by Natalie Dean
Or because he had intense feelings for a woman that he maybe shouldn’t have.
Except that factor was gone now, wasn’t it? He no longer controlled her housing, or anything of hers really. Sure, he had gotten that freedom by just buying a bunch of things for her, but the important thing was that he couldn’t take them back. She was entirely the legal owner of her house, her phone, and she had gone and gotten herself a job on her own.
And in fact, it was her house that he was driving to, to pick her up to take her to their nice meal at a steakhouse in town.
It wasn’t the high-end one that his family would normally visit, but he figured that would be too much for Frenchie on their first date. The first of hopefully many others if he had any wishes left.
So they were going to a mid-tier one, one where he could still feel like he was treating her but not so extreme that she might feel like he was bragging. It was a delicate balance that he wasn’t that familiar with.
But she was worth it. More than anyone else he knew.
When he arrived at her house, he found her waiting at the doorway of her porch. Her porch, an idea that made him feel happy and content inside. No matter what happened with them, she had a home. A place to call her own.
“Hey there,” he said, handing her the flowers he got. They were a simple collection of summer flowers, no doubt things she missed with it being the colder months. “You look lovely.”
“Thanks. You bought the clothes.”
“That’s not what I mean, and I’m pretty sure you know that.”
“Yeah, I do.” She took the flowers and buried her face in them.
That made his chest swell with some sort of weird, caveman pride.
She smiled. “I’ll go put these in a vase. Because of course you bought us a vase.”
He smiled crookedly. “I tried to get you everything you could need.”
“Well, you’ve done a good job so far. I’m still unpacking and finding things.”
“Yeah… I might have gone a little overboard. Potentially.” He hadn’t. He had bought her only half of what he originally wanted, and that was being conservative. He had a long, long wish list of items saved online for—actually, he wasn’t sure what. Maybe Christmas? A rainy day? He wasn’t sure, but if their date went well, hopefully he would have more chances to give her little presents.
…or big presents. Like a fully lit vanity or a huge dresser with extra room for all the clothes she might buy as time went along.
“You okay? Earth to Solomon. I put the flowers in the vase. Ready to go?”
He blinked. He hadn’t realized that he had been lost in his thoughts, but he quickly flashed her a grin.
“That I am. Let’s go.”
She returned his grin, albeit nervously, and they headed outside. She let him open her door for her, and when he slid into the truck, she was giggling.
“What?” he asked.
“Nothing. I just… I’ve never been on a date. I’ve always told myself I didn’t care because it was cheesy, but I dunno… it’s kinda nice.”
“Glad you think so.”
He started the truck and pulled away, going the speed limit for once. He wasn’t in a hurry, wanting to make the most of every moment with Frenchie. Apparently, as the holidays ramped up, so did her hours at her job. Sometimes he was tempted to tell her to just call in so she could actually enjoy her new place, but that was exactly what he had been trying to avoid.
“So, how have things been on the ranch? Decidedly more ranchy?”
He laughed at the word. “Yeah, actually. Even though it’s winter and that’s usually when things slow down. Just wait until spring comes around, Mom would love to show you her garden.”
“Oh, so you want to introduce me to your parents then?”
He gave her a wide-eyed look. “Wait, you’d want to meet my—Oh. You’re kidding. You’re teasing me right now.”
She laughed, throwing her head back and letting out long peals of mirth. “Yes, I am. Sorry, am I being terrible?”
“The absolute worst.”
“Well, guess you better turn around and take me back,” she said with a cheeky grin.
“All right, maybe not the worst. But there’s always room for improvement.”
“Isn’t that the truth?” she said, tone suddenly serious. “But I feel like ever since I met you, that’s all I’ve been doing.”
Wow… that was a compliment and a half, and he tried not to preen too much at it. He didn’t even know if Frenchie was aware of just how important those words were.
He loved the way she made him feel. More connected and normal. There weren’t goals and discussions. No mergers or political winds. Just two people enjoying each other’s company for the sake of enjoyment.
They continued to talk as they drove along, just casual things about her work and how Tawny was doing with the first week of her program. The young girl was excited to be back, even if she was still nervous about her parents finding her.
But he had a good feeling that they wouldn’t do anything. It was too close to her eighteenth birthday, and the learning center made it clear that they legally could consider her emancipated and not report her.
They arrived in good time, and he actually parked his car. He was so used to using valet services that it was a bit of a novel experience for him, but he knew better than to say so. There was only so much good-natured ribbing he could get before he started to feel stupid or out of touch.
Even though he was out of touch. But he was learning. Bit by bit, he was learning.
For example, it had been exceedingly difficult to get Frenchie to buy one of the nice, insulated coats he recommended to her. They weren’t a bad price, around a hundred and twenty each because they were on clearance, but they were warm, durable and even waterproof. It would last her for a decade or two as opposed to the fifteen dollar one she wanted from the thrift store that would last maybe a year or two.
