The Men of CCD: Help Wanted

by Marie Rochelle

  First thing tomorrow morning, he would call his lawyer and see about having the custody agreement opened back up. He had been putting it off because he didn’t want to put Trevor through another trial, but he was done being nice when it came to his ex-wife. Kathy wasn’t fit to be a parent and he was going to sue for full custody of Trevor. His son’s whole future was at sake and he couldn’t let his part-time mother Kathy ruin it for him.

  I better check on Trevor and get him back out here before Keira shows up. He will sit at the kitchen table and eat with us tonight. I won’t tolerate him hiding out in his room through dinner. I raised him to have better manners than he’s showing.

  Walking out of the kitchen, Jim was going towards Trevor’s bedroom when the doorbell rang. He glanced down at his watch and shook his head. “I should have known that Keira would be early.” Spinning around, he went to the front door and opened it smiling at the stunning woman standing on the other side.

  “I’m a few minutes early,” Keira said. “I hope that’s okay.”

  Jim pulled Keira into his arms planting a long, slow kiss on her mouth. “It’s just fine,” he breathed against her mouth. “I’m happy you were able to find the place. Come on in.”

  “The place fits you,” Keira said as she strolled around noticing how well the dark browns and hunter green furniture and designs worked together. “I can definitely tell a man lives here.”

  “I moved into this house after my divorce. It needed a lot of TLC but I did the work myself and this is the end result. I had a lot of offers from people who wanted to buy it, but I turned them down. I love this place and so does Trevor. I could never think about selling it.”

  “The location is amazing because it’s still halfway in the city, but there’s this country feel to it too. Never thought a biker like yourself would like being a Mr. Mom,” Keira teased.

  Quickly closing the distance between them Jim wrapped his arms back around Keira. “Keep talking like that and I’ll have to prove to you that I’m no Mr. Mom”

  “I have to say that you’re a lot sexier than Michael Keaton,” Keira said as she ran her fingers through Jim’s hair. “I like that you wore your hair down tonight. It looks nice.”

  “Anything for you, baby,” Jim whispered and then gave her another kiss. “Shit, I could make out with you for the rest of the night. But I need to take dinner out of the oven and drag Trevor out of his room.”

  “Trevor hates that I came to dinner, doesn’t he?” Keira already knew the answer, but she wanted to see if Jim would tell her the truth.

  “He’s wasn’t too happy, but he’ll get over it. He has to understand that I’m not interested in getting back with Kathy ever!”

  “Jim, I hate to think I’m coming between you and your son. He’s only seven. I can understand why I’m not his favorite person.”

  “You may not be his at the moment, but you are mine. Would you like to spend the night? I promise you will love having a sleepover with me. Tomorrow is Saturday and I’ll make you breakfast in bed.”

  “Isn’t Trevor going to be spending the time?”

  “No, he’s only having dinner with us and then Kathy is going to pick him up. He has a soccer game tomorrow afternoon. The park is closer to Kathy’s house then mine, so will you stay?” His seductive hazel eyes sparkled with hope as he looked at her.

  “I didn’t bring anything to sleep in,” Keira said.

  “I have never known you to sleep in a nightgown. I like having you better naked anyway.”

  “Shame on you,” Keira scolded hitting Jim on his arm. “Trevor is right in the house. He doesn’t need to hear you talking about seeing me naked. I don’t want him to hate me more than he already does.”

  “Are you going to give me an answer?” Jim asked.

  “Let’s see how well dinner goes and then I’ll give you my answer after Trevor leaves. Now, why don’t you go and get Trevor. I’m pretty sure I can find the kitchen and take our meal out of the oven and, by the way, the food smells delicious.”

  “Just remember, I don’t like hearing the word no.” Jim nibbled at the corner of her mouth before letting her go and walking in the direction of Trevor’s room.

