Tree Climbing For Beginners

by Joyia Marie

  “Like what?” Helen asked in confusion, her dark eyes staring at him as he advanced. She looked like a deer caught in the headlights.

  “Like…” he said slowly as he closed in. “First, I’m a damn good contractor. I think my loft speaks for itself.”

  Helen’s head nodded dumbly as he eased into her personal space. She jumped when he put his hands on her slim waist. “Okay,” she husked.

  “Second, I have experience with this building, again, my loft speaks for itself,” he said softly into her ear as he pulled her closer.

  “Okay,” she said just as softly as her hands gripped his arms. He bit back a moan as the electricity struck from having her hands on him.

  “Third, I’m really willing to be flexible on the method of payment,” he said his mouth an inch from hers.

  It was all he could do not to close that space, but he needed to know she was as into it as he was. He fought this attraction for days, but she refused to decamp from his mind. He wanted this woman, complications be damned.

  Helen froze, then looked at him with lowered brows as she released his arms and put her hands against his chest to push him away. He wondered what had caused the change. They were on the verge of a mind-blowing kiss, he just knew it, and now she was looking at him as if he was Chester, child molester. He ran the last sentence through his mind and groaned as he realized how it sounded.

  “A painting by Antananarivo, silly,” he said, giving her a slight shake.

  She froze again, then she grinned, becoming pliant in his arms again. “Oh, you might have wanted to be a little clearer on that. Because the way that sounded, you weren’t the only one wanting to be that kind of flexible,” she chided him gently.

  Aiden bit back a flare of jealousy at the thoughts of Duncan making an indecent offer. The man was a leech and the fact Helen hadn’t signed a contract yet wouldn’t be any deterrent. He seemed to view his wedding vows as an excuse to be unavailable to the next woman, not stay faithful to his wife. Aiden realized he was holding another man’s wife and released Helen abruptly.

  “So how soon until your divorce?’ he asked, putting some space between them.

  She’s married, he reminded his frustrated libido. He wondered if his first thought was the best. Getting involved with Helen would be a disaster if she decided to go back to her husband after her fling with the contractor. This was only his second time seeing Helen but he had the idea that she had the power to hurt him worse than Alicia ever dreamed of.

  “Not sure,” she said, looking at him oddly then backing away. “I meet with my lawyer tomorrow and I guess I’ll know more then.

  Aiden stalked over to the desk and rolled the blueprints back up. He’d work up a bid, he’d be stupid not to. The job was high paying and he had the experience after doing his loft so he’d be able to stay on schedule and on the bid. Even if they couldn’t come to terms about a painting, it would still be a good money maker for the company.

  “Okay, then,” he said as he walked to the door carefully keeping a distance between him and Helen. I’ll work out a bid and get it to you tomorrow. We’ll work out the terms after you decide if you’re going to use my company.”

  “Okay,” she said slowly, looking at him oddly. “Did you need to do a walk through?”

  “No, no, I know this building, remember,” he said his hand on the doorknob. He needed to get out of there. Despite knowing better, he was still tempted to take Helen in his arms and take that kiss that was trembling between them.

  “Okay,” Helen said again, her slender brows pinched. Aiden knew he was blowing hot and cold with her and his best bet would be hands off until he had some of his questions answered.

  “Okay, then I’ll work up my bid and get it to you tomorrow,” he repeated then winced. “You won’t make a decision until you see my bid, right?”

  “No, I’ll wait, but the earlier the better. I’m ready to get this party started,” Helen assured him

  “I’ll have it to you early,” he promised. “Please give me a chance to adjust if it comes down to a question of money. I know this building and I think I’ll be the best one for the job. I’d really like the chance to make your vision come true,” he winced again as he all but promised to cut his prices to get the job.

  What was wrong with him? He knew how to bid and he knew his prices were fair, so he usually let them speak for themselves. He just couldn’t stand the thought of Duncan getting this job. He’d spend more time chasing Helen around the loft rather than doing construction. That prompted another thought.

