Chapter Nineteen
I WOKE UP EARLY IN the afternoon laying in his arms after a long nap. The accident and residual pain medication were kicking my butt. Ian was peering into my eyes the second mine opened.
“I could get used to this.” He kissed my nose.
“Me too.” The contour of my body seemed to fit perfectly with his, like two puzzle pieces. Like he was my missing half. “But we need to talk about how we’ll make this work, and about your past.”
His jaw clenched.
“You don’t want to tell me about your ex-wife? Or Alexa?” I spewed her name.
“I fired her,” he snarled.
“What? When? Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Relax. I fired her when I went back to the office to get your keys and laptop. I didn’t mention it because I had more important things to worry about. Namely you.”
“Why did you hire her in the first place? You seem smarter than that,” I teased, sort of.
He let out a heavy breath. “She introduced me to my ex-father-in-law and Marissa,” he growled, “they own a VC firm and their initial investment helped me launch IAG. On top of that, Alexa did a lot of design work for me at the beginning for free. She’s hit a rough patch lately, so I wanted to help her, like she helped me. ”
“I’m pretty sure she only wanted to help herself to you.”
“Her advances were never welcome. That kiss you saw yesterday was all her, I swear. I never had feelings for her other than as a colleague.”
“What about your feelings for your wife?”
“Ex,” he was quick to add.
“Okay, your ex-wife.”
He stared out into the room, thinking about what to say before pulling me closer to him.
“Marissa was a mistake. We mistook our business relationship for something it wasn’t, and it turned personal.
I’m still paying for it. She’s the reason I had to return to Colorado.
She’s suing me over the sale of my company. ”
“Oh.”
“I’m not worried about it. The lawsuit has no merit. This is to spite me.”
“What reason does she have?”
“She’s mismanaged her father’s firm and she’s looking to blame someone. It’s a power play.” He stroked my hair. “Let’s not talk about it anymore. You need to rest.”
I snuggled into his chest. “Ian, maybe we shouldn’t mix business with pleasure. What if we’re mistaking this for something it’s not?”
He leaned away from me, his brow crinkled.
“Kelli, I know you don’t agree with my professional approach, but I’m not going to make the same mistakes I made at IAG.
Too much is on the line this time. If I have to, I’ll quit, but I think you and I together can take Chandler to the next level.
But more importantly, I can’t imagine my life without you. ”
“So, you’re admitting you came to Chandler because of me.” I flashed him a crooked smile.
He nuzzled my neck. “You are so infuriating sometimes.”
“The feeling is mutual, but you didn’t answer the question.”
“Yes, okay, you were part of the reason I came to Chandler, but you are the reason I came to Nashville. You are my reason for everything.”
Oh. Wow. “That might be the sweetest thing you’ve ever said to me.”
“It’s true.”
I rested my head back on his chest. “I still need time to think.”
“Take all the time you need. I’m not going anywhere.”
“Promise?”
“You have my word.”
I drifted back to sleep with that lovely thought.
THAT NIGHT AFTER DINNER WE curled up on my couch and watched a movie, you know, between making out.
I figured while I was thinking about giving him a second chance I might as well test out the merchandise.
Did he ever make me want to buy in. The man had a gift.
My toes were going to be permanently curled.
While taking a breath between kisses, Ian reached into his pocket, pulled out a piece of paper, and placed it on my lap. “We need to talk about this list.”
I picked up the paper and laughed when I realized what it was. It was the husband list I had stuck to the refrigerator.
Top Ten Husband Qualities
1. Gainfully employed.
2. Good kisser.
3. Must want children.
4. A non-yes man.
5. Handsome and well groomed.
6. Must adore me.
7. Challenges me to be better.
8. Preferably never married.
9. Minimal baggage. See number 8.
10. Above all, faithful to me.
He took the list back and went down each number, one by one. “Number one, no problem.” He kissed me and smiled. “I’ve got two covered.”
“Uh, don’t you think I should be the judge of that?”
He tapped my nose. “Believe me, I can tell you agree with me.”
I couldn’t deny it. It was so true.
“Number three, yes.”
I don’t know why, but the thought that Ian wanted children, and perhaps with me, made me blush.
“Number four for sure, as well as five.”
I rolled my eyes at his arrogance.
“Number six. I absolutely adore you,” he whispered in my ear.
“Numbers seven and ten are not problems, but we need to talk about numbers eight and nine.”
I’ll admit his past made me wary, and it was a sticking point in my mind.
I know he didn’t want to talk about his ex-wife, but I had to ask. “Do you still love her?”
He sighed. “The question you should ask is if I ever did.”
“That’s kind of worse in my mind. Why would you marry someone you didn’t love?”
He took my hand and his thumb swept across it several times. “I told you I made mistakes, and I’ve done things I’m not proud of. Remember when I said that I tried to forget about you and that’s where I went wrong?”
“I remember you saying there was a woman.”
He held my hand up and kissed my palm. “In my pursuit to get over you, I made some very poor choices, Marissa being one of them. But in my defense, she didn’t really love me either.”
“I don’t know if I can be with someone who takes marriage so lightly. And how long will this legal battle with her go on?”
His brows creased. “Kelli, I don’t take marriage lightly, and I didn’t take it lightly.
Love and marriage don’t always go hand-in-hand.
Yes, that’s the best way and the way I would prefer it, but I was faithful to the vows I made, and I only divorced her because she was unfaithful.
Don’t get me wrong, I regret marrying her, but don’t think for a second I did it lightly.
And to answer your question, the litigation should be done within the month, with any luck. ”
I wasn’t sure what to say.
He didn’t seem bothered by my silence. He brushed my hair back. “Do you think you could possibly get over the fact that I’m divorced?”
I tapped my finger against my mouth. “Hmm. Dating my divorced boss who broke my heart when he left me? It sounds so tempting.”
He carefully pulled me onto his lap, doing his best not to jostle me. He held me close. My head rested on his shoulder. “How about dating a man who has learned from his mistakes and is crazy about you?” He paused for a moment. “How about a man who is still in love with you?”
My head popped up. For a second, I thought it was the drugs talking. “You love me?” I stuttered.
“I love you, Kelli.”