by Leah Holden
I had no time to think about having a baby. Actually, I’d pretty much decided to shelve those plans. Look at the mess it had caused. They’d gone on hold, along with every other aspect of my love life. I had bills to pay and a child to take care of. Life for single moms wasn’t always easy because you had to be mom and dad and a whole lot more.
Shellie and I painted the interior of my studio in dramatic charcoal grey and splashes of orange before we accessorized it.
Ria came by to lend a hand, but she was pretty much horrified at the thought of painting an entire wall. I guess that I had also still not completely forgiven her for her interference in my dating plans so maybe things were still a bit awkward between us. In any event, I wasn’t impressed with her stand-off approach to decorating and after about ten minutes, she left in a bit of a huff!
Yeah, big sister – next time doesn’t screw with my life.
It was good to be busy. I had an excuse for not thinking about Jared and there was really no rush to unblock his number either
How times had changed. A few months ago, I had vowed to have a baby and I had been convinced that nothing could shake me from my resolve to find the perfect baby daddy. Now, I fell into bed at the end of each day, too tired to even think about dating or making babies.
Now, instead, I was committed to creating and building my business and to finding resources to support Josh’s needs.
About the third week after acquiring my studio, work started on the building next door.
I wasn’t impressed. I hadn’t paid much attention to the notices, I guess. But I could just imagine potential clients walking through the scaffolding and dust to get to me. I was not happy.
I had no choice but to call the number on the display board to find out how long the interruptions would last.
The receptionist answered the phone, “Turner Enterprises.”
My heart sank or flipped over – it was hard to determine which.
I prayed there was another ‘Turner Enterprises’ in the area other than the one owned by Jared.
I gave my name and, after a few seconds, was put through to what turned out to be Jared’s office.
“Shaniah … good to hear from you. I wondered how long it would take you to call.”
“This is all business,” I said coldly.
“Yes, I gather you’ve been making inquiries about the work we’re doing in the offices next to your suite.”
“News travels fast around here.”
“I make it my business to know what’s happening with all my tenants.”
I held my breath as I considered this new punch line.
Had he just said I was his tenant? That was not possible. It was too surreal.
“I think you might be mistaken,” I said. “I signed a lease with The Urban Regeneration Group…” But even as I said the words I knew the score. Hadn’t Ria sent me a link to potential companies? I knew for sure that I could be pardoned on grounds of insanity if I went ahead with my previous plan to strangle her and Jared. They were trying to push me completely over the edge.
“That’s the project name for the work we’re doing in East side of the city. As you can see from the current premises next to yours, we have a number of holding companies.”
I swallowed as I tried to clear the lump that came to my throat and was making it difficult for me to say the words that were lodged there. I managed to speak eventually even though my voice sounded weary, “Don’t you ever get tired of playing games with people’s lives?”
“You keep accusing me of playing games,” said Jared. “I’m not now, or have ever been, playing games with you.”
“Well, it sure feels like it, Jared. I don’t know how you pulled this one off and I don’t care, and I really don’t want the details. Right now my career is too important to me to have it messed up by your need to control everything and everyone around you. I don’t know why I’m even wasting time talking to you.”
“Shaniah, please calm down. Look, let me take you to lunch. We can discuss this in a civilized manner.
“I’m not hungry.”
He sighed heavily and I hesitated for a second.
Poor Jared. Was he really as bad as I thought he was? He’d certainly been having a bad couple of years and I knew exactly how that could feel. He was trying to do things the only way he knew how. He’d just picked the wrong girl for his underhanded or maybe heavy-handed tactics. Roping Ria in to help only got me more worked up.
“I have to go,” I said.
Truly, I needed to go and start looking for new premises. No way did I want Jared Turner as a landlord—not after everything that had happened between us.
I put down the phone with a sense of resignation.
I looked around the studio. It was just beginning to take shape. My creative flair was bringing it to life so it would be a great pity to leave.