It had been a very long conversation where she explained, since she was buying something for Tawny and herself, that she would never have the disposable income to spend over two hundred dollars on coats, even if they lasted forever. The most she could afford was what was at the thrift store, and even if those turned out to be more in the long run, that was just how it was.
He’d offered to buy the coats for her, of course, but she’d been strangely adamant that she had to do it herself. That was right around when he got the feeling that, as much as he liked getting her things, she was used to taking care of herself and he was reaching the end of her coddling-limit.
So he’d backed off and learned more about how the poor stayed poor. It wasn’t bad buying choices; it was that they literally couldn’t afford the good choices because they just didn’t have enough capital. It made so much more sense than his father insisting that they all were just after instant gratification.
“Wow, this place smells delicious,” she murmured from the parking lot. Even in the low light, he could see how wide her pupils were in anticipation of a good meal.
“Wait until you’re inside.”
She nodded, taking his arm again as they headed toward the door.
He was right. The restaurant was a great choice. For one, they didn’t have their prices on the menu, and secondly, they had a broad range of options. Frenchie ended up getting the surf and turf at his recommendation while he decided on their slow-cooked brisket. It had nothing on his Aunt Annie’s recipe, but it was still quite delicious, and they spent the entire meal laughing and joking with each other.
There was no talk of predators or legal things, no talk of rich or poor. Just the two of them, as equals, being in the moment and enjoying a good meal together.
It was worth absolutely every cent, and they ended up staying almost until close even though Frenchie had said she had work in the morning. It made him feel a touch guilty about that, but she seemed to be enjoying herself just as much as he was.
As he took her home, he found himself wan
ting the moment to last longer. To whisk her off into a world where she didn’t have to worry about money or bills or anything like that. But he also respected her need to have her own goals and accomplishments.
So he maybe took one or two wrong turns on the way back to her house. But only that, because he really did want her to get a good night’s rest.
He pulled up to her house and didn’t miss how her face still lit up when she looked at it. He supposed she was still getting used to it, to having something so important to her name. Good, he was glad that he was able to make her happy, no matter what happened between them.
“I suppose this is goodnight,” he said.
“Yeah, I suppose it is.”
He went around the truck and opened her door, offering his hand to help her out. They walked together to her front door where they stopped again, her head turned up to look at him.
“Thank you for tonight. For everything. I had a lot of fun,” she said.
“Enough fun to want to do this again?”
She flushed and wow, if she was beautiful normally, she was even more so when she was well-fed and blushing. “Yeah. I could see myself wanting a repeat of tonight.”
“All right, but only if you cook for me again. I loved that spicy cabbage you made.”
“Spicy… it was seasoned with salt and pepper! How is that spicy?!”
“I have a delicate palate,” he retorted. That wasn’t true at all. He quite liked spicy things; he just hadn’t expected cabbage to actually taste good.
“Sure, you do.” They shared another laugh that eventually petered out, leaving them staring at each other, the tension between them rising again. “So… does this courting thing allow for goodnight kisses?”
That hadn’t been what he was expecting, and his blood rushed within his veins. “I… I think that might be all right.”
“Good. Because I’d really like that.”
His hands came up, cupping her face, tilting it up towards him. He hesitated a moment, looking at her every feature, drinking it all in because he didn’t want to forget a single detail. And then, he lowered his head so that their lips were pressed against each others.
Even as much as he had thought about touching her, thought about the feel of her against him, he still wasn’t prepared. His entire body filled with heat while her lips were soft and petallike against his.
She let out a sound, a soft, vulnerable little sound that made his body pump with adrenaline. His hands dropped from her face to wind around her, pressing her into him, feeling her body flush with his.
Then he had to pull himself away.
“You didn’t have to stop,” Frenchie murmured, her eyes half-lidded. And wow, as if that wasn’t a look for her. Her lips were red and puffy looking, her cheeks were flushed, and her breath was coming in a sort of raspy rush.
“Nah, I was serious about wanting to do this the right way.”
“Why are you so set on this courting thing? It’s not like I’m some virgin, or a fancy, do-good lady. Sure, you set me up with some things, but I’m just a homeless girl from the system.”
His hands found her face again, and he leaned down so he could rest his forehead against hers.
“You are so much more than that and you’re worth treating right.” He pulled his head away and placed a kiss where his forehead had just been resting. “You’re worth taking the time for. You’re worth treating as a precious, important person.” Another little kiss and she sighed, sagging against him. “I promise you, I’m going to prove that I can be worthy of a woman who’s as incredible, as strong as you.”
“I…” Her breath hitched, and he thought he might feel something damp against his shirt. “Okay. If you want to try, I’m game. But for the record, that’s a pretty intense thing to prove.”
“Don’t worry. I’m up for it.”
