Beth and the Bachelor

by Susan Mallery

  She motioned for him to come in. ‘‘It was. I’m sorry. I’m exhausted,’’ she said as he stepped inside. ‘‘I should have gotten in touch with you sooner, but I haven’t had the time. When I tried calling you at work late this afternoon to cancel our date, no one answered your phone.’’

  ‘‘You want to cancel?’’ He was stunned. ‘‘You can’t.’’ She couldn’t. He’d been looking forward to this all week. Didn’t she know how much he wanted to see her? Didn’t she want to see him?

  ‘‘It’s Matt,’’ she said. ‘‘He’s sick and I can’t leave him.’’ Beth watched Todd’s expression tighten, then close her out. He didn’t believe her. The last bit of her strength faded away. All she wanted to do was sit on the floor and cry.

  ‘‘I’m disappointed, too,’’ she said. ‘‘I’ve been looking forward to tonight.’’

  ‘‘Sure,’’ he said curtly. ‘‘I could tell by how eagerly you accepted all my invitations.’’

  She’d hurt him. Although that didn’t seem possible, it was true. Ironically she had been looking forward to their date. She had a new dress, she’d read the newspaper every morning all week so she would be current on what was going on in the world and be able to make intelligent small talk. She’d wanted to impress him even though she suspected he was only going out with her to get her out of his system.

  She looked at the tall, handsome man standing in her foyer. He held an outrageously large bouquet of flowers in his arms. His suit was tailored to fit and emphasize his lean body and male strength. His dark blond hair was recently trimmed and his jaw looked freshly shaved. He’d done all that for her. Her thank you was to greet him while looking like a refugee from the home for the badly dressed and cancel their night together.

  She took a deep breath. ‘‘I wanted to see you tonight,’’ she said. ‘‘You can believe me or not, but it’s the truth. But it’s not going to work. Matt has the stomach flu. It hit him about one in the morning and neither of us got much sleep after that. I’d already worked until midnight because I wanted to get my editing done early, so I wouldn’t have to do it today. I had planned to get my hair done, have a pedicure and generally pamper myself in anticipation of our evening together.’’

  Frustration welled up inside of her. Reciting all that had gone wrong wasn’t making her feel any better.

  ‘‘I ended up canceling my appointments because I needed to take my work into the office, then hurry back to be with Matt. Jodi only had a half day at school. She hasn’t finished driver’s training yet, so she doesn’t have a license. I had to run her around this afternoon, then take her over to her baby-sitting job at five. Matt is still throwing up. I’ve been washing sheets and towels all day and now the washing machine is making a funny noise. The pantry is bare, which wouldn’t be a big deal except I’m out of soup and juice, and just about anything else he might be able to keep down. I did try to call you late this afternoon. The only number I have is the one I got out of the phone book for your office and no one answered.’’

  She could feel herself getting more and more upset. Tears burned at her eyes, but she refused to give in to them. At least not in front of Todd.

  ‘‘I see,’’ he said, but she couldn’t tell if he did or not. She didn’t know what he was thinking.

  ‘‘I’m sorry,’’ she repeated.

  ‘‘You don’t have to be.’’ He handed her the flowers and gave her a quick smile. ‘‘I guess the last thing you need is some guy hanging around all upset because you had to cancel a date, right?’’

  She nodded because that was what he expected, but in her heart she didn’t want him to go. Despite his engineering degree, Darren hadn’t been much use around the house. But at least he would have gone to the grocery store for her. If only Todd would offer to do the same.

  ‘‘I’ll see you later,’’ Todd said, and left.

  Beth closed the door behind him. A single tear rolled down her cheek. He’d left. Just like that. She cradled the flowers to her chest and admitted that in her heart of hearts she’d been hoping for more. Maybe a white knight to come rescue her. But that wasn’t Todd’s style. It probably wasn’t any man’s style. Every now and then life took great pleasure in reminding her that she was well and truly alone.

  Foolishly she’d allowed herself to think it might be different this time. As much as she’d told herself that Todd wasn’t really interested in a woman like her, that they had nothing in common and that she didn’t know why he was courting her, in some corner of her heart she’d allowed herself to wish it was all real. She’d wanted him to sweep her off her feet and carry her away…figuratively if not literally.