  * * * *

  Keira shook her head at the gorgeous man as he walked to the closed door at the end of the hallway. Jim knocked once before going inside and shutting the door behind him. She was a little worried that Trevor might stay in his room just to prove a point to Jim about how unhappy he was with the two of them dating each other.

  “I better find the kitchen and get the food out of the oven before it burns.” She found it at the other end of the hallway and took the meatloaf out sitting it on the rack next to the stove. Keira was turning off the oven when Jim came in with a sunken looking Trevor.

  She was going to try to make the best of a bad situation. Trevor looked like he wasn’t pleased to see her at all. “Hi Trevor, how are you doing?”

  “I’m fine, Ms. Keira,” he mumbled under his breath.

  “Thank you for inviting me to dinner. I’m really excited about being here with you and your daddy.”

  “Yeah, my daddy is happy you’re here too. Can we hurry up and eat so I can go back to my room? I want to play another video game before my mom comes and picks me up.”

  “Trevor, I told you not to be rude to Keira. We aren’t going to hurry up and eat for you,” Jim said, frowning at his son.

  “Jim, it’s okay. I wouldn’t mind eating now. I skipped lunch so I am a little hungry.” Keira could really see that Trevor was trying his best not to run back to his room, so if he wanted to eat early she could do that.

  “Keira, you don’t have to do this.” Jim looked at her like he couldn’t believe she was taking up for his son.

  “Trevor is right. If I was seven I wouldn’t want to have a long dinner with some boring adults if I could play video games.”

  “Fine, if you two want to eat then we can eat. Keira, why don’t you go into the living room with Trevor and I can get the food ready. I think the meatloaf is still too hot to cut, but I’ll see.”

  “No. I don’t want her to come into the living room with me. I’m not a baby,” Trevor yelled running out of the room.

  “Trevor, I told you…” Jim started after his son, but she stopped him.

  “Hey, it’s okay. I’m not hurt. How about I help you fix the plates. I would love to spend some more time with you. Unless you’d rather be in here all alone without a cute assistant to help you out.”

  “I’d rather you assist me in other areas but I’ll take your help in the kitchen for now,” Jim said then patted her on the ass. “Let’s get food on plates and pray my son doesn’t turn into more of the bad seed than he already has tonight.”

  Chapter Forty

  Washing off the last of the dishes, Keira placed them inside the dishwasher while Jim was outside dealing with his ex-wife. Halfway through dinner, she had shown up demanding that Trevor come with her. Jim thought Trevor would say no, but he shocked his father by getting up from the table and going with her.

  As much as she cared about Jim…hell it was time to stop lying to herself, she was in love with him, she couldn’t keep being the focal point of the battle he was having with Kathy. It was past time she took herself out of the situation. Jim could come back to her when he was ready to devote more time to their relationship and not be worried about his ex every ten minutes.

  Drying her hands on the towel, Keira folded it over the faucet and left the kitchen at the same time Jim walked through the front door. “I can’t believe she came over here to get him early. She knew she wasn’t supposed to be here until nine o’clock.” Jim slammed the door behind him.

  “I’m sorry that Kathy ruined your night,” Keira said as she picked up her belongings. She wasn’t going to get into this again with Jim. She was tired of hearing him complain. He had invited her to dinner so she could spend time with him and Trevor, but the night took a totally different direction. She wasn’t the
type to take a backseat to another woman and she wasn’t going to start now.

  “I think you need some time alone, so you can cool off and get your thoughts together. I’m going home. I also think you need figure out what you want with me before you call me again.” Moving around a clearly stunned Jim, Keira opened the front door and went outside to her car. She was about to unlock it and get inside when Jim’s hand came down on her shoulder stopping her.

  “Where are you going? I thought you were going to spend the night so I could fix you breakfast in bed in the morning?” Jim questioned.

  “I know what you thought, but it isn’t going to happen. You aren’t ready to be in a relationship because you can’t let go of your ex-wife.”

