It was 8 pm. when Claudia, Jaden, and Norma arrived back at his home. Jaden pulled into the driveway parking the Jeep behind Claudia’s Toyota. He leaned back to Norma.
“You can stay the night, Norma. Don’t drive back across town tonight.”
“Oh hush, I’ll be okay. Besides, you two could use some alone time.”
No, Claudia thought. That’s exactly what we didn’t need lest I turn into an animal and ravage this sexy ass hot-blooded man. The words tickled Claudia causing her to chuckle.
“Norma, have you seen the size of this house? I’m sure we can disappear somewhere inside,” he said laying a heavy eye on Claudia.
“I actually should get going myself, or I’ll be spending the night, also,” she joked.
Jaden’s gaze burned through hers. “That can be arranged.”
The two watched each other for a long moment. “I can’t stay, unfortunately, my mom’s home alone.”
“She doesn’t have to be. Like I said before, that can be arranged.” He gave her a lopsided grin. “You never know, she may like it over here and never want to leave.”
Claudia’s chest was doing something funny to her now. What exactly was he implying? Claudia cleared her throat. “Are you suggesting we go over to my house and pick up my mother?”
“And bring her back here. I’ll cook her dinner; she’ll relax, get comfortable and never want to leave.”
Claudia exhaled a deep breath. “Sounds like you’ve got it all figured out.”
“I can be pretty resourceful you know.” Jaden offered her a charming smile. “Besides, she wants to meet me, right?”
“I don’t mean to interrupt this chatter, but I’ll be going, Mr. Rose.”
Jaden cocked a brow at Norma. “Since when do you call me, Mr. Rose?
Norma pursed her lips. “Don’t start; you sound like your father.”
Norma opened her door, and Jaden jumped out moving swiftly to offer her a helping hand.
“Thank you,” Norma said.
Jaden folded his arm through Norma’s, and they strolled to her Ford Explorer. Opening the driver side door, Jaden helped Norma into her car. Once she’d gotten comfortable in the seat, he reached over and buckled her belt.
Norma rolled her eyes. “Mr. Rose, I’m capable of buckling my seatbelt. I’ve been taking care of you and your siblings since you were all in diapers, I think I can manage a seatbelt.”
Jaden chuckled, knowing no matter how he responded it wouldn’t make a difference. “Doesn’t matter, we’re old enough to take care of you now.” He placed a soft kiss on her forehead. “Drive safely and call me once you arrive at home.”
“Yes sir, Mr. Rose.”
Jaden threw her a glare and Norma covered her mouth and laughed. Jaden stepped back and closed the door watching as Norma pulled off.
“She adores you, you know.”
Jaden rotated around to Claudia reaching out to pull her in by her waist. “I want you to stay.” With his lips, Jaden’s kiss traveled across her forehead one after the other. Claudia closed her eyes and exhaled, reveling in his caresses.
“I want you to stay,” he whispered again between kisses.
Claudia wanted to stay, too, but her obligations wouldn’t allow her the satisfaction. As if he’d read her thoughts, Jaden pulled back to look at her. “Your mother can stay as well. We’ll take care of her.”
Claudia’s heart fluttered and confusion set in.
“Why?” She watched him inquisitively.
“You know why.”
Claudia thought back to the night in Puerto Rico. She couldn’t deny their instant connection, but Claudia didn’t believe that they’d get so close that she’d have a hard time moving on when someone else found his interest. Already, the emotions that warmed and rippled through her whenever they were together was frightening enough. It was a bad idea. She couldn’t. In the end, it would be a disaster.
But still, she relented. “I’ll tell you what, let’s go see what she says. My mother’s mood swings can be hot and cold sometimes. So, it really just depends on if she wants to be bothered.”
Jaden laughed. “She’ll want to be bothered.”
Claudia arched a brow. “How can you be so sure?”
“She’ll be happy to meet me.”
Claudia couldn’t deny that.
“Come on.”
