Suddenly, the world tilted the other direction, and a new type of panic swept through her.
“Oh no!” Shelby’s hand flew to her mouth. “I’ve got to go.”
Time had flown. If she didn’t hurry up, she would end up with a repeat of yesterday. And she needed to avoid that—even if it meant ending her time with Ian.
“This was fun, but I need to go. My kids are at their dad’s, and I have to get home before he drops them off. I’d better get my bill, if I’m going to catch my bus.” Her words poured out of her mouth.
“Lunch is on me.”
“No, it’s okay. I’ve got it,” she said, fumbling in her purse for her wallet.
“Lunch is on me,” he said firmly.
“You’re sure?”
“Yes,” he nodded. “Yes, I’m sure.”
Shelby froze with her hand still in her purse. Was it okay for him to buy her lunch? She had been married for so long she really didn’t know the etiquette. If he paid, did it make this a date? A rush of something she couldn’t name swept through her at the thought that this might be more than a casual brunch.
To hide her confusion, she started to gather her things. “Okay... Thank you for lunch. This was nice. And thank you for rescuing my purse.” She held up her purse. “You saved me a big headache. But I better run. Trust me, the bus won’t wait for me.”
He touched her hand, stopping her outburst of words and sending warm sparks dancing through her. “Why don’t you let me drive you home?”
“Um... I... um... what?” Electric heat spread up her arm distracting her.
He released her hand, laughter glinting in his eyes. “Let me give you a ride home. It will save you time.”
Hadn’t he felt the shock? Was it just her? How was he so calm?
“Are you sure?”
“Yes, I’m sure.”
She was the furthest thing from sure accepting a ride was the right thing to do, but she found herself unable to refuse. “Okay. If you’re sure you’re sure.”
He winked. “I’m sure, I’m sure.”
Laughter bubbled out of Shelby, as she dropped back into her chair. She clamped a hand over her mouth to muffle the sound, glancing around to see if the other patrons were looking before meeting Ian’s own laughing eyes.
“Okay, let me run to the bathroom, and then I really need to get going.”
Ian leaned back in his chair as he watched Shelby snake her way through the tables. He was glad to have the moment to catch his thoughts. It had been an impulse to offer to drive her home, a seemingly harmless one until he had touched her hand. The shock that had passed between them was undeniable.
He had felt it right in his core, and he would bet the forest she had felt it too.
He was walking on dangerous ground, and he better tread carefully, otherwise there might be two hearts in danger.
CHAPTER 6
The trip to the café had taken forever, but not so for the return trip. The ride home in Ian’s old blue jeep seemed to flash by, and it was over before Shelby was ready. She kicked herself for not being braver. When they had left the café and walked along the edge of the Inner Harbour to get to his jeep, she had wanted to suggest they take the scenic route home to take in the ocean and the snow-capped mountains beyond the Straits. But she had kept her silence, both because she really did need to get home and because what if he said no?
Ian pulled the jeep up to the curb, and then turned to her. “That was fun,” he said, his voice low and husky.
Shelby met his gaze, trying to read if the suggestions she had heard in his voice were real, or if she had just imagined them. She didn’t find the answers in his eyes. Instead, they shimmered with something she couldn’t name. She might not know what he was thinking, but her body seemed to. It was responding like he had said something suggestive and sexy. She dropped her eyes, suddenly feeling shy in the face of the rising desire.
“Yes, it was,” she mumbled.
He pressed one finger lightly to her chin, encouraging her to look up at him. She swallowed deeply as the full impact of his eyes drew her in. She felt herself leaning closer, wanting him, even though she wasn’t ready to give in to her body’s desires. His eyes held hers captive, his finger put tender pressure on her chin, not letting her look away, gently drawing her towards him.
He’s going to kiss me!
Panic seized her brain, but her body was calm and didn’t move away. It knew what it wanted. Pleasure licked up through her in anticipation of his lips touching hers. Closing her eyes, Shelby fought to contain the overwhelming urge to leap over the console at him.