  “You know this place will be uninhabitable while the major part of the construction is going on, right?” he said firmly, barely resisting the urge to offer her a place to lay her curly hair. He could see her olive body next to his on the only bed in his loft and shut off the thought. Then he thought about her decamping for her husband’s house, or maybe the guy in the mustang.

  “Yeah, I pretty much figured and that’s what everyone is telling me,” Helen said dispiritedly. “So tomorrow I’m heading to a long term motel.”

  Aiden sighed, not wanting Helen to leave, but knowing it was for the best. The loft would be full of workers and dust for at least a couple of weeks. Not the best place to try to write, he admitted.

  “And that?” he said with a smile as he gestured toward the painting. Now that he would love to house for a while. He’d have to install an alarm system. He was surprised Helen was so casual about the expensive piece of art.

  Helen smiled at the look on Aiden’s face. “That will be joining its brothers and sisters in storage tomorrow. I have them all nice and tucked away in a climate controlled storage locker. Trust me, it’s safe, and it won’t be lonely.”

  “Speaking of which, if you decide to go with my company, when would I be able to look over the paintings? I’m serious about doing a trade,” Aiden said.

  “Even if I don’t go with your company,” Helen said, causing a frown to form on Aiden’s face. “I’ll still give you the nickel tour. Or you can wait until this place is done. I’m ready to get them back up on the walls and out of that storage locker. I’m going to have to do some winnowing soon. I won’t keep them all, that would be greedy, but until now it was easier just leaving them be then to make the decision.”

  Aiden nodded, agreeing with the sentiment. If Helen didn’t choose his company, and he refused to seriously consider that eventuality, he might have to see if he could work out some kind of payment plan with Helen. Owning a piece of Antananarivo’s work would be the dream of a lifetime for an artist.

  “Sounds good. Thanks for supper and I’m going to head out,” Aiden said his mind already on his bid. If he had to work all night, he’d have that bid ready in the morning.

  “Oh, you might want these,” Helen said, walking to the desk and coming back with a smaller copy of her blueprints. He smiled appreciatively, she really was prepared.

  He took the papers from her and couldn’t resist giving her hand a small stroke. Her skin felt like silk and he wanted to run his lips over every inch of it. He sighed and prayed her divorce would go through quickly. They stared into each other’s eyes for a long moment and Aiden found himself leaning forward. ‘Just one kiss,’ he thought and gave into his libido.

  Helen was leaning in as well then abruptly stopped. “Okay, good night,” she said firmly stepping away again. He sighed and wondered at her self-control. Maybe what he was feeling wasn’t as strong on her side. Then he saw the luminous look in her dark eyes and the nervous way she licked her lips and knew she was just as attracted as he was. She just had better control.

  Aiden stepped out of her loft without another word. Helen seemed to have control of steel, but he was in danger. He was ready to sell his soul for another taste of her lips and knew he would take it if he stayed. He had almost reached the door when Helen stuck her head out. He looked at her hopeful and she smiled.

  “Oh, Aiden, I almost forgot,” she said with a sly grin. He wondered about the grin w
hen she continued, “Thanks for the pizza.” She winked then shut the door softly.

  Aiden stared at her door in amazement. That little…’ he thought unable to come up with the right term for his clever neighbor. Then he burst out laughing. She got him, he had to admit she got him. He shook his head them walked inside his loft to get to work on his bid.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven: Harold

  Harold sat in the carpool lane and sighed. His week was a mess. Tuesday after dropping the kids off with Mrs. Gunderson with a firm promise to be back by six, he returned to work. He had skipped going out to lunch, just had his assistant bring him back a sandwich to eat at his desk. Therefore, he hadn’t missed any time, but his father still didn’t look pleased.

  Funny when he was spending his lunch hour, enjoying Jillian in his car, his father never noticed, but now that he needed time for the children, his father was looking at him as if he was stealing money from the company till. He had to figure something else out. He had barely gotten the promotion to vice president and he wasn’t secure enough in his position yet to slack off.