Jaden slipped his arm around her shoulders and walked back to the car. As he held her door open, Claudia climbed inside and Jaden wondered about his intentions. The more he tried to convince himself he was unsure about his actions, the more his actions showed otherwise. Climbing in behind the wheel, Jaden’s gaze went to hers, and they both buckled their seat belts synchronously.
He reached out and touched her earlobe pulling a slight tug on it. Claudia blushed feeling like a teenage school girl. Whenever Jaden touched her or said something incredibly sexy, Claudia blushed. Never before had anyone made her feel that way, but Jaden’s charm was irresistible. The Jeep reversed and pulled out of the driveway onto the street. Claudia reached for the radio dial and turned it on.
The cruise was relaxing, with the soft tunes reverberating throughout the vehicle. Claudia got comfortable, kicking off her heels pulling her feet into the seat. Jaden rested his forearm on the armrest and Claudia did, too. Their fingers brushed over one another sending currents of warmth stirring through their palms and trickling down their arms. Their eyes connected and they both leaned in.
In a breathy voice, Claudia spoke. “You should probably keep your eyes on the road.”
Jaden’s attention was everywhere but the road. Claudia’s eyes, nose, and lips were becoming his favorite assets on her.
“I’ve got this.”
Jaden’s fingers danced along hers. “I wouldn’t put you in any danger. Have faith in me.”
Claudia’s heartbeat was racing again. Jaden took his eyes back to the road and turned the steering wheel. She watched the smooth way he handled the jeep and remembered how he’d taken his time with her in Puerto Rico. A thump in her panties caused her to twist.
Jaden met her gaze again.
Claudia smiled. “I do.”
“I do, too,” he said. “I mean, have faith in you.”
Claudia’s smiled lingered. “Of course, what else would you mean?”
Jaden clasped his big masculine hands around hers and pulled it to his mouth for a kiss that scorched her skin and sent a blaze straight through her core. Shit, Claudia thought. Who was she kidding? There was no way she could just move on from dating a man like Jaden to any of these other trifling men. What was she going to do? They pulled into her driveway and Claudia watched him quizzically.
“Um, how do you know I live here?”
Jaden put the car in park. “I hope you don’t find this creepy but I followed you home last night. After our run in with paparazzi, I needed to make sure you got home safely.”
“Why didn’t you just tell me, I wouldn’t have objected.”
Jaden smiled. “I didn’t want to distract you further.”
That wasn’t entirely true, and Jaden knew it. Although he wanted Claudia to get home and check on her mother, Jaden also pondered on the invitation she’d given him. Going back and forth with himself about breaking his commitment to abstain being sexual with her.
But Jaden had won out deciding to keep his distance. It was imperative that he reminded himself of this daily. It was no easy feat hanging around Claudia with the craving that ripped through him anytime he was with her.
Jaden opened his door, and so did Claudia. He followed her up the steps through the front.
“Ma!”
The house was relatively quiet. Claudia strolled down the hallway and turned toward the bathroom.
“Oh my God!”
She darted inside the vestibule. Jaden trotted down the hallway. Claudia had sunk to her knees.
“Mom!”
Claudia shook Adeline who lay naked on the floorboard unmoving. Jaden ran to the room
behind him and came back with a blanket that he wrapped around Adeline’s body. Steadfast, Jaden lifted Adeline from the floor and took quick strides back down the hallway. Claudia ran after him as they fled the house. She scurried to the back door and opened it jumping inside. Jaden laid Adeline across the seat, her head falling into Claudia’s lap. Shutting the door quickly, Jaden made haste pulling out of the driveway to head to Mercy Hospital and Medical Center.
The .22-inch tires burned, coughing up asphalt as Jaden cleared through the streets making sharp turns at every corner.
“Mom, please wake up. Oh my God,” Claudia was frantic. She felt Adeline’s face. Adeline was warm but her pulse was light. “Oh my God! How could I let this happen?”
Jaden’s eyes pulled up to the mirror, catching her reflection.
“Tell me, how much good will blaming yourself do,” he said.
Claudia shut her eyes tight as tears streamed down the corners of them.
“I need to call my sister.”