However, I would have to start the hunt for new premises another day and I wasn’t sure where exactly I would get the energy to do that. But for today, I had pressing ideas I needed to get down on paper and some wallpaper to order for an apartment that needed to be staged for the resale market. This whole new very trying situation with Jared would just have to wait.
But apparently, Jared did not share my opinion about waiting because, just as I was thinking of closing up for the afternoon to go and collect Josh from school, he walked into the reception area.
“What are you doing here?”
The words were out before I could truly acknowledge my reaction to the rugged good looks that had not faded in the weeks since I had last seen him.
“If the mountain won’t come to me, then obviously I have to come to the mountain.”
He spoke slowly and he had an exaggerated resigned look about him.
I rolled my eyes, although secretly I couldn’t deny that my reaction to him was still as alive as it had always been. Perhaps I even longed to be back in those arms. But right then there was still too many unresolved issues between us.
Jared looked around the room silently and I was suddenly nervous.
What if he didn’t like what I’d done to the place? My lease hadn’t said anything about not changing the décor.
“It’s looking good,” he said.
“What are you doing here, Jared?”
“Do you need to ask?”
I watched as he took a few steps forward. I moved back nervously.
So this is what it would be like to be possessed I thought as he reached out and took my arm, and slowly pulled me towards him.
“I know you’re still mad at Ria and me, but really we didn’t mean any harm.”
“You know what they say about the way to hell being paved with good intentions.”
“Have you been living in hell since we last met?”
“No.”
“Well, I have,” he said. “At least it sure feels like it. I miss you, Shaniah. I know I’m always going away, but that’s just because I of all the issues I told you about the last time we met. I can’t even begin to tell you how stressful things have been.”
“Any reasonable guy would have at least tried to put me in the picture from the beginning,” I mumbled as his lips drew closer to mine.
“I’m not known for my reasonableness.” He said as his lips descended.
I sighed as his lips made contact and I reached up to increase the contact because I’d been missing this. Truly, I felt totally alive for the first time in weeks.
“Well, if you keep that up, I might have to consider forgiving you,” I said when I finally managed to pull my lips away.
“We have a lot of catching up to do,” he said as his lips descended again and I thought of the couch in the consulting room at the back. Now would be as good a time as any to test out just how comfortable it really was.
But I resisted the urge because from now on I was going to play hard to get. Being too free and easy with my favors had meant that I hadn’t been to assess the situation properly with Jared.
You need a clear head in order to keep your wits about you when you’re entering new territory and I had failed to do that.
I’d been too keen to jump on Jared’s hot body at the first opportunity. It had been a miracle that I had resisted him as long as I had. The result was that I had come away scorched by the heat of that contact.
This time around, I was going to let him woo me the good old-fashioned way. From now on, Mr. Turner, you could have the immense pleasure of wining and dining me and we could just wait to see where that approach would take us.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Three weeks later I was still waiting for Jared to call.
I know—I know—some things never change.
But this time, I knew exactly where he was. He’d been updating me daily with calls and face time and although I’d been waiting all day for his call, I was coping with his absence a lot better than I’d thought possible.
Jared was currently in Florida. He’d wanted me to go with him, but Josh had school and I couldn’t just pick up and run every time a gorgeous man asked me to go on an all-expense paid trip, could I?
I wasn’t sure how I would cope long-term with this ‘now you see me now you don’t’ type of relationship. However, I was willing to give it a try with Jared.
Josh and I had just settled down to watch TV for the evening when the doorbell rang.
“Josh, look through the window and see who that is love, I’m too tired to get up.”
Josh ran to the door and came back excited, “You’d better go see, Mom.”
“Well, who is it?”
“Mom, just go.”
I was annoyed that I had to relinquish my comfortable spot on the sofa but, as I wasn’t in the mood for guessing games, I went.
Jared stood on the doorstep looking as sexy as hell and equally pleased with himself as he was partially hidden behind the largest bouquet of roses I’d ever seen.
“Jared!”
I opened the door and hurled myself at him.
“You’re not due back until next week,” I said finding his lips despite the flowers.
“I figured you wanted me to come and get you,” he grinned at me and kissed me back, hard.