  His mother would be no help. He learned that the hard way. He had called her to see if she could pick up the carpool and all hell had broken loose. His mother made no bones about the fact she thought Helen was a less than adequate mother, but now that Harold was offering her her dream shot, she wasn’t interested.

  “What did you do?” his mother hissed over the phone when he asked her to pick up the children.

  Harold stared at the phone wondering what his mother was talking about. She had picked up the kids before. Usually after a lot of hemming and hawing about how big an inconvenience it was but never anything like this.

  “What do you mean?” Harold asked slowly, wondering where this conversation was going.

  “Why can’t Helen pick them up as usual?” Gwendolyn asked pointedly.

  “She’s at her loft. You know the one she goes to write,” Harold temporized. He knew he’d have to tell his parents, but not today.

  “Uh huh,” Gwendolyn said in disbelief. “ You know I’ve never agreed with all the writing stuff but I will say this, it’s never prevented Helen from doing her duty by her children. So tell me Harold, what’s different this time?

  “Um,” Harold sputtered, not sure what to say now. He didn’t want to lie, but he didn’t really want to get into this now.

  “Could it have anything to do with a blond sales girl at your father’s company?” his mother asked implacably.

  Harold felt his eyes bug out of his head. Then he remembered, Mrs. Fitzgerald and his mother were close friends. Jillian told him she thought Mrs. Fitzgerald knew about them and that’s why she was keeping Jillian out of the office.

  Jillian had managed to catch him in the parking lot that morning. They had barely 5 minutes to talk before Mrs. Fitzgerald pulled in and the couple separated. Harold hadn’t seen Jillian since.

  “Look, Harold, I know you men have your urges,” his mother said wearily, making Harold wince. He didn’t want to discuss any urges with his 80-year-old mother. This was his worst nightmare come true.

  “But you can’t let your urges make you do anything stupid. Now your father and I didn’t agree with your marrying a writer, but you did and now you have children with her. She’s been a good wife and a good mother and you need to concentrate on that,” his mother continued.

  “Mom, look, I didn’t want to tell you this yet, but I’m in love with someone else. I told Helen and she left. She left the kids with me,” Harold interrupted suddenly eager to take the bull by the horns. The secret was out and the longer he denied it the worst, it would look when it finally did come out.

  “In love?” his mother questioned scornfully, making love sound like an obscenity. “What on earth does love have to do with anything? Do you think I loved your father every day of our marriage? Do you think I haven’t thought about loving someone else and some days, anyone else? Your father is not an easy man to love or live with but I stood in front of God and my family and said I’d do it and by God, I have. I thought I had raised you the same way,” his mother finished sadly.

  “You did, Mother,” Harold said, feeling ashamed of making his mother feel bad. Her reaction was mild compared to his father. Once again, he wished he stood firm and waited until the twins were out of high school.

  “If I did,” his mother said slowly, “then you know what you need to do. You need to fix this with Helen and leave the blond salesgirl alone.”

  “But, Mother, I love Jillian and I want to marry her. She makes me happy and I think I make her happy,” Harold said simply, remembering why he had started all this in the first place. Jillian was right, life was too short to be unhappy.

  “You young people, so worried about love and happiness,” Gwendolyn said wearily, sounding truly disappointed in her only child. “ You’re an adult and I can’t stop you from making a mistake for you or your children but don’t expect me to help you. Those are your children and you need to do what you need to take care of them. My advice would be to get their mother back, but if you don’t want to do that, then don’t expect me to take her place. I’m their grandmother, my job is to cheer at their games and buy expensive gifts for Christmas.”

  “I’m not asking you to take Helen’s place,” Harold said irritably. “I just needed you to pick them up from school.”