Jaden whipped the vehicle into the hospital, parking beneath the underpass. He hopped out pulling open the back door to retrieve Adeline. They ran into the E.R., and Claudia yelled, “Please help us!”
The receptionist hit a button, and a set of double doors opened. Seconds later, doctors and nurses ran out with a stretcher and Jaden laid Adeline down on top of it. The emergency team immediately went about the task of checking her pulse and temperatures as they rushed Adeline inside. On their heels, Claudia and Jaden followed the crew as a doctor threw questions at her one after the other.
“What happened?”
Claudia tossed her arms up letting her hands rest on her head, “I don’t know! I wasn’t there, I…”
Jaden pulled her into his arms. “We’d just arrived when we found her in the bathroom on the floor. It looks like she may have slipped and taken a hard fall,” he finalized.
Claudia’s tears increased, and she buckled, but Jaden held her firmly against his broad chest. The team turned into a room, and the doctor put his hand up.
“Stay here please, we’ll take care of her. What’s your mother’s name?”
“Adeline,” Jaden responded for her.
“We’ll take care of Adeline. Her skin is warm to the touch, so if she’s taken a fall, it may just be a need to wake her and get her hydrated. There’s a waiting room back around the corner. You should get some water yourself. The doctor patted Claudia on her back and dashed into the room with the other staff.
Claudia cried, and Jaden took an affectionate hand down her back. Her face was nuzzled in his chest as tears spilled down her cheeks.
“Come with me,” he whispered, guiding Claudia to the waiting room. At the water cooler, Jaden reached for a plastic cup and filled it halfway. “Take a sip.”
Claudia nuzzled her face further into his chest, refusing the cup.
“Chérie,” he crooned, “just take a sip, for me.”
Slowly, Claudia pulled her face away turning toward the cup. She exhaled deeply and took the cup tossing back the water. As she swallowed more tears sprang from her eyes.
Jaden folded her back into his embrace. It bothered him that she was in so much pain. If he could block her of any hurt or agony, he most certainly would. Claudia rested there allowing him to soothe her. After a minute, she braced her hands against his chest and pulled back. “I need to grab my phone from the car.”
“Do you know your sisters number by heart?”
Claudia nodded with somber eyes.
“There’s a phone on the wall over there.”
“Will it dial long distance?”
“I’m not sure; tell you what, I’ll run to the car and get our phones. Are you going to be okay while I’m away?” His deep voice sent shivers through her even now when she was worried for her mother.
“Yes.” Claudia moved to sit down on the edge of one the waiting room chairs. Jaden reached for a Kleenex that stretched out of a recyclable box on the table and handed it to her.
“Thank you.”
“You’re more than welcome.”
Jaden lingered a moment longer wondering if the phone call to her sister could wait. Claudia was noticeably anxious to make the call, and he knew their relationship was strained already. Calling her sister would just make it that much worse. On the other hand, Desiree deserved to know her mom was in the hospital.
Claudia glanced up at him. “I’m all right.”
“You’re not fine, but I’ll be back in a flash.”
Jaden disappeared around the corner and Claudia sunk into the chair. Placing the Kleenex against her nose she blew into it and discarded the tissue. Saying a silent prayer was all she could do. God and Adeline had a good relationship so talking to him was her best bet. After what seemed like twenty seconds, Jaden reappeared with her phone and purse in hand.
“That was fast,” she said.
Jaden sank to a crouch in front of her. He swiped a hand over her smooth, flawless skin and tugged her earlobe. “Can this call wait?”
Claudia watched him for a moment knowing why he asked. She gave him a small smile. “Unfortunately, no.”
Dialing the long-distance number Claudia braced herself for the fight that was sure to ensue.
Chapter Eleven
“What do you mean she fell?” Desiree wiped spilled coffee from her blouse as she headed towards the airport while checking when the next flight would fly out. Claudia had called instructing her to drop everything, and now her fingers moved wildly across her screen for the last-minute information. A flight from Houston to Chicago was boarding in twenty minutes, and she had a fifteen-minute ride across the interstate to get there.
