“Well, I know this is about the closest I’ve felt to someone in a long time,” he said. “I didn’t expect this, and there wasn’t a way to plan for it, but if business has taught me anything it’s that when the right thing walks into your life you sure as hell don’t let it get past you. I almost ignored this because I thought I wasn’t ready, or I thought it was wrong somehow, but now I know it was the best thing we could have done.”
I let his words sink in for a bit before I responded. “You’re right. I want this. I’m almost shaking right now because I feel so good. I… I don’t know how I can feel this way after knowing you for such a short amount of time and I know that my working for you is going to be a weird issue, but I would be willing to give this a shot if you are.”
“Absolutely,” he said. “And I don’t think it’s weird at all. I think it’s fine. Everything else should stay as normal as possible, especially for a while for Bobby’s sake.”
“Right. He needs time to adjust to this,” I said.
“I agree,” he said.
He leaned over and kissed me. Then he smiled. And I could see that right now he was truly happy. I was as well. This was going to be interesting.
Very interesting…
Chapter 5
Darren
I woke up in the morning and I was alone. I glanced over at the other side of the bed and I didn’t see Teri. Was she in the bathroom? Did she leave already? Surely she would have said goodbye, especially after the sweet night we just had. But maybe not.
I was having trouble getting a really strong read on this woman. She was amazing. I knew that. I couldn’t stop thinking about her. I wanted her so badly every single second. The sex with her had been the most beautiful thing… I never thought I would experience sex like that again. It was passionate. It was full of spontaneity. And it was just right. That was the only way to describe it. The sex was just right.
And the affection she’d shown me afterwards. After our little chat, she climbed into bed with me and we snuggled until we both fell asleep. It was nice to have that again. It felt like I was finally getting my life back. And I wanted that more than anything.
I hadn’t realized how much having that level of companionship had meant to me and how it was hurting me to not have that love in my life. And was it love? Was that something I could absolutely state with conviction and authority? I wasn’t sure. It might have been love. It just might have been.
But it was too early to declare that, wasn’t it? I sure as hell wasn’t going to say that to Teri. No, I would let things build up a bit before I went there. It was still going to take some time to get there I thought, to get to the point where all of that just felt right. I was willing to take things slow at the moment. And I believed that was the best way to handle it.
But I’d seen the lust in her eyes. And I’d seen the heart. She cared for me. She cared for us and for the potential that we had together. I wanted her so badly in my life that the thought of doing something stupid to mess things up was actually unbearable. I needed to relax and take things slow.
I rolled out of the bed and grabbed my phone off my night table. I checked my messages and I saw that there was a message from Teri. “I left early so that Bobby would not see me. I’ll see you later J.”
I smiled with relief. She hadn’t been spooked out by something I did or said. I hoped not anyways. It had been so long since I’d been on the dating scene that I wasn’t sure what to look for anymore. It was forbidden for people who liked each other to just come out and say they liked each other. No, now you had to play games and be aloof and mysterious. I think there was a blood pact involved and some lucky rabbit’s foot. It was a huge thing. I was way out of the loop.
I laughed at my asinine thoughts and got out of bed. I took a quick shower realizing I had no time for a workout right now. I might be able to squeeze one in at the office later on. I finished the shower, drie
d off, got dressed, and then I went in to wake up Bobby.
I got him ready for school and gave him some breakfast. I dropped him off on my way to work. He was excited that Teri would be picking him up again. He really liked her. “Yeah, I really like her, too,” I told him. “I love you, buddy. Have a great day.”
He smiled and gave me a thumbs up in his charming little way. Then he headed into his school. I watched him go before pulling away.
When I got to work it was hectic business as usual, but as I stumbled into my office trying to get away from a horde of people who seemed dot need me for something, my secretary Patrice noticed something. “You ok? You seem way more cheerful this morning than normal.”
I laughed. “I’m not sure. I’m just feeling it today. By the way, Teri is a fantastic nanny. I’m so glad you recommended her.”
“That’s great to hear. She is a sweet girl.”
“That she is.” You have no idea how sweet, I thought. I kept the musing to myself and enjoyed my secret joke. “What do we have today?”
“Your schedule this morning is fairly wide open, but you do have a few meetings this afternoon pretty much back to back.”
“Ok,” I said. “I want to go out in the field this morning and check on a few properties. Then I’ve got a quick round of golf lined up. I should be done before those meetings. If I’m not then I can just arrive late. They should wait for me.”
“I don’t know if they will,” she said.
I shrugged. I entered my office and then shut the door. I needed to talk to someone about what had happened with me and Teri. I was bursting with the news and it felt like it was the world’s biggest secret for some reason, most likely because her relative was right outside.
I sat down at my desk and then called up my friend, Nathan to tell him the good news. “So, are you sitting down?” I asked him.