Jerrold

by Katie Dowe

  Noelle did not know what to say to him. She felt the shaky sensation in the pit of her stomach. She had never been close to a man before and had stayed away from relationships because of the rejection she had had in high school! She was ashamed to admit to herself that she was a coward when it came to allowing a man to come into her life. She had come close one time when she had just started working, but as soon as he had started to show that he needed something physical, she had run for the hills! Now with this handsome and charming man, she did not feel like running, but she was nonetheless very wary. She started to shake her head and he moved closer to her, causing the breath to back up inside her throat. “Please.” His hands released hers but only to come up and cup her cheeks, lifting her face up to his. He was dying to kiss her but only if she gave the go ahead. He had never been in this situation before but he realized that being patient was what he was going to have to be even if it meant that he would have to take as many cold showers as possible! “I will not do anything unless you ask me to. I want to touch my lips to yours, Noelle, but only if you say yes.”

  Noelle felt the tremors inside her body as her eyes wandered over his face and touched on his lips. She closed her eyes briefly and still he waited with bated breath, his body poised in anticipation of her response. He almost sagged with relief when she responded in the positive and his hands trembled as he used his thumb to caress her cheekbone slowly, his eyes holding hers as he bent his head to hers. His breath mingled with hers, as his lips brushed over hers tentatively giving her the chance to resist him. He fought for control when she opened her mouth to his, but he deliberately kept the kiss light, as light as a feather, his mouth moving over hers, the touch like the gossamer wings of a butterfly. Noelle felt her heart beating against her ribs frantically as his tongue touched the inside of her mouth, searching for hers and finding it, tangling lightly, pulling back and then entering her mouth again. Noelle stifled the gasp as he tilted her head up and deepened the kiss slowly. Jerrold told himself that he had to take time; he could not afford to rush her no matter how he was feeling! His heart was thundering inside his chest and he was sure she could hear it! He was afraid to deepen the kiss in case he could not stop with just kissing her. Her bedroom was towards the back of the apartment and he wanted to lift her in his arms and take her back there and ravage her! The desire was raging out of control and he had to find a way of stopping it before he turned her off! He savored her lips for a minute longer, his tongue darting into her mouth, retreating and then plundering as he accepted the sweetness of her response to his passion, but before he could not stop, before he reached the point of no return, he dragged his mouth from hers and putting his forehead on hers, he took several deep breaths to get back some of the control. He let her go as soon as he was able and stumbled to his feet, his knees weak. “I don’t want to overstay my welcome,” he told her huskily as she sat there staring at him. He extended a hand. “Walk me to the door?”

  She placed her hand in his and he pulled her up, drawing her closer to him and keeping her there for a moment, his eyes wandering over her face, noticing the parted lips and the wisps of hairs on her forehead. “Think about what I said,” he whispered before stepping back.

  She stood at the door and watched him bound up the steps leading towards the outside door. As soon as he reached it, he turned and waved at her and then was gone.

  Chapter 6

  But she avoided him. Noelle knew that she was taking the coward’s way out, but after he had left her last night she had spent the night in agonizing thoughts. He was a jock, no matter that he was a very nice one, certainly nicer than Toby had been, and she was not the same person she had been back then. She certainly did not look the way she did and was not the same awkward gangly teenager who had cowered in fear and humiliation each time she went to school. She remembered telling her parents that she did not want to go back to school and if she could be home schooled, but her mother had sat her down and talked to her about owning her fears and not allowing anyone to intimidate her. So she had kept to herself, her head buried inside her books and not making eye contact with anyone. She had heard the snide whispers about her pimply skin and her gangly body and the clothes she wore and she had ignored them even though they had bored a hole inside her each time. The incident with Toby had been the worst. He had spoken to her while she had stayed back to watch football practice and she had been so dazzled and shocked that a guy like him had spoken to her that she had blurted out how handsome he was and how much she liked him. The very next day, it had been all over the school and the head of the cheerleading squad, the beautiful blonde Sophia Manchester, had walked up to her with him on her arms and in front of everyone in the hall told her that she was a sorry excuse for a female and if she thought someone like Toby could be interested in someone like her, then she should have her head examined. They had all laughed at her and drowning in humiliation she had called her mother to come and pick her up. It had taken weeks for her to get over the humiliation and even now she still thought about it. She had looked them both up on social media and saw that Toby was now a dentist and twice divorced and Sophie was working at a fast food restaurant. She had thought about reaching out to them and showing them how she had turned out, but before the idea had taken flight she had dismissed it immediately. It was not worth going over it at all. So she had spent last night going over the touch of his lips on hers and her reaction to the entire thing. She had wanted him to make love to her and he had been the one to stop it. If he had not done that she would have given in.

  So with a firm lift to her chin, she went to work and busied herself writing reports and treating the various injuries. She saw him come in during the afternoon and pretended not to see him.

  “I can check on that for you, Jerrold,” Robert told him as he sat there waiting for her to examine and treat a pull muscle in his left leg.