  But fantasy men were just that…fantasies. It was wrong of her to expect him to be something or someone who didn’t exist. He was a nice man who had made a sincere effort. The fact that he didn’t want to spend the evening with a scruffy mother and her sick kid shouldn’t count against him.

  She promised herself that if he called and asked her out again, she would go. She would accept him for what he was and stop wishing he had traits that weren’t realistic. Then she put the flowers on the kitchen table and went upstairs to check on her son.

  *

  Forty-five minutes later, after Matt had finished throwing up again and Beth had helped him back to his bed, the front doorbell rang. Beth nearly decided to ignore it, but the sound of insistent knocking drove her downstairs.

  As she crossed the foyer, she could see a shadowy figure through the glass in the door. Todd? Was he back?

  Fierce gladness made her hurry toward him. She turned the lock and jerked open the door. It was him!

  ‘‘Bet you thought I was gone for good,’’ he said, as he stepped inside. His arms were full of bags, two of which he handed to her. ‘‘Yeah, well, I thought about it. I told myself I didn’t need this kind of hassle. Sick kids, canceled dates. What a mess. I nearly made it back to the freeway when I realized I didn’t care if we stayed in tonight. I don’t want to go out, Beth, I was to see you. There’s a difference. So here I am.’’

  ‘‘I don’t know what to say.’’ Mostly because she couldn’t believe he’d come back.

  His blue-gray gaze searched her face. ‘‘Are you happy to see me?’’

  If they both hadn’t been holding grocery bags, she would have wrapped her arms around him and wept with relief. Instead she nodded. ‘‘More than I can say.’’

  ‘‘Good. Let’s take this stuff into the kitchen.’’

  ‘‘What is it?’’ she asked.

  ‘‘Mostly food. I went to the grocery store and bought soup, bread and sparkling water. The kind of stuff I thought a sick kid would like. I rented a couple of science-fiction videos, in case he’s bored but can’t sleep. There’s even some take-out Chinese for us.’’

  Her head was spinning. Had he really done all that for her?

  He set his packages on the counter, then took hers and set them down, as well. Then he placed his hands on her shoulders. ‘‘Here’s the deal,’’ he told her. ‘‘My car comes with a built-in toolbox in the trunk. While you fix some dinner for Matt, I’ll take a look at the washing machine. I don’t make any promises, but I’m a pretty handy guy to have around. Then I’ll sit with the kid while you go relax for a few minutes. Just to wind down.’’

  She fingered her hair and remembered she wasn’t wearing a speck of makeup. ‘‘I’d love a shower.’’

  He groaned. ‘‘Don’t say stuff like that. I already spend too much of my day thinking about you naked. When you’re ready, we’ll heat the take-out, flop down on the sofa in here and veg out with the movie of your choice. Even one of those romantic comedy chick flicks. How does that sound?’’

  She tried to speak but couldn’t. Her mind whirled with all that he’d told her. That he’d cared enough to go to the store and bring back food for Matt, not to mention movies. That he would actually risk getting his beautiful suit dirty simply so he could check out her washer. That he thought about her naked and it didn’t
make him run into the night screaming.

  ‘‘Beth?’’ He sounded worried. ‘‘Your face is getting all scrunchy. Did I do a bad thing?’’

  She sniffed. The tears were back and this time she wasn’t going to be able to hold them at bay.

  ‘‘N-no,’’ she managed, then flung herself at him. ‘‘E-everything is perfect.’’

  He wrapped his arms around her. ‘‘I would believe you a whole lot more if you weren’t crying.’’

  ‘‘These are good tears,’’ she told him.

  He smelled so clean and masculine as he held her close. His suit jacket was smooth against her cheek. She never wanted to let go.

  ‘‘I want to help,’’ he said. ‘‘If you’ll tell me what you need, I’m happy to take care of it.’’

  Don’t go away, she thought, but that was the one wish she didn’t get to make. Todd would go away. Even if he wanted to settle down, it wouldn’t be with her. Still, for tonight, he was definitely white-knight material.

