Jerrold

by Katie Dowe

  “Darling, you look as if you are not enjoying yourself,” a familiar seductive voice said at his elbow. He closed his eyes impatiently and forced himself to be cordial as he turned to face the woman there.

  “Selena, how are you?” he asked her politely.

  “Wondering when you are going to ask me to dance,” she purred. She was a beautiful brunette and a constant hanger on, whether the team was practicing or when they had matches and had one desire in mind: get Jerrold to notice her, which she had not succeeded so far. For one, Jerrold knew that she had slept with several team members already and as beautiful as she was, she was not his type.

  “I was of the impression that your dance card was already full,” he told her sardonically.

  “And you know I would clear it especially for you,” she said with a pout.

  “Please don’t go to that trouble on my account.” He looked away from her and noticed that Noelle was coming his way. With a muttered excuse, he went to meet her halfway.

  “Hi.”

  “Hi.” She looked over to where the woman he had been talking to was still standing where he had left her so abruptly and said to him. “I hope I did not interrupt?”

  “No,” he told her immediately. “Did you come to claim our next dance?”

  “I did.” She tucked her hand through his and smiled. “I rather enjoyed our first one and wanted to see if the second one is as good.”

  “Let’s put it to the test, shall we?”

  He managed to keep her with him for the rest of the evening as he entertained her with conversations about the people he knew there. He caught her stifling a yawn as the hands on the clock turned twelve and teased her. “I would hate to think that my supposedly entertaining conversation is putting you to sleep.”

  She laughed up at him, her dark brown eyes twinkling. “I am afraid I am not much of a night person and it is way past my bed time.”

  “So I take it this is the time your beautiful dress will turn into rags?” he queried, his thick brows lifting.

  “As my fairy godmother advised me when she waved her wand and decked me out in this beautiful gown,” she said with sham gravity. “I have to get out of here before my carriage turns into a pumpkin.”

  “I could offer you a ride if that happens,” he told her as he played along. “I have a Porsche parked outside that is guaranteed to get you back to your place.”

  She looked at the slim gold time piece on her wrist. “I have five minutes before that happens.” She touched his arm briefly. “Thank you for a lovely evening.”

  “My pleasure.” He did not want her to leave, but he could not stop her. “Would you like to accompany me to the children’s homes tomorrow afternoon?” he asked her suddenly.

  She looked at him in surprise. “You visit them?”

  “I actually do. I take gifts to the kids as well as the members of staff. I am the unofficial Santa,” he told her with a grin.

  She tilted her head and stared at him. “I would so love to see you in that red suit and the white beard.”

  “For you I will do just that when they host the Christmas Eve party at the center.”

  “What time tomorrow?”

  His heart skidded at that! “How about three in the afternoon?”

  “I will be ready.”

  He watched her walk away and realized that his night had just been revived!

  Chapter 5

  Noelle opened her eyes slowly, trying to come awake but still feeling groggy. She had barely managed to take off the dress and pulled on an old t-shirt before tumbling into bed, falling asleep as soon as her head hit the pillows. She shoved the comforter off her and climbed out, steadying herself as she stood up. She had forgotten to do something with her hair and now it was going to be a tangled mess! A glance at the clock showed that it was almost ten and she could not believe that she had slept the morning away! She had not been able to do any housework yesterday because she had been out for most of the day and she had promised to go visit the homes with Jerrold a few hours form now which meant she had to try and get some things done before the time was here for her to leave.

  On her way home last night, she had tried to identify what she felt about him. She had been prepared to dislike him on principle, but she realized that even though he was rich and handsome, that he was also very human and happened to care about people. She walked into the kitchen and put the coffee on, deciding to make a sandwich before going to do some housework. And he was very friendly to her which she appreciated. She had left Lakeside so many years ago and had not made friends apart from the neighbors who still lived in her neighborhood. She did not have a girlfriend she could confide in because no one had wanted to befriend a girl who had looked the way she did in high school so she had become a loner and had kept to herself mostly. Even when she was in college and had grown into her looks, she had still shied away from making friends with girls her age, preferring to have her head buried inside her textbooks and keeping to herself. She got up to pour the coffee and set about making the sandwich, determined not to spoil her day by thinking about the past!

  *****

  She was ready when he came by to pick her up. He got out of the car and came around to open the door for her, waiting until she got in before going around to the driver’s side. She snapped on the seatbelt and turned to him as he drove off. “I told you that I am definitely not a night person.”

  “What happened?” He spared her a glance, wanting to tell her that he loved the way the snug green sweater fit her and how he wanted to run his fingers through her thick hair! “Did your car turned into a pumpkin?”

  “Much worse!” she exclaimed as she settled back against the soft leather seat. “I could not wake up this morning.”

  “So you would definitely survive a late night game.”

  “Definitely not.”

  He sent her an amused look before putting his eyes back onto the road. It was Sunday afternoon in Lakeside and the weather was freezing which meant that people had opted to stay indoors. The streets were scanty and the low hanging grey clouds indicated that snow was imminent.

