by Natalie Ann
That much needed laugh she’d been wishing for just let loose. Leave it to her mom to be so blunt. “Yeah, well, some men aren’t meant to be a father.”
“It’s just too bad you had to move so far away,” her mother said, like she needed the reminding. Her parents let her know how ticked off they were over the move, but it wasn’t like they were in any position to help her fight Jack. Nor would they have offered if they were. If she’d heard it once, she’d heard it a million times... “Take responsibility for your own actions.” That’s what she was doing.
“It’s done and over with. I’ve got a good job and a cute house. Angie is happy, so I couldn’t ask for more.”
“How about a man to help you out?” her mother said.
“No, thank you. I’m better off depending on myself only.” Thoughts of Reed didn’t just pop into her head. Liar.
“When do you think you can come down and visit with us? Your father’s birthday is in a few months and he’ll be sixty. He’d like to see you.”
She knew when her father’s birthday was. “I doubt I’ll be able to swing it, Mom. It’s too long to drive and the flight costs are too high. Not to mention I don’t get a lot of vacation time just yet. Not until I’ve been there six months. I’ll send my gift and make sure I call, but it’s the best I can do.”
More tsking and huffing sounds from the other end and finally her mother said, “Fine. I’ll let you go. Don’t wait weeks to call me, please.”
“Bye, Mom,” she said, not addressing that comment. She hadn’t called her mother once since she’d lived here. Her mother always called her and by the time they hung up she wanted to bang her head against the wall. She had enough things to drive her insane that daily, or even weekly lectures from family back home would only compound it.
Swinging her legs over the side of the bed, she got up and let Mutt out, then walked to the kitchen to start her coffee. No sooner did she put her cup to her lips than her phone rang again.
This time it was Jack and her first thoughts were Angie. “What’s wrong?” she answered right away.
“Angie wants to come home.”
There was crying in the background and Taylor was ready to grab her keys and drive to get her daughter as if it were the last lap of the Indy 500. But she had to take a breath and find out the facts first. She uprooted her and Angie’s life to move here because of Jack’s parents and he was going to damn well be a father and not think he could send Angie home every time she said she wanted to return.
Did she wish her daughter was always with her? Yes, she did. But her lawyer told her not to do it. To document everything and every time Jack called to say he couldn’t get Angie or that he was bringing her back early. Maybe someday she could fight back and not have to live here, but until that time came, she was stuck.
“What’s going on?” she asked as calmly as she could. The tears were lessening in the background now. Or maybe it was wishful thinking on her part.
“She says her stomach hurts.”
“Did she stay with you last night or your parents?” she asked him even though he’d told her the answer yesterday. She never really believed much he said anymore.
“My parents are away. She stayed with me.”
His sarcastic tone wasn’t lost on her. “What did she eat?” she asked but knew she might regret it.
“Dinner. Then we watched a movie or something. Candy and popcorn.”
“What for dinner and how much candy and popcorn?”
“I don’t know,” Jack said. “I had work to do. I put the movie on and went into my office.”
“Jack! She’s not even three! You can’t leave her alone.” This was going in her little log for the lawyer.
“Give me a break. I had my office doors open and could see her on the couch the whole time. I sat with her when she had her hotdog and chips for dinner. I’m just not sure about the movie.”
Nice nutritional meal there. “Then why can’t you tell me how much she ate?” she countered with.
“I wasn’t measuring it. I put a bag of microwave popcorn out there and a couple of those movie-sized boxes of chocolates and gummies. She picked them out at the store and she knows what she likes.”
Yep, Angie had a sweet tooth. A big sweet tooth. “Did she eat it all?” Taylor asked, preparing herself for the answer.
“I didn’t check. I threw it out when I put her to bed. Most of it was gone.” There was a pause, then, “Oh shit. Damn it, not on the white couch.”
She could hear Angie gagging and figured her sugary night of snacks just made their way out. “I’m on the way,” she said and disconnected the call. Asshole.
Caught or Questioned
Reed was getting an earful of lectures and was just sick and tired of it. He couldn’t believe Rachel had ratted him out like that. Though he shouldn’t be surprised, as she annoyed him as much as she loved him.
“What do you mean you brought an employee to the party?” his father asked. “Which one? Who was it?”
“Taylor Winston,” he said. He’d barely gotten out of the shower before his phone rang. He supposed he could thank Rachel for not talking to them last night.
“The new girl?” his father said. “In accounting?”
“That’s her.”
“Nice girl. Sweet. Quiet. Totally not your type,” his father said, sounding baffled.
“Nope, she isn’t. We’re just friends.” If he said that to himself enough he might actually start to believe it. “Rachel forgot to tell you that part, I’m guessing.”
“She told me,” his father said.
“Then what’s the big deal?”
“The big deal is you don’t need to get someone else messed up in your head games. I’ve heard nothing but good things about her and I don’t want to lose a good employee.”
His fingers flexed into a fist. “I don’t play head games.”