“You could just be right,” I said.
I took the flowers and had barely put them on the hall table when he grabbed me and lifted me clean off my feet and continued to drop several kisses on my lips.
“Ew…gross!”
I’d clean forgotten about Josh.
Jared put me down and grinned down at him.
“You must be Josh, I’ve heard a lot about you.”
Josh blinked up at Jared from behind his glasses. He wasn’t used to seeing me in any man’s arms. Todd had never done public displays of affection.
“Hello,” said Josh solemnly,
“This is Jared,” I smiled down at Josh. Jared was still holding my hand.
“Are you going to marry my mom?” Josh asked in the same solemn tone.
“That is a distinct possibility,” said Jared meeting Josh’s formality.
“Can I play on my Play Station, Mom?”
“Of course, darling.”
Josh trotted off, apparently unconcerned that he might have just talked himself into a stepdad.
“Well, that was easy,” Jared said.
“Don’t take too much notice,” I said, a bit embarrassed. “He asks everybody that. I think he’s just interested in trading me off to the highest bidder!”
“Lucky me,” Jared said drily, “Note to self: remember to make an honest woman out of Shaniah before some random stranger beats me to it.”
“Don’t force yourself.”
“It’s no problem at all,” he grinned. “Of course, while you’re waiting for me to dwell on the prospect of marriage, you could always ask me nicely; I might just say yes.”
“Well, it all depends on how well we connect physically,” I whispered, “I mean, it’s been so long that I can’t quite remember, and a girl just can’t afford to take chances that things won’t be great, you know.”
Jared grinned and edged me towards the stairs. “Do you think your son will notice if I whisk you off upstairs to remind you?”
“You’ll have to control yourself,” I said. “I can’t just ask him to leave home at the great age of eight so that I can have my wicked way with you.”
“Are you sure he isn’t ready to go to college yet?”
I giggled, “Good luck with that. I’ll be lucky to get him through high school. You’ll just have to settle for watching my movie with me.”
“Or maybe I can take you and Josh for a nice meal. You can also both come out to meet my daughter real soon,” he said, “like maybe tomorrow?”
“She’s living with you now?”
“She’s coming for a visit and then she’ll move back permanently next month.”
“That would be really nice,” I said. “Josh has been longing for a sibling.”
And then I worried about saying that because he hadn’t exactly asked me to marry him, had he?
I still hadn’t specifically told him how much I’d been longing for a baby, but no doubt Ria had already prepared him somewhat by spilling the beans on my baby-making plans.
I smiled enigmatically at Jared. I decided there and then that I would give him exactly one week to propose properly and if he didn’t, then I had no reservation about taking the lead in that regard.
Okay, so I had been a bit of a commitment-phobe in the past but that didn’t mean I was a fool. It hadn’t exactly been easy to meet a man I actually wanted to date more than once and, having achieved the impossible, I wasn’t about to throw it away. I really couldn’t even imagine attempting another ten internet dates!
I entwined my fingers with Jared’s and led him through to the family room.
Maybe I’d marry him first, or maybe I’d just have the baby—who knew what we’d decide to do! Maybe my thirst for motherhood would be quenched once we got married and we had his daughter to care for.
I leaned forward and kissed Jared tenderly on his lips.
It was really a delicious thought that the possibilities were limitless with this man.
“Have I told you lately that I love you?” I whispered.
“Actually, I think you’ve been falling down a little in that department,” he mumbled against my lips.
I sighed deeply and relaxed into his kiss.
Considering I’d met him on what was probably a dodgy internet site that I’d spent years avoiding, Aaron Jared Turner was more than okay.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Leah Holden is a mother, teacher and mentor. She has also been an advocate for many of her students with learning disabilities. Leah began writing at an early age and although she has written many short stories, Ten Dates and Counting is her first full length romance novel. When she isn’t teaching or writing, she enjoys gardening and collecting antiques. Leah spends most of her time between Toronto and the UK. She can also be found at www.leahholden.com. She is currently working on her next romance novel.