Touch Me Boss: A Single Dad Office Romance

by Aria Ford

  “Yes on both counts,” Atlas listened for Catrine’s voice and nodded. “Now I hope she’s telling your mother I’ll be staying for dinner and introducing myself formally as the sneaky, but handsome boyfriend.”

  And he did.-

  THE END

  Mail Order Bride Book 2

  Chapter one

  I stood on the boat feeling the salt spray in my face while wondering about my decision to come here. I know that my family was not very impressed with the idea of me becoming a mail order bride. I told them that it was for security, but mostly it was to get away from their domineering ways. They were always very strict, and that limited me on how I was going to live my life with the freedom that I deserved.

  “I have to tell you that I find your courage to do this admirable. I don’t think that I would be able to do it myself. We’ve talked at length and I feel like I know you almost better than I know myself. The one thing that you’re going to have to be careful with is having your heart on your sleeve. Not everything is as it appears. You have to peel away the onion one layer at a time to find the true person underneath. I’ve learned that from personal experience with David. I hope for his sake that he has something good planned for Valentines Day” I had met Loren coming back from visiting family. I wanted someone to dote on me for Valentines Day. It was possible that Grady might be that man.

  “I know that I have my head in the clouds. I’ve been convincing myself that what I’m doing is the right thing. I don’t know if it is, but I want more than anything to find that love that everybody is looking for. I haven’t been able to find it back home in India. Coming across the ocean is not something I do lightly.” I held onto the railing, looking at the world changing and knowing that I was going to have to change with it. I was holding onto a tattered piece of brown luggage. It was being held together by sheer will alone.

  “I hope that you find what you’re looking for, Delia. Every day is a constant struggle in the west. You have to be ready for just about anything. What he says in his letters may not be what he is in reality. Take everything that he said with a grain of salt and use your own judgment to determine if he’s the man you want to spend the rest of your life with.” She had this sophisticated air and I could tell there was a good chance that her beloved David had come from money.

  “I’ve really enjoyed talking with you, Loren. I don’t know if we will ever see each other again, but I would like to stay in touch.” Apparently, she was way ahead of me. She was now scratching her mailing address on a postcard. It would be nice to have somebody to talk to, even if I wouldn’t be able to hear from her for weeks on end. She had blonde hair, and was 5’8”, maybe 120 pounds soaking wet.

  The one thing that I took pride in was my appearance. I couldn’t afford much, but I made most of my own clothing with my bare hands. My mother didn’t teach me how to do it. I had been self-taught from a very early age. I really didn’t want the hand-me-downs from cousins when I could make something unique to make people stand up and take notice.

  I had this need to be the center of attention. I liked colors and the fashion in my country was something that the west hadn’t seen. A red dress with a brocade of purple was what I was wearing. It was made for my figure of 5’4”, 135 pounds with chestnut brown hair that flowed freely down over my shoulders. My best features were my long legs and of course my piercing green eyes that seemed to look into a man’s very soul.

  Sometimes I feel like I’m putting them at a disadvantage. They come to me with their hand out hoping that I will grace them with my presence, only to have their hopes dashed. I see the real reason behind their eyes. They think that they are being subtle, but in my mind they are not.

  “I think that you and I can be fast friends. Please, let me know how everything goes with you and Grady.” She had a steamer trunk and only those that had money could afford something like that. The waves were crashing up against the hull. I actually enjoyed the sound and it wasn’t like I had much chance to see the ocean from where I had grown up. We lived in a tiny ramshackle that had to house all five kids and the parents. It made for some tense moments, but it was something that we were born into and we didn’t know any better.

  I wore my heritage with pride, calling attention to the little dot on my forehead. The one thing that I noticed about Grady was that he wasn’t particularly offended by my religious upbringing. He told me that my beliefs were my own. I didn’t have to change for anyone. I hoped that he meant that, because I believed that would be a breaking point.

  “I’ll be sure to get in touch once I get settled and get a lay of the land. Grady sounds like a good man, but I have not seen him, although appearances don’t mean much to me. It’s what’s in the heart that matters. His letters are heartwarming and I feel alive for the first time. Any time that I read his words of wisdom and compassion makes me smile. Don’t worry, I know that most men are after one thing.” Even now, I sense that some of the people on board are staring at me and wondering what they can do to make my dress fall to the floor.

  “I want to give you something. It’s not much, but it means a lot to me that you would keep it in your possession. This was given to me by my mother on her deathbed. She told me that with it, I would find great love. I have done that and now I want it to do the same thing for you. I don’t really believe in any of this superstitious stuff, but I do believe in the results that I see with my own eyes.” Land was getting closer and those on the dock were now waving and screaming.

  I scanned the crowd, looking for any one that might match the description of what Grady had sent me. There were several and I had no idea how I was going to find him in a sea of people looking for their loved ones.