  “Keira, I want to be with you.” Spinning her around, Jim looked down into her eyes. “I’m falling in love with you. You have to know that. I’ll agree with you that I do let Kathy get to me too much, but I don’t care about her in any way, shape or form. I want to be with only one woman and that is you.”

  Standing on tiptoe, Keira kissed the corner of Jim’s mouth. “I wish I could believe that, but you have let her ruin our time together one too many times. This is strike two against you and the way things are going. I don’t think you will be around me to even worry about strike three coming your way.”

  “Keira, I’m not going to let this night be strike two against me,” Jim said. “You aren’t going to use what happened tonight to push me out of your life. I won’t stand for it. How about you stay and we can work through this? I wanted to go over a few new product ideas with you about the business too. I would love your input. Just don’t go.”

  “I’m leaving and you aren’t going to change my mind. You’re too involved with your past for me. I love Trevor. He’s an adorable little boy, but he’s where I draw the line. I understand why he’s upset about us. Most children do want their parents to stay together and don’t welcome a new person coming into their lives. Kathy’s problem with us is a whole different story altogether.”

  Keira pushed him back from her so she could get inside her car. She took the time to fix her seatbelt. “Please don’t try to bring this up again to me. I’ll be more than happy to discuss Choppers with you, but our former relationship is off limits.” She looked at Jim one last time before pulling out of his driveway and going down the street. Keira waited until she was away from Jim before she allowed her tears to fall.

  * * * *

  “I can’t believe you’ve been dating Keira for months and none of us knew about it,” Dave complained as he took a sip of his beer. “The last time I talked to you I had to force you to even think about checking on her from time to time for my wife.”

  Jim was at his wits end about finding ways to get Keira to see him. It had been days since he had even laid eyes on her since she drove off from his house. “I thought I might go on two dates with her and that would be it. How did I know I would end up falling madly in love with her? Shit! I can’t believe Keira dumped me because of my problems with Kathy. ”

  “Have you tried talking to her?” Hayward asked reaching for a hot wing on the platter in the center of the table. “I know how much True loves talking about her feelings. I didn’t used to be that way, but now I am and it really helps us break through any problems we might have.”

  “I haven’t been able to catch her. Every time I’m at work she has an appointment with Dr. Gearan. He has been seeing her to make sure she’s ready to go back up in the air. I think she’s avoiding me on purpose. Damn! I can’t lose Keira. I love her so much!”

  “Keira isn’t like that,” Clinton said. “She’s very outspoken and would tell you if things were truly over between the two of you. I think she’s still upset about Kathy ruining the family dinner you were trying to have with her and Trevor, but she’ll come back to you.”

  “I wish I could believe that, but you didn’t see the look on her face. She stared at me like I was a total stranger and she was out of my life for good. I’m thinking about going to her house and just waiting there until she comes home. I’ll demand that she talk to me.”

  “Do you think that’s a good idea? Keira might not like you staked outside of her place like that. It might make things worse between the two of you instead of better,” Dave said cutting in.

  Jim had invited the guys to lunch at Dante’s so they could help him out, not try to talk him out of getting back with his woman. Today wasn’t going as he planned at all.

  “Are you seriously telling me if the shoe was on the other foot with any of you that none of you would do the same thing?”

  “I wouldn’t have waited this long if it was Jenisha,” Clinton admitted.

  “Me either,” Hayward and Dave said in unison.

  “Finally…all of you sound like the men I know. I’m going to get my woman back.” Standing up, Jim tossed some money on the table for the food. ‘Tell the girls that Keira will be busy for the rest of the day.”

  “Don’t wear her out too much or Trevor might end up being a big brother like he’s been wanting,” Clinton yelled after Jim as he left.

  “That’s the plan,” he responded before going out of the door.

  * * * *

  Juggling the shopping bags with her left hand, Keira tried opening the front door with her right, but it wasn’t working. She had gone on a shopping trip after her visit with Dr. Gearan. He was really impressed with her progress so far. He mentioned moving up her appointments from one time a week to two times a week. She agreed because she was ready to get back on a plane and to her job.