Just as she felt the heat of his lips closing in on hers, a sharp knock on the jeep’s window snapped her back to reality. Startled, Shelby leapt back in her seat, looking around with wide eyes. Her already pounding heart racing faster when she saw Blake’s face in the jeep’s window. Panic slid up her spine, as she read the anger simmering in his eyes.
Her instincts told her to ignore him and maybe he would go away, and she could go back to kissing Ian. So much for her life getting better—everything was still a mess.
Blake rapped sharply on the window again.
“Get out of the car, Shelby.”
She didn’t want to. She just wanted Blake to go away. She looked at Ian and her frustration rose. Even if Blake magically disappeared, the damage was done. Ian had retreated to the far side of the car—there would be no more kissing. And as much as she didn’t need a relationship, kissing Ian was something she wanted badly
“Sorry.” Her cheeks heated, and she let her gaze drop. “I guess I’m late.’
“I’m not messing around here, Shelby. Get out of the car,” Blake said, before Ian had a chance to say anything.
With a deep sigh, Shelby reached for the handle and opened the door. Ignoring him wasn’t going to make Blake go away; she was going to have to deal with him.
Ian was the fantasy; Blake was reality.
Ian placed a hand on her arm, stopping her. “Everything okay?”
She rolled her eyes. “Yeah. Exes are a bitch, right?” She tried to put some irony in her tone, but she was too embarrassed that Ian was witnessing this to really carry it off.
She stepped out of the jeep, and Blake swooped in.
“What were you thinking?” he said through gritted teeth. “Do you ever think? What if the boys had seen you?”
“Where are the boys?” Panic shot through Shelby. Blake was right. What kind of a mother made out in the street in front of her house?
“Really? It’s a little late to pretend you care now.”
Her face reddened as humiliation and anger warred with each other. She needed to defend herself against Blake—she hadn’t done anything wrong, not really—but she also wanted him to go away. And the quickest way to get him to leave was to not fight him. He was just angry. He probably didn’t mean it.
Not that it made it hurt any less.
She pressed a hand to her forehead where a headache was building. She didn’t have the strength to stand up to him. He had always gotten his way, and it was going to happen again right here on the lawn with Ian watching.
And then Ian was there. Suddenly, her headache lessened, and she felt stronger. She could do this. Blake had no right to be angry—no right to be here lecturing her.
“Everything okay?” Ian asked, his voice low and calm.
Shelby wanted to shout, No, it wasn’t okay. The hottest man she had ever met, who could make her insides liquid just by saying her name, was watching her ex-husband berate her on her front lawn.
She was not okay.
But she couldn’t confess that to Ian, so instead, she said, “Yes, Ian. Everything is fine.”
“Everything is not fine, Shelby,” Blake said, taking another step towards her.
In response, Shelby took an involuntary step backwards, bumping into the solidness of Ian’s chest. His heat permeated the thin fabric of her shirt, leaving her trembling inside. She was elated he was t
here, ready to defend her; at the same time, she was mortified he was witnessing this messy dispute.
“I got a call from Caroline this morning telling me things about my wife, things no husband should ever hear. I didn’t believe her. Gave you the benefit of the doubt.” Blake enunciated every word.
Shelby had never seen him so angry.
“So, imagine my surprise when I find out it was true. You can’t be bothered to look after my kids properly because you’re running around with random men. Good thing I dropped them with their grandmother, so they didn’t have to witness this.” Blake waved his arms to indicate Ian and her.
“I can see whoever I want,” she said, almost pleading. Can’t he just go away?
Blake stepped towards her again, reaching out to grab her arm. “You’re my wife!”
Before Blake’s hand could close around her arm, Ian was there, moving swiftly to put himself between them.
“Steady, man.” Ian’s voice was calm, but behind the simple words was a warning Blake couldn’t help but hear.