  “We might be getting a white Christmas after all,” he murmured.

  “When was the last time there was one here?”

  “Too many years to count.” He put his left indicator on and turned into a wide yard with the starkness of the bare trees surrounding a large unpretentious of white building with a swing on the porch. A peeling sign identified the place as The Progressive Home for Children.

  The front door swung open and a large black woman with iron grey hair stood just inside the doorway, clutching her coat. Jerrold wet around to the trunk and opened it, taking out several packages. “Could you grab a few of those?”

  Noelle nodded and wrapping her coat around her, she reached into the trunk and pulled the packages out that he had not been able to take and stepped back as he closed the trunk and waited for her to follow him. The woman greeted him enthusiastically as if he was a very welcome guest and Noelle supposed he was! “Gertie, this is Noelle Buckner, the team’s physiotherapist. Noelle, this is Gertrude Cummings, the awesome person in charge of the home.”

  “Mr. Jerrold, you and your flattery,” she said with a beaming smile as she hugged him. “Very nice to meet you, Miss Noelle.”

  “Oh, please, call me Noelle,” the woman was told. “Where are the children?”

  “Watching a movie and drinking hot chocolate.” She indicated for them to follow her, taking some of the packages from Noelle. A huge Christmas tree was in the living room and a fire kept the cozy room warm. They were shown into a room where children of various ages were seated on throw rugs on the carpeted floor with their eyes were glued to a large flat screen television attached to the wall, with foam cups in their hands. They looked up long enough to greet the adults before turning their attention back to the screen. Several members of staff were seated in the room as well and greeted them.

  “They are usually well-behaved chi
ldren and polite as well, but when they find something interesting to watch, they become absorbed,” Gertie whispered.

  “No need to apologize,” Noelle whispered back. “I am the same when I am watching my episodes of This is Us.” She felt Jerrold’s eyes on hers and turned her head to look at him. “I binge watch episodes when I am interested in a series and yes, I love the series.”

  “Good to know,” he whispered back.

  They spent two hours at the home and Jerrold watched as she interacted with the children, having conversations with them and putting them at ease.

  “She is very good with them.” He jumped as he heard Gertie’s voice next to him and turned to look at her.

  “She is,” he murmured as he looked back at her. He had no idea that a tender expression was on his face as he looked at her.

  “I gather that she is very special to you?” the woman asked.

  “She is.” He did not bother to deny it.

  “She seems to be a very special woman.”

  *****

  They visited the next home and spent another two hours there before heading back to her place. “I was thinking that we should stop somewhere and get a bite to eat,” he said casually as they made their way back.

  “You read my mind, but instead of stopping somewhere why don’t I cook us dinner?”

  “I don’t want to put you to any trouble.”

  “No trouble at all. I could whip up a seven course meal in a few minutes.”

  He turned his head to look at her and saw the amused expression on her face. He had seen the way she was with the children and had ended up feeling the surge of desire growing more and more for her!

  “Really?” he said dryly. “And what would that be?”

  “Oh, I don’t know,” she murmured, stretching her legs out and bracing back in the seat a little bit more. “Tomato soup for the first course, maybe a rack of lamb for the second, and for the third and fourth, I was thinking something with chicken for that and maybe something with fruit and a beverage for the fifth.” He watched in amusement as she furrowed her brows. “Maybe just five courses instead of seven.”

  “My thoughts exactly.” He pulled up outside the apartment building. “We are here.”

  He got out and went around opening the door for her to get out and taking her arm he guided her to her apartment building. She opened the door and stepped inside with him behind her. Jerrold closed the door behind him and took his boots off without being told to do so, following behind her and taking off his coat. He took hers as well and hung them on the coat hanger near the door.

  “So this is home.” She spread her hands to encompass the living room and headed towards the kitchen. “There is a bottle of wine in the fridge,” she told him as she went to get two glasses. “I was thinking of making Rigatoni with grilled peppers and cheese.” She took the glass of wine from him and while he sat around the counter she set about getting the ingredients together. “I saw the meal on Pinterest and decided to try it.”

  “So I am to be your tester?” he teased. He liked this cozy atmosphere with him seated in the kitchen as he watched her slice and dice.

  She looked up at him with a laugh. “Yep, and you are going to be totally honest with me.”

  “Absolutely.” He sipped the wine and watched as she poured the pasta into the boiling water on the stove top. “Total honesty no matter how much it hurts.”

  “I have every confidence that it will not hurt because I happen to be a kick ass cook.”

  He stared at her for a moment and then laughed. “We will see.”

  “How about you?”

  “You are asking me if I am a kick ass cook?” he teased.

  “Yep.”

  “I can make a decent meal because my mother insisted that I learned, but I hate cooking for myself.”

  “Me too,” she said wryly. “I cook because I am forced to and I don’t particularly like takeout meals.”