  ‘‘Just hold me,’’ she said.

  He tightened his arms and rested his cheek against hers. ‘‘Easy enough. I can do this all night. Of course, eventually we’ll get leg cramps and fall to the floor, but it would be worth it.’’

  She giggled. ‘‘I really appreciate all of this.’’

  ‘‘I’m happy to do it.’’

  She still believed that there was only one love for each person, and that she’d already experienced hers. She still knew that Todd would, in time, get tired of her and return to his usual type of female. But none of that mattered anymore. She didn’t know what combination of events had brought him into her life, but she was going to stop questioning her good luck. For now he was here. She was going to do her best to enjoy that…and him…for as long as he let her.

  *

  Three and a half hours later, life had returned to something close to normal. Beth pushed the mute button on the television as the closing scene of the movie they’d watched began.

  Todd stared at her. ‘‘That can’t be the end,’’ he protested. ‘‘Did they win the gold medal?’’

  Beth grinned. ‘‘Of course, but that’s not the point.’’ She picked up the video cover for The Cutting Edge and pointed to the close-up of the actors on the front. ‘‘It’s a romance. The medal is incidental. What’s important is that they were willing to admit they were in love.’’

  ‘‘I’ll never understand women,’’ he said, shaking his head. ‘‘It was a sports movie. Kind of interesting even if it was about ice skating. But the whole movie was about winning a gold medal. I want to see the scores. I want to know for sure.’’

  ‘‘You are such a guy,’’ she said. ‘‘Fine, in the theater version, they showed them winning and even had a couple of clips from the ceremony. There. Are you happy?’’

  ‘‘Yes, and I don’t care that you’re lying.’’

  Todd picked up the remote and turned off the television and the VCR. He angled toward Beth, then placed his arm along the back of the sofa. ‘‘This has been really nice. Thanks for asking me to stay.’’

  Her feeling of relaxation went spinning down the drain and she was left with a dry throat, shaking hands and a boulder sitting on the bottom of her stomach. Dear Lord, it was late and they were practically alone. Matt had finally kept soup down and as of the last time she’d checked on him, a mere twenty minutes ago, was sleeping fine. The couple who had employed Jodi for the evening had come home early and Jodi had gone off to spend the night at a girlfriend’s house. So there weren’t going to be any distractions…or excuses…or easy escapes.

  ‘‘Yes, well, it’s the least I could do,’’ she said nervously. ‘‘You got the food, then you fixed my washer. Did I thank you for that? I do appreciate it. I hate it when the washer breaks. I remember once, we were all about to go on vacation. I’d been really busy with work so I hadn’t been keeping up with the laundry. It was sitting around in these huge piles and then the machine just stopped working. I didn’t know what to do and I—”

  ‘‘Beth?’’ Todd interrupted.

  She tried to swallow but couldn’t. ‘‘What?’’

  ‘‘You’re babbling.’’

  ‘‘No, I’m sharing my life with you. There’s a difference. I think it’s important for friends to talk to each other, and we are friends, aren’t we? I’m sure, compared to what you’re used to in a day, my life is very boring, but sometimes I go exciting places. Once I even—”

  He touched his index finger to her mouth. Which was an interesting way to silence her. And effective, she thought, as her remaining words died a quick death.

  He shifted toward her. ‘‘I’m going to kiss you now,’’ he said as he put one arm around her. ‘‘I don’t want you to worry. I’m very aware of the fact that we’re sitting in your family room. You have a sick kid upstairs, so you’re going to be wondering if he’s okay or even if he might come downstairs. I’m going to listen for him so you don’t have to.’’

  ‘‘Okay,’’ she breathed. ‘‘I can handle a kiss.’’

  He smiled a slow, confident male smile that made her melt against him. ‘‘It’s not going to be just one kiss.’’

  The anticipation was sweet, she thought hazily as he drew her closer and pressed his mouth to hers. But not as sweet as the taste of him.