  I put out my hand and she placed this broach with a brocade of tiny little jewels surrounding the circumference. In the middle was this purple stone, which really did complement the dress that I was wearing.

  “I don’t know if I can take this. We’ve only just met and I would hate to impose.” She placed her hand in mine and curled my fingers around the broach. She looked me in the eyes and I instinctively knew that she was dead serious. She picked up her parasol, placed it overhead and walked with a delicate grace over to the edge to look for David.

  I gingerly put that broach into my suitcase. I could only hope that it didn’t fall out and get lost in translation. She was very kind, but she also was cautious. I found that she was a good judge of character and I had to think that David was a very lucky man.

  I remembered how my brother Rajesh looked at me with pleading eyes to take him with me. He was too young to make the journey, but I promised him that I would call for him when things became clearer. I didn’t want to give him false hope, but the light in his eyes told me that he was going to miss me something fierce.

  The boat came to a slow stop. It had been several days since we had seen land. It was a hardship, but having Loren there with me made things less uncomfortable. I found our talks made the days go quicker. There was strength in numbers. Those guys that had taken an interest in me had decided to stay at arm’s length. Without Loren, I’m sure that I would’ve had to beat them off with a stick.

  I found Loren and I placed my hand on her shoulder.

  “I really do appreciate everything that you’ve said. This is the kind of advice that I was hoping to get from my mother. You know she can be very opinionated. When she turned her back on me it was the worst day of my life. I think that she only did it because father made it quite clear that if I left in this way, I would be disowned.”

  I’d never said anything of this to anyone. To confess my burden to Loren had taken that weight off my shoulders.

  “I will always be there for you. You’re like the sister that I never had. I feel this kinship and I know in my heart that things will work out for you. This is your future and I see that you don’t go blindly into it with unreasonable expectations.”

  I followed her down the gangplank, watching the people wave incessantly in hope that they
would spot the one they’d came for.

  Separating from Loren, I mingled amongst the people, looking at their drab clothing and pitying them for not having any sense of fashion. They were caught up with grays, whites and blacks. I must’ve stuck out like a sore thumb. I kind of enjoyed the way that people were looking at me, measuring me and trying to come up with a reasonable explanation for why I was here.

  I felt somebody’s hot breath on my neck and I turned in time to see a giant of a man reaching for me. I shrugged my shoulders, showing him that his attention was not wanted.

  “I’m sorry that I startled you, Delia.” The only person who knew my name was Loren. That had to mean that this handsome dark-haired gentleman was the one that I had been corresponding with all these months.

  “I was hoping to make a better first impression,” he said.

  I looked him up and down, seeing that he was wearing something casual. The vest was tattered and there was some kind of stain on his white shirt. It wasn’t hard to recognize the muscular frame underneath the young man standing in front of me.

  “I have to say you’re not exactly what I pictured,” I replied.

  I put out my hand and when he shook it, it was like this electrical jolt went through my body. He held my eyes and then placed his other hand over mine in a greeting that almost made my legs buckle out from underneath me. Did the temperature just rise? I was used to a sticky kind of heat, but this was something else entirely. His piercing blue eyes made me feel like he was no threat. He led me over to a stagecoach that was waiting nearby.

  “I hope you’re ready to meet the family,” said Loren.

  This was not something that we had discussed and his words hung in the air for me to absorb. I thought that he’d said he lived alone, but maybe that was one of the things he had stretched the truth on.

  “I will say that you’re going to have a lot of hard work to convince them that mail order brides are the thing of the future.” I had this feeling that his romance with letters was not shared by those that he trusted. I was going to have to do some fancy footwork. This was not what I signed up for, but it wasn’t like I was just going to turn tail and go back to where I came from. They had no idea what kind of storm was coming their way, but they were going to find out.

  Chapter Two

  I stood there in front of his family and I knew that they didn’t approve. It’s the way that they looked at me with a critical eye that made me believe I wasn’t welcome. I’m standing my ground, putting my best foot forward and hoping that I will be able to win them over in the end. His mother has the air of a schoolteacher that I had when I was younger, with a strict attitude and the ruler to go along with the discipline. She wears her displeasure like a badge of honor.

  “I can’t believe that you would bring this woman into our house and tell us that you are marrying her. You don’t even know each other. This is not the way things are done.” His younger brother Daniel was smiling like he was having the time of his life. I could only assume that he was enjoying the fact that Grady’s mother was now putting the attention on the golden boy.

  “I’ve never been more disappointed in you in my life, Grady. She doesn’t belong here and I will not have her living underneath my roof.”

  Grady put his finger up and I could tell that he had something important to say.

  “For one thing, what I do with my life is none of your business. For another, this is not your house and you’re only living here because I have allowed it. You and my brother think that you have a monopoly over me. I’m the one that decides my own fate. I don’t need your constant disapproval and glaring looks to make things any worse.”

  I liked that he was strong and confident and was willing to put his foot down where it mattered the most. He didn’t remind me of some wimpy little kid that was a mama’s boy.