“I found her on the bathroom floor. We’re at Mercy Hospital and Medical Center, are you leaving now?”
Desiree let out an exasperated sigh. “Yes, I’m on my way.” Desiree snapped the phone shut disconnecting the line. To say she was annoyed was an understatement. What had Claudia been too busy doing now that she couldn’t be home with their mother?
Desiree’s thoughts tornadoed. Was she unreasonable to think it? If Claudia was going to take on the role as a caregiver, she had to put their mother first. This is what Desiree needed to communicate to Claudia. What if Desiree had been at work and not getting off early. What if their mother didn’t wake up? The thoughts tormented Desiree, constricting her heart in a way that almost made her lose her breath. Desiree’s Ford Focus shot down the highway coming upon its exit. Her thoughts were heavy with words she and her sister would have.
“She hung up on me,” Claudia said sitting the phone down.
“You don’t seem surprised,” Jaden replied.
“Why would I be? It’s not like I don’t know she hates my guts.”
“I’m sure that’s not true.”
Claudia squinted her eyes. “You want to put some money on it.”
“You and Desiree need to have a conversation. From my observation, you both seem like one doesn’t understand the other. Just give it a try and see how it goes. At least you’ll be able to say; you gave it a shot.”
Jaden was right, but Claudia still wasn’t feeling it, and she wanted him to go on somewhere with all his good advice. Claudia cracked a small smile at that thought and sighed.
The doctor she’d spoken to on the way in the hospital entered the room.
“Stevens family,” he asked.
Claudia rushed to her feet with Jaden right beside her, his hand on the small of her back.
The doctor gave a reassuring smile. “Ms. Stevens is going to be just fine. It turns out it was indeed a hard fall. That’s not to say she won’t have pain; she will. There’s also a growing lump on her head, but that is to be expected. We’ll keep her overnight for observation, and she’ll be discharged first thing in the morning.”
“Oh my God,” Claudia said covering her heart with a hand. “That is such good news, doctor, thank you so much.”
Jaden reached out taking the doctor’s hand in his for a firm shake. “T
hank you, doctor.” His arm slid back around Claudia’s shoulder.
“Can we see her,” Claudia asked.
“Sure, follow me.”
They left the waiting room in a different direction than they’d come. It appeared the staff had already taken Adeline to a room on the hospital floor for her overnight stay.
“It’s room 2107 to the left,” the doctor informed them. “We’ll need you to fill out some information so we can get her properly in our systems.”
“No problem.”
“Do you have everything you need?” Jaden asked turning to Claudia.
“Yes, I keep her insurance information in my purse. Are you leaving now?”
“Not a chance.”
Claudia leaned into him. “Thank you for being here. I know it’s not an obligation—”
“Sssh,” Jaden put his finger to her moist lips. “It is for me,” he said.
“Thanks.”
“After you.”
Claudia walked into the hospital room. Adeline sat upright on the bed with pillows stuffed behind her back. She was awake and her face perked up upon seeing her daughter.
“Hey baby,” Adeline said reaching out for a hug.
“Claudia flew into her arms squeezing her snugly.
“I’m so sorry, mama. I should’ve been there. I don’t have an excuse.”
“Calm down, calm down,” she soothed. “Everything’s alright, I just had a little slip and fall.”
“A little slip and fall? Mama, you were unconscious on the floor when we found you.”
“I’m sorry. I know that scared you to death, but I’m glad you weren’t alone.” Adeline peered over at Jaden who stood firmly next to Claudia with an affectionate hand on her back.
“Mom this is Jaden, Jaden this is my mother, Adeline.”
“It’s nice to meet you; not necessarily under these circumstances but nevertheless.” Jaden shook her hand.
“Are you the one that keeps my daughter out after hours?”
“Ma!”
“What, I mean after 8 o’clock when I say after hours,” Adeline chuckled. “You know for us old folks when the street lights come on, you’re late.”
Jaden chuckled and Claudia slapped a hand against her head.
Enough (Falling For A Rose Book 2) Page 7