  She was a little more prepared than she’d been the last time they’d kissed. Her nerves weren’t quite as jumpy and she didn’t worry that she was going to throw up or anything equally humiliating. But when his hand cupped her face and his tongue touched her bottom lip, urging her to open for him, she was still overwhelmed by the explosion between them.

  As soon as he deepened the kiss, her body went up in flames. She wrapped her arms around his neck and had to resist the need to crawl all over him. She wanted to feel him press against her. She wanted to touch him and have him touch her. She wanted to know if he was as aroused as she was, and if it had happened as quickly.

  His tongue was hot and bold. He invaded her, teased her, taunted her until she had to chase him back and do all that to him. He stroked her shoulders and spine, his large hands sure and strong and warm through the thin layer of her T-shirt.

  They were angled toward each other, knees bumping. She wanted more. She wanted to be pressing against him but she couldn’t figure out a way to make that happen on the sofa…not unless one of them was lying down. And she knew she wasn’t ready for that.

  She took his face in her hands and felt the smoothness of his jaw. She ran her fingers through his short hair, then traced his ears. When he broke their kiss, she wanted to protest, right up until he bent down and nibbled on the side of her neck. The fire in her doubled in size. Heat consumed her. She felt her muscles begin to tremble as every cell in her body responded to his touch.

  There was too much passion, she thought as her breathing grew more rapid. His mouth slipped to her throat, then down to the vee of her shirt. She could feel his lips, his tongue, his breath. Her breasts ached, her thighs tingled. She couldn’t remember ever being this turned-on before.

  ‘‘Beth,’’ Todd said hoarsely. ‘‘Come here.’’

  He put his hands on her waist and urged her to straddle him. She went willingly, hoping he didn’t notice her awkwardness. She didn’t quite get her left leg over his lap and came down too hard. Embarrassment heated her face. But Todd didn’t say anything. Instead, he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her next to him until they were pressing together intimately.

  Her breasts flattened against his chest, her feminine place nestled against a substantial bulge in his trousers. He kissed her long and slow, making her ache with wanting him.

  His hands dropped to her bare legs. He ran them up and down, from her knees to the hem of her shorts. She found herself wishing he would rub her down there on that small spot that was so sensitive. The idea of it stunned and aroused her in equal measures. It was wrong of her to think that. It was also incredibly delicious.

  His hands moved up to
her hips, where he cupped her, then urged her to rock against him. Tension built as they pressed together. Her breath caught. She hadn’t thought she would ever feel sexual again, and it scared her to want him so much. She told herself to stop, that this was crazy, but the need couldn’t be denied.

  She didn’t notice that he’d shifted attention again until she felt his fingers stroking the undersides of her breasts. Her nipples were hard and tight. He circled around them, then took the full curves in his hands. She gasped against his mouth. When he teased her nipples, she thought she was going to die.

  It was too wonderful, too amazing. His tongue in her mouth, his hands on her breasts and the feel of his arousal pressing and rubbing against her most private place. If the seam of her shorts had been a quarter of a inch to one side or the other, she would have had direct pressure on that one special spot and she would have exploded. Beth could feel herself collecting toward the moment.

  It had been so long. The thought of release was blissful. But she couldn’t do it. Not like this. Not with him. Not yet.

  She pulled back, physically getting to her feet. She felt disheveled and foolish and incredibly out of her league.

  To his credit, Todd didn’t scold her or complain. He simple asked if she was all right.

  ‘‘I’m great,’’ she lied. ‘‘But look at the time. I sure didn’t mean to keep you out this late.’’

  He glanced at his watch. ‘‘You’re right. It’s nearly eleven. Whatever were we thinking?’’

  Tears threatened again, but for the life of her she couldn’t say why. ‘‘Todd, don’t,’’ she whispered. She couldn’t face the teasing, however gentle. Not after what they’d just done.

  ‘‘Okay.’’ He rose to his feet, then kissed her forehead. ‘‘I’ll leave. But I’ll be thinking about you.’’

  ‘‘Me, too,’’ she whispered.

  Then he was gone and she was left wishing he was still there. He was the one she feared and needed to get out of her life, yet now, in an hour of confusion and pain, he was the one she wanted to hold her tight.