“You need to get him out of here, Shelby. This is between you and me,” Blake ground out.
“It’s you that needs to leave.” Ian spoke evenly; his voice low.
Shelby felt frozen. In front of her was the man she had promised herself to for the rest of her life, and she hadn’t made that vow lightly. But Blake hadn’t lived up to his promise. She wasn’t his wife anymore. He had no right to be angry.
But he was angry, and she could see that he was hurting. Even if it wasn’t supposed to be her problem anymore, it sure felt like it was.
Behind her was the man who she had been poised to kiss. He made her blood run hot just by looking at her—and when he said her name, she melted in her most intimate places—but she wasn’t looking for a relationship. Not even the casual type that a guy like Ian would offer.
Without thinking, Shelby placed her hand on Ian’s arm to steady herself. It was warm and solid. In response, Ian placed a hand on her lower back, and it felt like it belonged there. She squeezed her eyes shut. Why the hell did he have to witness this?
When she opened them, she was confronted by the betrayal written in Blake’s eyes, and her heart clenched. Maybe he hadn’t thought she was serious when she had asked for a divorce and seeing her with Ian had made it real. His reasons shouldn’t matter to her, but they did. She knew what betrayal felt like, and she didn’t wish it on anyone.
She owed it to Blake to talk this out—privately.
“I think you should go, Ian.” She pulled her hand away. “Blake’s right, this is between us.”
“Is it really what you want?” Ian asked, his warm breath caressing her cheek.
No! What she wanted was for him to sweep her up in his arms and carry her away like a knight in shining armour, so they could live happily ever after. But this was real life. And in her reality, she had to do her own saving.
“It’s what I want.” Her words caught in her throat.
When Ian walked away, she knew she would never hear from him again.
Ian walked stiffly away from Shelby. He wanted to stay so damn badly. He wanted Blake to be the one to have to leave. She had told him to go, but damn he didn’t want to.
He knew it was just the testosterone talking; the very male need to be the victor. She had bruised his pride that was all. She clearly needed to work out whatever was going on with her ex, and she didn’t need him interfering.
It was none of his business.
But he wanted it to be his business. He wanted to turn around and run Blake off. Ian forced himself to keep walking, knowing it was for the best. The truth was that even if she had wanted him to stay, he was in no position to be rescuing damsels in distress. She would want more, and he didn’t have more to give.
As he walked around his jeep, Ian strained to hear what Blake was saying to Shelby, but the asshole had dropped his voice low. Ian could only make out enough to know that Blake was giving Shelby the gears about hanging out with him.
He paused at the door and glanced over at the scene on the lawn. Damn it, he wanted to rush over there and “save” her from Blake. But she had made her decision, and he needed to respect that. She clearly wasn’t over this relationship—maybe he was misjudging the whole situation.
Maybe Blake had a right to be angry.
As Ian slid into the front seat, he could see Blake’s hand on Shelby’s arm. He couldn’t see her face, but she didn’t try to pull away. Clearly, whatever had started the fight had faded, and they were going to be able to work on their marriage. She clearly didn’t need him barging in and causing more problems for her.
He had made the mistake of barging into Natalie’s life before she was over her heartbreak, and that had been a mistake. Shelby might have told him she was separated, but that didn’t mean she was ready to move on.
What Ian needed was to find a buddy to hit the trails with and forget about her. A hard ride up Hartland on his mountain bike would do the trick. What better way was there to forget Shelby’s blue eyes than screaming thigh muscles and the distraction of making split-second decisions?
His friends would tell him to run for the hills, and he had to admit they would be right. But, if leaving Shelby to work things out with her ex was the right thing to do, then why did he feel like he was abandoning her just when she needed him the most?
CHAPTER 7
“Be good for Nana,” Shelby said, extracting herself from Kevin’s hug. She kissed her son on the cheek, and then gave a quick search for his older brother. No surprise, he was already settled in on the couch with his tablet.