  “I live for takeout,” he admitted as he reached for the bottle of wine and poured some more into his glass as well as hers. “Whenever I am at my place and remember that I have not eaten for several hours, I grab the phone and order something.”

  “A rich guy like you and no chef?”

  “I have a housekeeper who comes in several days a week and will cook something when she is there, but sometimes I end up not remembering and the food goes to waste. I am usually busy and sometimes I have dinner appointments. The team tends to travel a lot as well.”

  “You said you wanted to give it up. Are you sure you can?” Noelle had finished what she was doing and had come to sit across from him, the scent of her cooking permeating the air.

  “Positive,” he told her soberly. “I told you that I wanted something more. What about you? What do you want?”

  She stared at him before looking into her wine glass. “A month or two ago, I would have told you that I would want to be left alone. Just do my job and come home to my apartment and do it all over again the next day, but I find that I want something more as well.”

  His heart hammered inside his chest. “What changed?”

  She shrugged. “I think coming back here and having actual conversations with you - I mean with others and realizing that this is where I belong.”

  If he noticed her slip, he did not mention it but stared at her quizzically. “I am happy to hear that,” he told her quietly.

  She nodded and hopping off the stool she went to see to the meal.

  She insisted on them eating around the dining table even though he said he would be comfortable at the counter. “It’s not every day I have an illustrious guest so humor me,” she told him with a smile.

  She waited until he had taken several mouthfuls before she asked him. “Please don’t leave me in suspense. How is it?”

  “I thought you would want me to finish the entire meal before I give you my opinion.”

  “Don’t make me hurt you.”

  He laughed at her and capitulated. “It’s delicious. You make a great chef.”

  “Thank you. Next time, you are doing the cooking and I will do the evaluation.”

  His hands trembled at her words. “How about the next time you be the one to come to my apartment?” he asked her casually.

  “That sounds like a plan,” she told him and continued eating.

  He was dreading the end of the evening and was trying to find a way to stay longer even though it was getting late. But she solved the problem by inviting him into the living room and offering him chocolate chip ice cream.

  “Ice cream in winter?” he asked her dubiously.

  “You are one of those who do not believe ice cream is for every season?” she scoffed as she handed him a small bowl and came to sit next to him on the long sofa.

  “I am afraid so.” He dug his spoon into the frozen chocolate and scooped it out. “Definitely summer and maybe spring.”

  “You have no idea what you have been missing,” she told him loftily.

  He tasted it tentatively.

  “Oh, for heaven’s sake!” she burst out in exasperation, leaning towards him and pushing the spoon inside his mouth and totally missing the mark. He jumped as the icy treat slid down his chin and headed for his thick black sweater. Before it could find its mark, Noelle had grabbed a napkin and was dabbing at it. Seeing her hand wiping his chin and her being so near to him was unnerving more than he could ever imagine and he felt the tremors sweeping through his body! His hand closed over hers and his eyes met hers, the expression in them causing her to go still. She tried to pull her hand away, but he held fast, leaning over to put his bowl away and to take hers from her hand as well. He took both her hands in his and stared down at the long tapered fingers before looking at her. “I don’t want to make you feel uncomfortable,” he whispered.

  “I cannot do this.”

  He took a deep breath and continued as if she had not said anything. “But I have feelings for you and I don’t know how to stop them, I don’t want t
o.”

  “I don’t know what that means.” She was trembling, but at least she was not trying to pull away from him.

  “I am attracted to you, Noelle.” His deep voice slid over her skin and she felt the warmth of his touch and his gaze sending her off balance. His hands tightened on hers. “I know how you feel about men like me and I am hoping to change that if you will let me. I want you to know that I am different and that I would never do anything to hurt you.”

  “The ice cream is melting.” The words were inane but were the only things she could think of to say at that point.

  He almost smiled at that and realized that she was confused and nervous. “I promise not to do anything until you are ready, but I just had to let you know.” He felt the tremor in her long fingers mirroring the ones in his. “Let me show you that I am different, let me change whatever awful experiences you had in high school. Just give me the chance to prove to you that not all of us are the same.”

  “What do you want?” Her words were tremulous and her eyes wide as she stared at him.

  “I want-“ He had been about to say ‘you,’ but he changed his mind, just knowing that she was not ready for that yet. “I want us to get to know each other.” He quelled the urge to pull her onto his lap and devour her mouth with his.

  “Why?”

  “I happen to like you a lot and I want to believe that you like me too.”

  “I don’t want a relationship.”

  “I am not talking about that yet,” he told her gently. “Just hear me out before you say anything else,” he pleaded.

  When she nodded, he continued. “I admire you, your generosity of spirit, the way you care about the people you take care of. You are beautiful and kind and when I watched you with the children today it made me realize more how wonderful you are.”

  She tugged at her hands again and still he held fast. “You don’t know me.”

  “I want to get to know you and I am asking you for the privilege and opportunity to do that. Will you give me the chance?”