  “I’ve never heard you speak to me like that before and I don’t want to hear it again. She is a bad influence on you and this whole thing is disgusting. If your father was alive right now, he would be so mad at you that you wouldn’t have any place you could hide. I can only imagine that he’s probably rolling over in his grave. You have made this family a laughing stock. People will not be able to look at us without judging us this way to Sunday. Do you know what kind of rumors will spread because of this?” Even though she didn’t have a leg to stand, didn’t mean that his mother wasn’t going to put up a fight.

  “I don’t know why you even care what other people think. You get too caught up in everybody else and you don’t concern yourself with what really matters. Family is the lifeblood of any society. Delia has come here to find a new life and I’ve graciously offered my hand in marriage. Nothing is for certain and things can change. As far as I can tell, she really enjoys being here, even though I suspect that she’s not very happy with the drama that she’s walked into.”

  That was a vast understatement. I had no idea that this was what I had signed up for, but I felt like I had a duty to at least see it through.

  His mother Marianne turned around and walked away with this cold icy stare at me. It made me speechless to say anything in my own defense. She was good at getting her way, but this was not her house. She really couldn’t dictate who was going to live here and who wasn’t. It was nice of him to open up his home to his mother and to his brother, but he didn’t have to. I’d always believed that blood was thicker than water and Grady was proving to me that he was a man of honor and substance.

  I went to him and held his hand, giving him my strength and showing him that I was going to stand with him through any trial or tribulation.

  “I know that didn’t go, as well as you would have hoped it would have, Grady. You had to know that they would be a little shocked to hear that you had turned to a mail order bride to find happiness. It’s not conventional and people are going to feel that they have the right to tell us what they think. You may not have to listen to your family, but they will always be there for you, regardless of how this works out.”

  His fingers had entwined around my own and I could feel that he was drawing from me what he needed to stand up and be noticed.

  There was clapping. We turned and saw that Daniel was mocking us.

  “It’s nice to see that you can do something wrong, brother. I always thought that I would always be in the doghouse, but apparently you have your place there yourself. To me, I don’t care what you do and I’ve never cared what you did with your life. We will never see eye to eye. I think we both know the reason why. I only came here at the bequest of our mother to make sure that there was a buffer between the two of you.”

  He placed his hands in his pockets and he walked out whistling a tune.

  “I don’t think that I have to tell you that my brother is an asshole. We’ve never really talked much and the love and the connection that we had in the past was severed by a woman.”

  I should’ve known that there was a woman involved. Where a brother and another brother fought, there was always some underlying reason.

  “I really don’t want to get into it, but love is a strange and fickle mistress.” I wanted to give him comfort and aid in his hour of need, but I was not that type of woman. I could stand with him and give him a shoulder to lean on, but that was as far as I was going to go.

  “I don’t like that you kept a lot of this from me. You could have told me, but maybe you thought that I wouldn’t have seen you worthy of my love. I haven’t decided where I’m going to land on all of this. Right now, I’m taking everything with a grain of salt. That’s the best that I can do, under the circumstances.”

  Witnessing the strain between family members had raised my curiosity to find out more. Normally, I would talk to each family member individually, but this time it was going to be different.

  The main contention between them was me. Stepping into the middle of things was just going to make things worse. When we rode to his place, he told me that he wanted to announce our engagement at Sunday services. I was relucta
nt, but having him there might be exactly what I needed to stand and not feel like I was encroaching on somebody’s territory. I’d always been someone that wanted the best for everyone around me. I may not be a therapist, but I did know how to read people and to determine what was best to make things better.

  “I don’t think that I can ask for anything more than that. I know that I lied to you and I feel bad about that, but I thought that it was the only way that you would come here under your own free will. I believed that once you got here that I would be able to sway your opinion to my side. I just want what everybody else wants and I really don’t see that happening with any of the girls here. My mother has already told me that none of them were my type. I don’t normally take her advice on anything, but this one time I believe her to be right.”

  We walked out of the house and immediately felt in awe at everything that we saw around us. Nature was beautiful and splendid in its own way.

  “I feel like taking a walk.” He tried to move away from me, but I grabbed onto his hand like an anchor weighing him down.

  “I never said that I wanted to take a walk alone. You should show me around.”

  He smiled, thinking that maybe I was willing to at least entertain the idea of sticking around for the long haul.

  “I’m not promising anything. One thing that I want to make very clear is that I cannot live with your family fighting each other at every turn. We need to do something about that, even if it means that we’re going to have a family meeting.”

  He did not look happy, but I think he was only going along because he thought that I might be right.

  “I need you to see something, but I don’t think that it’s right for me to put you in the middle of things. It will make things more clear and I feel that you need to have all the information that you can get your hands on. This will be very difficult for many reasons, but you’ll see what I mean when we get there.”

  This was his place and even though his mother thought that he she ruled the roost didn’t mean that it was true.