  “I can wait,” he told the man quietly.

  Robert looked over to where his daughter was studiously avoiding the general area where they were and made a decision. He pulled up a chair in front of Jerrold and got the man’s attention. “What happened between the two of you?”

  Jerrold looked at him with a frown on his brows. “I don’t think that’s any of your business.”

  “It’s not,” Robert told him mildly. “But if I know my daughter and I think I do, I would say that she is doing her best to avoid you and that means that something happened and she does not want to face it. She is dealing with it the way she always does.”

  “What way is that?”

  “By ignoring the problem altogether.” Robert sighed a little. “Has she told you of her high school experience?”

  “A little bit.”

  Robert hesitated a little and then started speaking. “I am only telling you this because I can see that you really like her. She was not a beautiful girl when she was a teenager. There were the usual problems: acne on her face, braces, and the awkwardness of youth. She hated her body and would spend hours in front of the mirror hoping that it would change. She was teased mercilessly and to top it all off she had a crush on the captain of the football team. When he found out about it, he told the head of the cheerleading team, who was also his girlfriend and the most popular girl in school. They humiliated her in front of the entire school and it messed her up. I wanted to go to the school and lash out at every last one of them for doing that to my baby girl, but she begged me not to.” He took a deep breath. “But she begged me not to and she went back to school after that and became a recluse, never having friends or attending high school functions. She has never recovered from it and even though I have suggested she seek professional help, she refuses to do so.” His dark brown eyes met Jerrold’s cobalt blue ones. “You represent what she faced in high school and no matter how much she likes you, she is going to resist.”

  “I am not intimidated by that.” Jerrold felt the fury simmering inside him for what they did to her but was determined to change things for her
! “And I am not going to allow her to ignore me.”

  Robert hid a smile as the man got to his feet and limped over to her desk. She was dealing with a team member but looked up when he came forward.

  “Gavin, take a hike, I need to talk to Noelle about this pain I am feeling,” he said mildly.

  The tall gangly forward got to his feet and lumbered away without a word. “He had genuine concerns,” Noelle pointed out as Jerrold sat down at the seat he had vacated.

  “So do I.” His eyes wandered over her face. “I came in here three times and you would not even look at me. Have I done something to offend you?”

  “No.” Noelle busied herself with the chart she had in her hands to avoid looking at him. He had kissed her inside her apartment and she had wanted him to. She could still feel his lips on hers. “I really have work to do.”

  “I pulled a muscle in my left leg.”

  Her eyes went to the leg he had stretched out and found herself fascinated by the play of muscles and the thick dark brown hairs lying against the tanned skin. He had pulled up the leg of his sweatpants for her to see. “My dad can deal with it.”

  “I would like you to deal with it,” he told her softly.

  “And if I refuse?”

  “Then I would just sit here until you do. I am not going anywhere, Noelle.” They both knew he was not talking about leaving the room.

  “I am not interested.”

  “And we both know that is not true.”

  Her eyes connected with his and he held her gaze. With a nod of her head, she indicated one of the cots in the corner. “I will meet you over there.”

  Noelle sat at the desk for a few minutes and took several deep breaths before she walked over to where he was lying on his stomach. She had the ointment with her and slipping on her gloves she started to touch the area.

  He winced when she made the contact and she concentrated on that area. “You are tense,” she murmured.

  “Maybe it is because you are touching me,” he said softly.

  “Stop.”

  He turned his head to look at her. The room was almost empty as the other players had already left. They had an out of town match on Saturday and would be gone for the weekend. He wanted to invite her, but he was sure that she would not agree to come. They would be going to Atlanta and he would have loved to take her out and maybe escape somewhere they would be alone. “Have dinner with me later.”

  “No.” She applied the ointment on the back of his leg and rubbed it in slowly, causing his body to react.

  “I promise to be on my best behavior. I will not even open the car door for you.”

  She could not help but smile at that. “The answer is still no.”

  “What are you afraid of, Noelle?”

  “I am not afraid of anything.” She capped the bottle and put it away before continuing the soothing movements of her fingers. “I am just not interested.”

  “I cannot accept that.”

  “You are going to have to.” She snapped off her gloves and stepped back. “You are all set.”

  He turned around and tested his leg, realizing that the pain was gone. “You have magic fingers.”

  “I am afraid I cannot take credit for that.” She held up the bottle of ointment. “This is very good.”

  “But your fingers helped a great deal.” He sat there looking at her for a moment, reluctant to leave. She had on her usual team shirt and faded denims and her hair in a ponytail and to him she had never looked more beautiful or more desirable! “Let me get the chance to know you.”

  “Jerrold-“

  “I am not going to take no for an answer,” he told her firmly as he hopped off the cot and stood in front of her. “Whatever it takes and however long it takes, I am willing to wait.”

  She lifted her head and stared up at him, mesmerized by the look in his eyes.

  “Have dinner with me.”

