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That last image made her grin. She was a bad girl and she had it for him in a bad way. The excuse that it was just hormones was wearing thin. Diane was nearly two months old. Surely Heather’s body was well on the mend and her glands were easing their pregnancy vigil. Maybe it was—

The front door of the office opened and an attractive young couple stepped into the waiting area. The man was of medium height with black hair and brown eyes, in his mid- to late-twenties. The woman was petite and shared his warm coloring. Jim glanced up and grinned. “Rick! What are you doing here?” He rose to his feet and headed over to the couple.

“I wanted to see you,” Rick said as he and his companion stepped through the swinging gate. The two men shook hands warmly, then Rick nodded at the young woman beside him. “You remember Lupe, don’t you?” His smile broadened. “She’s my woman.”

“Rick!” Lupe blushed. “I’m very happy to see you again, Mr. Dyer.”

“Call me Jim,” he said. “It’s good to see you, too.” His gaze dropped to her left hand. “Nice ring. I see you finally let Rick convince you to take a chance on him. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. He’s a good man.” He slapped Rick on the back. “A bit of a slow learner at times, but he finally figured out what was right.”

“Thanks to you,” Lupe said.

Jim shrugged off the compliment. “He did all the hard work. I just showed him a couple of unpleasant alternatives if he kept messing up. But that’s all in the past. Rick, Lupe, I want you to meet my new bookkeeper and very good friend.”

Heather had been filing invoices, and although she was trying not to listen, it was difficult when they were standing only a few feet behind her. Now she turned toward the group.

“Heather, this is Rick Martinez. He worked for me until about six months ago. And this is his fiancée, Lupe.”

“Nice to meet you both,” Heather said.

“Have a seat,” Jim told them. “Tell me what’s going on.”

Heather dropped the last invoice in the filing cabinet. “This is a private conversation,” she said. “I don’t want to interrupt. I’ll just get my stuff and head on home.”

“Don’t go,” Jim insisted, herding her back to his desk. He motioned for Rick to pull up a couple more chairs, then grabbed one for Heather. “We’re all friends here.”

Heather stared at him helplessly. She wasn’t completely comfortable joining people who had obviously known each other a long time, but she also didn’t want to appear rude by leaving. She decided she would stay for a few minutes, then make her excuses and go.

Jim settled into his seat behind his desk. “Tell me how you’re doing, Rick. How’s the new job working out?”

“Great.” Rick moved his chair closer to Lupe, then took her hand and threaded his fingers through hers. “I’m getting advanced training with the helicopters and they’re sending me to a management seminar in the fall. It’s two nights a week and everyone says it’s tough, but I think I’ll be okay.”

He sounded modest, but Heather saw the pride and pleasure glowing in his large, dark eyes.

“If I get through the class and do well, they want to promote me.” He grinned. “I never saw myself as one of the suits.”

Jim motioned to his own casual long-sleeved shirt and khakis. “This is hardly a suit, but I think you’ll do great in management. You have a lot of the traits needed. I’m sure you’ll find the class interesting but not as hard as you think.”

Lupe turned her shy gaze on Jim. “We’re getting married next month.”

“Yeah, man,” Rick said. “How come you didn’t accept the invitation?”

Jim frowned. “I thought I sent my reply.” He dug around in a couple of stacks of paper on his desk, then withdrew an ivory envelope and handed it to Rick. “Here, take it with you and use the postage for something else.”

Rick’s gaze was direct. “You’re really going to come?”

“I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

Rick glanced at Heather. “You can bring a date if you want.”

“I just might do that.”

Rick turned his full attention on her. “How long have you worked for this guy?” he asked.

Heather’s mind was still on the “bring a date” comment and she wondered who Jim might bring. From what she’d heard, he didn’t have a girlfriend, but maybe there was someone he saw now and then. The thought didn’t set well with her.

“About three weeks,” Heather said after a pause.

Rick nodded. “He’s the best.” He ran his fingers through his dark hair. “You probably can’t tell to look at me now, but not too long ago, I was a real loser. I graduated from my technical training, but barely. I didn’t care much about working. I wanted to party with my friends. Jim gave me a job, then I gave him hell for months.” He looked at his former boss. “Remember?”