  “Sorry, Harold, I can’t do that. Today’s my bridge game and anyway, it would be one thing if it was just the twins, but I can’t do a car full of kids like that carpool. I’m old and that’s too much for my nerves. Talk to you soon, give the children my love.”

  Harold stared at the phone his mother had just hung up. This was her dream shot he thought in confusion. His mother was trying to take over since Helen got pregnant with the twins. Now here was her shot and she was turning it down?

  Was it just because Harold had another woman? He was surprised. He knew Jillian’s age might be a factor, but he expected her to be an easier sell than Harold Sr. was.

  Harold barely hung up the phone when he got a summons to his father’s office. He knew his mother had already called him to fill him in. Harold sighed and made the trek to his father’s domain, ignoring the knowing looks from everyone he passed. He concluded Helen wasn’t the only one who knew about him and Jillian. His assistant was through if nothing else.

  Harold shuddered as he remembered his meeting with his father. It made his mother’s lecture look like high praise. Harold was lucky to leave with his job and Jillian’s days were numbered. Harold wasn’t too worried about her, they planned for her to quit when they got married anyway.

  Harold watched as the kids streamed out of the school and his kids march toward the car. Tonya looked mutinous and Tony looked angry. Or so Harold supposed, he couldn’t be sure behind Tony’s curtain of hair. He didn’t know what was up with that, but hadn’t probed, as it didn’t seem to bother Helen.

  The last couple of days was tense. Harold was able to pawn Tonya off for two days, even when Tonya saw the missing items from the house. Tuesday, he had returned to the house in time for dinner, a silent affair, then sent the children up to do their homework.

  Wednesday was soccer practice, an event Harold had wisely changed for this time, then dinner and homework. Everyday Tonya’s face had gotten darker and darker and her questions faded into glares. She wanted his mother back and she wanted to know what her idiot father did to make her go away.

  Today she would find out. His parents knew and he was sure gossip was flowing around town if Helen’s hairdresser knew as well. Helen had always sworn Raphael was discrete but Harold had his doubts. He knew how those people were and they couldn’t stand not to ‘dish’ especially ‘dish’ as juicy as this.

  However, he was feeling a lot better after his discussion with Jillian, conducted while she was on the road on some errand for Mrs. Fitzgerald. Jillian told him how much she missed him and she wanted to meet his children.

  “After all, if we’re going to b
e one big happy family, then we need to get started,” Jillian stated in what Harold thought was admirable naivety.

  Jillian was a sweet girl, and she had had a charmed upbringing if she thought this would be as easy as that. Harold was just hoping for no bloodshed when Jillian and the kids shared a roof. It wasn’t what he planned, but he’d make it work.

  He envisioned Jillian and himself sharing her apartment until they got a house, maybe not as big as the house his parents had given him, as he couldn’t really afford two mortgages the size of the first but a decent house. They’d have the children on his visitation days and weekends and, other than that, it would be the two of them.

  Harold shook off the dream that would never be. Harold knew Helen and she was adamant about him keeping the children. He knew she wasn’t all that fired up about having the kids, but thought she had softened over the years but now he wondered. Had she just been waiting for a chance to make a break for it and he’d been stupid enough to give her one?

  Harold forced a smile on his face as the twins along with the rest of the kids piled in the car. He was driving the minivan. He drove his car to work, then went by the house to change to the minivan to pick the kids up, then when he dropped them off he switched back to his car. He had no problem driving the minivan, but felt like driving it to work was a good as an announcement his marriage was in trouble.

  He sighed as he dropped off kids glad he only had one more day of this. He was ready for a month off. He worked out a schedule with his father to get his time in but it would be easier without these twice a day school runs. When he would eat lunch anywhere other than his desk again was a question, but he put it off for another day.

  When he got home, he dropped the kids off and went back to work. He a lot to do to be home by six and chances were he’d be taking some work home. His dad seemed to be piling it on after their talk the other day, but Harold was too cowed to protest. He’d make this work. He had to. He was too old to be trying to start over somewhere else at his age.