  The nightmares were almost gone now and she was ninety-five percent back to her normal self, but the happiness of her recovery wasn’t as exciting because Jim wasn’t around. She’d hated leaving him, but he spent too much time worrying about Kathy and her drama instead of trying to build their commitment to each other.

  “Are you out here because you knew I would be coming by to see you?” a voice asked behind her.

  Twirling around, the bags fell out of Keira’s hand spilling some of the contents on the porch. “God, you scared the hell out of me. What are you doing here?” She bent down and picked up the scattered items placing them back in the bags.

  “I came to see you. I want to talk to you about the crazy act you did at my house. I know you weren’t serious about breaking up with me. I can’t let you leave me. I love you and you feel the same way about me. We tried to fight our feelings for the longest time, but they happened anyway.”

  “Jim, we have nothing to talk about. You’re too caught up in your past while I’m trying to move ahead with my future. I can’t be the other woman while you’re working on figuring out your past.”

  Bending down next to her, Jim handed her the last of the items that had fallen out. I won’t allow you to break up with me. We’re perfect together.”

  Keira stood up surprised that Jim actually thought she was going to let him back into her life. He might believe he was in love with her, but she knew the real truth.

  “Thanks for your help.” She picked her bags back up and worked on unlocking the front door until it finally came open. She went inside and was about to close the door behind her when Jim’s hand shot out stopping her.

  “What are you doing?” she asked glancing down at Jim’s hand and then back up into his eyes.

  “Fighting for what I want.” Jim pushed his way in closing the door behind him. “I’ve been patient long enough waiting for you to come to your senses. I’m done with leaving it up to you.” Taking the bags from her hands, he dropped them on the floor before yanking her into his arms.

  “If you think you can manhandle me you’re out of your…”

  Jim cut off the rest of Keira’s sentence by kissing her.

  The feel of Jim’s firm lips brushing over hers sent a pool of moisture straight into her underwear. He slowly licked at the corner of her mouth trying to gain entrance. Keira tried to fight the urge to open her mouth, but it didn’t work. She crumbled and opene
d her lips allowing Jim’s tongue to slip inside.

  The kiss was electric, making her want to experience how well Jim could send her body into a tailspin, but she wasn’t going to do it.

  Placing her hand in the middle of his chest, she shoved Jim away from her “No, we aren’t going to do this. I can’t let you do this to me. I will have willpower when it comes to you.” Keira placed her fingers against her swollen lips and took a huge step back. “You need to leave. I have to be somewhere in an hour.” She was lying but Jim didn’t need to know that.

  “Where are you doing? Are you doing to see Dante?” he accused. “I know how much you like him.”

  “No, I’m not going anywhere with Dante. We are friends and nothing else. Why would you think I was seeing him?” Keira couldn’t believe how Jim’s mind was working. She had stopped going out with him because Kathy was a constant fixture between them, so why would she go and do something she was against?

  “Dante likes you and I thought maybe he jumped in since he’s a born flirt. If he tried to take you from me I wouldn’t let it happen. You’re my girlfriend not his. I’m never going to give up getting you back. I love you too much to lose you.”

  Keira was dying to believe Jim, but she wasn’t dumb. His life would never be his to give because of his former marriage. No matter how much he wanted to commit to her it wouldn’t ever be possible.

  “Those are just words. I can’t let you drag me into your problems. Please leave.” Moving away from Jim, she opened her door and waved him out.

  “I’m not going to beg to be in your life.,” Jim snapped as he stormed past her.

  Standing in the open doorway, Keira watched as Jim hopped on his motorcycle and took off without looking back at her. For a second, she instantly regretted her decision to toss Jim out; however, she quickly got herself back under control.

  “I have to stay strong. I told myself a long time ago that I wouldn’t get involved with a man that I could lose myself too. I need to get myself back together and hopefully Jim can do the same thing for himself.” She closed the door.