“Bye, Bryan,” she said hopefully. Bryan kept his head buried, not bothering to look up from his screen.
Shelby was at a complete loss about what to do with her eldest son. He had been withdrawn ever since she had left Blake—leaving their giant family home behind. Even with his child support payments, she couldn’t afford it, and she didn’t want the memories anyway. Sighing, she stepped over to the couch and dropped a kiss on Bryan’s head. It wasn’t anything she was going to solve this morning, not if she was going to make it to work on time.
Bryan just swatted a hand at her.
“Thanks for watching them, Mom,” Shelby said, turning away.
Caroline sniffed in response. Shelby knew what the sniff meant. Her mother had been very clear how she felt about Shelby’s job. There had been more than one lecture on how Shelby was wasting her life and neglecting her kids by working at a dead-end, minimum-wage job, when all she had to do was make amends with her husband and go back to being a full-time mom.
“I’ll get childcare sorted out soon. I promise. These days when they don’t have school are just tricky.” It was futile to try to convince her mother that Blake wasn’t the best thing that had ever happened to her. All Caroline saw was Blake’s money and all the nice things his money could buy. But there was more to love than things.
Caroline sniffed again and extended a hand to Kevin. “Come here, Kevin. Let’s get you some breakfast.”
As Caroline and Kevin disappeared into the kitchen, Shelby let out a slow breath and picked up her purse. Slinging it over her shoulder, she was reminded of how much fun she had had at the café with Ian on their “retrieve her purse non-coffee date”. She might never get rid of this purse.
Or maybe I should just chuck it. The date/disaster had happened on Sunday, and now it was Friday, and she had heard nothing from him—not that she expected to after the debacle on the lawn.
But a girl could hope...
With one last sad look at Bryan engrossed in his game, Shelby slipped out of the house to catch her bus. When the bus arrived, she slumped down in her regular seat and closed her eyes. The day had just started, and it felt like it would never end.
She hadn’t expected a picnic when she had left Blake, but when did the fun start?
The steel-grey sky threatened rain during the entire bus ride. The weather matched her mood perfectly and had done so all week. As
she stepped off the bus, the dark clouds started to spit a few raindrops.
Perfect. Wet and late. That’s a great way to start the day. She pulled up the hood of her raincoat and dashed towards the grey concrete building that housed Monarch Research Group, where she worked entering data for a team of researchers.
“Good morning. Cutting it a little close today, huh?” Genevieve, the perky receptionist chirruped. As usual, her deep mahogany-brown hair was styled to perfection with the soft curls of her pixie cut artfully framing her heart-shaped face.
Shelby blanched. The researchers seemed to come and go as they pleased, but Mr. Goward, the office manager, was strict about the support staff being on time.
“The bus was behind,” she said lamely.
“Isn’t that always the case when you’re in a hurry, eh?” Genevieve winked conspiratorially.
Shelby smiled weakly and nodded agreement, as she shuffled to her office. She was pretty sure the ever smiling and efficient Genevieve was never late—unlike herself who always seemed to be running behind these days.
Her office amounted to little more than an oversized closet with a plain wooden table, an office chair, and a pair of mismatched bookshelves. She did have a window, but it looked out into the corridor, so really it was more of a way for people to spy on what she was doing than a gateway to the outside.
After hanging her damp jacket behind the door, Shelby settled into her desk and got straight down to work. She had strict quotas to meet and couldn’t risk falling behind. But it was futile, she couldn’t focus, and it was Ian McLean’s fault. She couldn’t keep her mind off the café and the almost kiss.
Between the struggle to focus and the kink developing in her neck from being hunched over her computer, the day crept by. Shelby was just nearing the end of the first file of data when Genevieve appeared in her doorway, smiling broadly.
“I’ve come to rescue you.”
“Rescue me?”
“Yes. You’ve been cooped up in here too long. You’re coming with me for lunch.”
Saving Shelby Page 5