Epilogue
Frenchie
Frenchie bounced her leg as she sat in a pew, a single piece of paper in her hand. She was in the church that was just a block away from her library, not many people there since it was Wednesday.
“Can I help you, miss?”
She looked up to see a kind woman standing at the end of the pew. It wasn’t the sort of question she was used to, as most churches in the area were pretty against homeless people lurking around after hours for shelter.
“Uh, no. Just have a lot to think about.”
“That so?” She slid into the pew and sat a respectable distance away. “Anything you want to talk about?”
“I’m sure you wouldn’t understand.”
“Well, why don’t you try me?”
Frenchie took a long, deep breath. “Well, it’s just that I’ve lived the past five years as sort of a non-existing person. I was so focused on survival that I didn’t have time for much else. But now…”
“Now what?”
“Well now… there’s everything. I’ve got a house. I’ve been hired on fulltime at my job. I’ve been dating this amazing guy for six months now, and I’ve had the most perfect Christmas I could ever ask for.”
It really had been beautiful. She’d cried a couple of times. And meeting his family had only been mildly terrifying, if by mildly she meant completely and totally to the point where she’d gotten nauseous almost instantly. But it was better than anything that she could ask for.
“And that has given you something to think about?”
“Yeah, because you see, I kind of just got my official GED certificate today, and I’m only just now realizing that I might actually be a woman of worth.”
“And that wasn’t something you considered yourself before?”
“Well… no. I was just a street kid turned street woman. But now I have all these things, and all these paths are open to me. I kind of… just don’t know what to do. I don’t want to waste it.”
“Ah, I see. That’s a pretty big series of changes.”
“It is.” It was terrifying. It was wonderful. It was everything she had ever wanted, but it had been out of her reach for so long that she didn’t know what to do now that she had accomplished her goals.
“Well, I would think that, for the moment, do you have to do anything at all?”
Frenchie looked at her suspiciously. “What do you mean?”
“Well, you’ve been working this whole time, struggling every day. And now that you’ve accomplished everything that you’re supposed to do, maybe you deserve a break.”
“But… I didn’t get there on my own. I was helped a lot. I mean, there was a reason that even after five years I couldn’t end up anywhere.”
“That doesn’t matter. When a doctor saves a life, do we discredit them because their teachers gave them the knowledge to succeed? Do we discredit him because he needed the help of the nurses and all the support staff in order to do anything?
“No. We don’t. Because some things require a team. No matter who helped you out, you deserve time to celebrate everything you’ve accomplished.”
Frenchie nodded her head, thinking about what the woman said.
The woman continued, “Or… if you’re feeling particularly ambitious, maybe you can use this time to take a risk that you wouldn’t normally.”
“Come again?”
“I’ve never been homeless, but I’ve been in some tough situations. And I know that afterward is usually when all that adrenaline and relief help your mind figure out what you really want to do. Something that you could never do or have when you were so busy fighting just to survive the day. I’m sure there’s something in that head of yours that you might like to do, but never had the resources or strength to do before.”
Frenchie chewed at her lips, looking down at the GED in her hands. It was proof that she wasn’t an idiot. She’d finished the last year of high school education in an incredibly short time, and only because she tested so high when she entered the program. Apparently, she wasn’t as stupid or as useless as she sometimes thought in the dead of night.
“Yeah… I can
think of a few things.” She heaved a sigh and stood, looking to the front of the church where a cross stood made of plain and simple wood. “You know, I never really cared about religion, or Jesus stuff. But I came here when I was confused. Solomon, you know, he seems to get a lot of comfort from the church, but I didn’t expect it to work for me.”
The woman just smiled, her face soft and kind. “It’s interesting how that happens, isn’t it?”
“Yeah. Thank you, ma’am.”
Frenchie folded her paper and shoved it in her pocket. It wasn’t actually the real certificate, just the confirmation that she had completed all of her tests and assignments and had a passing grade. She would laminate it at the library, but first she had something to do.
Pulling out her phone, she dialed up Solomon and he answered on the first ring. “Frenchie, what’s up? Are you all right?”
“Oh yes. Fine. Just wondering where you are. At the Ranch?”
“No, actually. Dropping Simon off at the train station. He says he likes it better than flying because it doesn’t make him as sick.”
“So, you’re in the city?”
“Yeah, about to leave though.”
“Don’t. Can you meet me somewhere? At that diner we first met up at?”
“Uh yeah, sure. If you need to.”
“Yeah. I’ll see you there.”
She hung up and rushed off. She had the energy for it nowadays. After six months of finally being able to eat regularly, she was almost back to her athletic self. She had missed it. There was something about being in the body that she liked most that made her feel better every day. Could her biceps be bigger? Sure. But there was time for that later.
She made it to the diner, a sweaty, heaving mess, but it gave her time to get a table, a glass of water, and sit.
Solomon wasn’t there too much later, sliding into the booth across from her with a smile on his face.