  “No,” she whispered, feeling her will weaken. “Rumors-“

  “So have dinner at my place.”

  She closed her eyes briefly. “Not tonight though.”

  “How about tomorrow night?”

  She nodded. “What time?”

  “Seven. Want me to come and pick you up?”

  She shook her head. “I will make my way there.”

  “Thank you,” he said softly.

  She did not respond but stepped back from him.

  “I will check in on you later.”

  *****

  He waited for her like an eager schoolboy. He had left practice early to come back to prepare. His apartment was very clean because he had a very capable housekeeper who took care of the place, but he had come back to start the cooking. He had looked up a recipe online and had instructed his housekeeper to get the stuff he needed. She had asked him if he wanted her to do the cooking and he had told her that it was not necessary. He did not usually cook, but tonight he was going to make an exception. He had an exceptionally wonderful woman to impress. He had meant what he had said to her that he would not do anything she did not want him to do, but he was sincerely hoping that she would want him to make love to her! He had showered and changed into khaki dress pants and a red ribbed sweater and had even put on his signature scent. He had shaved and spent longer in the bathroom than necessary, but he wanted to look good for her. She might not want to go out with him in public right now, but he aimed to make this as real a date as possible! The table was set with the white tablecloth he had found in the linen closet and he had placed two candles in the center as well. A bottle of Costa Light was encased in ice in the bucket and the smell of the sauce to pour onto the pasta was making its enticing way around the warm and cozy apartment. Jerrold owned the apartment building and the three bedrooms, three baths plus the large kitchen, dining room, and plush living room had been designed with his taste in mind. He liked wide open spaces so when he had acquired the building, a lot of walls had been torn down to give the wide open concept. He was interested in modern art and had several paintings strewn around his apartment.

  His head jerked up when he heard the sound of the bell. He had made a call down to the front desk to tell them to send her straight up. He went to the kitchen to turn the burner off and went to get the door. His breath caught in his throat as he stood there staring at her. She was wearing a chunky light blue sweater and a long blue and white skirt and her hair was loose around her face. “Hi.”

  “Hi.” He took her hand and drew her inside, keeping her hand in his as he made his way into the kitchen.

  “Something smells really good,” she said, sniffing the air.

  He let go of her hand and went to get the plates. “I am hoping that it tastes that way as well,” he told her with a grin.

  “Need any help?”

  “No.” He took the bowl of salad and handed it to her. “You can take this into the dining area. I’ll be right behind you.”

  He was armed with the bowl with the pasta and the sauce and stopped behind her as she took in the scene inside the dining room. “I wanted a proper date,” he murmured as he walked past her and put the bowls in the center of the table. “Shall we?” He pulled her chair out and she took her seat. He went around and uncorked the bottle of wine, pouring the rich red liquid into two glasses and handing her one before going to take his seat. “What do you think?” he asked her as she took her first sip of the wine.

  “It’s very good,” she said in surprised delight, taking a few more sips.

  “Product of Costa Land. Prince Alexander and Princess Debbie Costa are friends of mine. The team went there to play several times for charity. They are planning on forming a professional team and want our help.”

  “I have seen images of the place on the internet. It has an untouched beauty about it that really grabs you,” Noelle murmured, not really surprised that he was friends with royalty.

  “You would love it. They live in an actual palace with moats, not really functional but more for show than anything else and th
e rooms have been reconstructed but not much. You can still see the eighteenth century look portrayed there.”

  “I read that Princess Debbie was just a normal African American girl who used to work for the mother.”

  “And Alexander found his princess when she started to work for them,” Jerrold said with a whimsical smile, his eyes on her face. “Love has a way of changing the way you look at things.”

  Noelle avoided his eyes and concentrated on the meal on her plate. “This is quite good.”

  “Thank you, I did my best.” He had not touched his meal yet but had been filling himself with her. She was shy and retiring and he had a feeling that it was going to take some doing to get her out of her shell. But he was willing to take the time to do it! “What about you?”

  “What about me?”

  “I told you that I want to get the chance to know you and I meant it.”

  “What would you like to know about me?” She toyed with her pasta absently and avoided looking at him.

  “What are your likes and dislikes?”

  “Really?” She lifted a tapered brow and stared at him.

  He quirked a thick brow and waited.

  She shrugged and taking up her glass she sipped the wine. “I like to read.”

  “Fiction or non-fiction?”

  “Mostly fiction,” she said with a grimace. “I spent so much time buried in books, studying and trying to be the best that I got tired of heavy tomes and gravitated to light reading.”

  “Romance novels?” he teased.

  “Thrillers with a touch of romance,” she clarified. “I don’t like flake pieces that give the impression that the world is this wonderful place where a man and a woman fall in love and they live happily ever after. There are conflicts and trials that people go through and that is the reality of the world we live in.”

  “But you do believe that there is one person out there and when you find that one person, it is that person for the rest of your life right?” He had leaned back in his chair and was sipping his wine, his eyes on her face as if searching for her answer.