well, sir. If there’s a woman I
could settle down