“Not anymore you don’t.”
“Then why say that to me?”
His father sighed. “Reed. We’re just concerned. After Whitney—”
“Stop right there. It’s old news and I’ve heard it enough. I pulled it around and I’m not that person. I wasn’t even as bad as everyone thought I was.”
He was getting pissed at being labeled. Did he drink too much and sleep around? He did. So did a lot of men. And those men didn’t have their fiancée die in a natural disaster on the other side of the world while she was screwing some other man.
Did Reed try to purge all his anger longer than he should have? Again, yes.
But he worked his ass off at his job. He was always respectful to his parents and his family and to his employees.
Just because he had a low opinion of women for a long period of time didn’t make him a bad person.
Had his opinion of the fairer sex changed much in the last year? He had no clue. He just knew he wasn’t interested in finding a one-night stand anymore.
“I get it,” his father said. “And I’m sorry to bring it up again. We just want to see you settled down.”
“Why?” he asked. “What is the big deal? I’m thirty-one. Still young, still lots of time.” Just because he was thinking of everything he’d thought he’d have by now and didn’t shouldn’t concern his parents.
“Very true,” his father said.
“Then I don’t understand the meaning behind this call.”
“Beats the hell out of me,” his father said. “Your mother made me do it.”
He grinned, knowing that was probably the truth. He loved his parents, but they got on his nerves way too much.
“Tell her to stop then.”
“I’ve been telling her that for years and you see how well it’s working out, right?”
Reed shook his head, said a few more things and then hung the phone up wondering what Taylor was doing right now.
If anyone was playing head games it was her. He wanted to know what her plans were today and was hoping to spend more time with her, but all she said
was her plans didn’t have anything to do with him. She was probably at the spa right now with friends.
***
A week later Taylor was eating her salad at her desk and scrolling toy stores online. Angie’s birthday was coming up and she was still trying to figure what to get her and what theme for the birthday party. It wasn’t as if they knew that many people, but she’d planned on having a small party at some place with a few kids from daycare.
Thankfully it was still a month away and she had to figure out if she was going to have Jack and his parents over for a smaller celebration. The last thing she wanted was them in her home for longer than necessary, but she didn’t want the party held at either of their houses.
She looked up when there was a knock at the door to see Reed’s father standing there. They hadn’t officially met yet.
Roger Chapman was the CEO of Chapman Construction that employed over a hundred people. His office was on the second floor of the building and very rarely did he make his way to the first floor for anything other than using one of the conference rooms.
“Hello,” she said. Wendy was out to lunch leaving Taylor all by her lonesome again. The only reason she would have these toy sites on her computer to begin with. Even with her computer facing the wall, there was no way she would take a chance of being caught or questioned.
“Taylor, right?” Mr. Chapman said.
“Yes.” She pushed her salad to the side. “Is there something I can help you with, Mr. Chapman?”
“Please call me Roger,” he said, walking in and taking a seat in the chair across from her. Just like his son. Why did his sexy son have to pop into her mind right now? “So you’re friends with Reed.”
Oh boy, she didn’t expect this to happen. How the hell had it happened? It’s not like Reed has said much to her since their one date. He did text her the next day to see if she was busy like she’d said. She hadn’t replied back for hours because she was too busy caring for Angie and her bellyache and reaming out Jack for not paying attention to what Angie had eaten.
Her quick reply of Yes. Been a bit of a crazy day, only resulted in a smiley face from him.
They hadn’t exchanged numbers, but she knew who it was right away. It’s not like she had a lot of friends here anyway, but he’d obviously gotten her number from her file. Thankfully she didn’t have anything else listed in there that he could have found, like her daughter’s name. Though if he wanted to be bothered, he could log into the benefits software and seen more than she’d like him to. She was thinking it didn’t occur to him and that was fine with her.
But since that text on Sunday, he’d sent her at least one a day. Nothing serious. Nothing even asking her for another date. Just something silly that normally brought a smile to her face that forced her to look around like a guilty teenager after being caught dating the kid her father hated.
“I suppose,” she said back.
Roger laughed. “No worries. I just wanted to get a look at the woman that could manage to be friends with Reed.”
She frowned. “What does that mean?”
“It means he has very few close friends and everyone else is an acquaintance. Nothing more.”
“I probably fall into the acquaintance category.”
“I doubt that.”
What the heck was that supposed to mean? “I’m not sure what you’ve been told.”
“Just that Reed brought you to a party as his...ah...wingman might be the word I’m looking for.”
Her face flushed. She knew darn well it did. It had to because if it wasn’t that then she was running a fever. Maybe it’d be better if she were coming down with the flu so she could excuse herself from this conversation.
“Did Reed tell you that?” she asked.
“My daughter did.”
“Ah,” she said. Rachel had shown up here the Tuesday after the party, strolling into the office during lunch too. It’s like they all knew she was the only one in the building who sat at her desk during her lunch.
The only difference was, Rachel made her laugh. She didn’t stay and talk much. Didn’t do anything other than say, “Thanks for keeping Reed under control on Saturday night.”
“Huh?” Taylor had said.
“You’ll understand someday when you get to know him better.” Then she’d walked right back out the door. Taylor hadn’t had the guts to ask Reed what she meant. It wasn’t a conversation for a text.
Maybe if she saw him again she would. What the heck was she thinking of now? She didn’t need to spend any private time with him.
“No worries,” Roger said, standing up. “It’s a good thing. Trust me.”
“I’ll take your word for it,” she said.
“A word of advice, if you don’t mind?”
Like she was going to tell the owner of the company no. “Sure.”
“Give him a chance. Don’t let him get away with anything. And always be upfront with him.”
She forced a tight smile. Just what she needed, considering she was hiding Angie from everyone. That didn’t count in her mind. It’s not like she was lying to him, or anyone. Reed had never asked if she had a child.
And why was she even worrying about it? They were friends. Loose friends at that. “Okay.”
She watched Roger walk out of her office, shook her head, and pulled her salad back over to finish her lunch. The Chapmans sure were some weird people.
Real Reason
Two days later she was deep into billing when her phone rang. She reached over, picking it up. “Accounting, this is Taylor. How may I help you?”
“How about lunch today?” Reed.
“Why?” she said back, fighting the urge to smile. Wendy was busy texting someone and not paying attention as always, but Taylor wasn’t taking a chance.
“Because I haven’t seen you in over a week and I need a reason to. I can’t keep coming in there and asking for invoices. That would raise suspicion when I’m sure you’d rather I didn’t.”
“No, I don’t think so,” she said, keeping her voice neutral.
“So... lunch? You can leave your desk for once.”
“When and where?” she asked, picking up a pen like she was jotting down notes.
“Wow, you said yes.” He sounded surprised.
“Not yet.”
“But you will,” he said, then rattled off the information. “I’ll see you there.”
“I’ll get back to you soon,” she said and disconnected the call, then went about as if she was trying to find some information.
Not five minutes later her cell phone went off. She grabbed it to see a text from Reed. It’s soon. I’ll see you there.
He would because she was going to be stupid and meet him. Why not? Like his father said—they were friends and friends had lunch now and again together. Right?
***
Reed couldn’t believe Taylor fell for it.
He’d spent the past week trying to think of ways to see her and was coming up empty.
He had no other invitations lined up for parties and didn’t feel like making them up. Lying never sat well with him.
Honesty was what he wanted and what he always gave other people. Too bad so many people didn’t give him the same courtesy.
He had a proposition for her and he was sure she wasn’t going to like it one bit, but if he didn’t ask, he’d never know.
He hadn’t been stupid or crazy. Nor did he need his sister pointing out that Taylor seemed more than a friend to him.
Sure they hadn’t spent that much time together, but it didn’t seem to matter for some reason. He was drawn to her and he was fighting it.
If he wasn’t mistaken she was too.
Since they seemed to think alike for so many things, why not see if she was agreeable to this too?
He was pressing his luck, but he had nothing to lose.
He’d been sitting in the booth for five minutes waiting for Taylor to show, hoping she didn’t bail on him.
She
didn’t.
“Have you been waiting long?” she asked, sliding into the booth opposite of him. It was too much to hope she’d sit next to him.
“A few minutes. I figured if I wasn’t here before you, you’d just leave.”
“You’re probably right. I’m still trying to figure out why I’m here right now as it is,” she said, her lips twitching slightly.
She really was stunning. The kind of natural beauty he’d always been attracted to but fought against. She never wore a lot of makeup, but her skin was flawless, her eyes so crystal clear with her long dirty blonde hair. He’d bet it got lighter in Florida from the sun.
In the past few years he was too rough and too hard to go for anyone that looked or acted like her. He knew it and didn’t press his luck. Didn’t want to worry about rejection that he’d felt more often in his earlier years than he cared to admit to anyone.
“Curiosity,” he said.
“Partially. The other part was I guess I wanted to see you again.”
“Why’s that?” he asked. He hoped she was honest like he’d been. That she’d mention the steaming kiss they shared a week ago. The one where he pulled her in, his lips too solid and rough on hers. Her mouth opening, their tongues tangling, her body yielding to his like silly putty that he could mold any way he wanted.
He was so tempted to let his hands roam and wander, but he held back. Too much too soon would send her scurrying away, he knew.
So instead he put everything he had—all the techniques he’d mastered—into the kiss. Into tasting her essence, her urgency, and her frustration.
She’d wanted more, he was positive. How did he know that? Because he felt the same and was wise enough to recognize it in someone else.
“I guess I needed to see if how we ended that date was clouded by the night we shared or if it was something more.”
“And now that we’re sitting across from each other?” he asked, holding his breath and knowing her answer was going to determine the next conversation. On whether he voiced his proposition or not.
“I’m more confused than ever,” she said.