Chapter Eleven
JAKE
R oiliest ? That’s not a word,” I said with a laugh.
“It most certainly is,” Natalia said as she pulled out her phone. “I’ll prove it.”
I watched as she tapped the screen. She was so beautiful in the warm light of the fireplace. There were other things I’d much rather be doing with her right now than finding words on letter blocks, but it was a necessary distraction.
“See.” She shoved her phone in my face. “Turbulent. All roiled up, like water in a storm.”
“Sure.” I pushed the phone away, and she wrinkled her nose at me, which was the cutest thing I’d ever seen.
“Or like my stomach after you made me lose the canned pumpkin.”
I laughed. “Is that so?”
She shrugged her shoulders. “Just giving you an example. ”
“I’ll give you that one.”
“Of course you will because IT’S. A. WORD.”
“Whatever you say.”
“The dictionary says so. Do you need more proof than that?”
I loved this. She was so relaxed with me. There wasn’t a hint of shyness to be found. If she were ten years older. No, I take that back. If I were ten years younger …
She finished reading off her list of words, but I wasn’t really listening anymore. I nodded every once in a while. Even when she said a couple more words I wasn’t sure were real. I couldn’t seem to pull my eyes away from her lips as they moved.
“Wow. You aren’t going to question that one?” she asked.
I hadn’t heard the word. “Nah. I trust you.”
We played a few more rounds, and it became harder and harder to focus on the game.
“June,” I read from my list.
“That’s a proper noun. It doesn’t count.”
“Fine.” I stuck my lower lip out, and her eyes fixed on it, which made me wonder what was going on in her mind.
“Speaking of June … your dad and Grandma June are sweet together.”
I wondered if she changed the subject because she felt this pull between us too.
“Yeah, she’s such a sweetheart,” I said. “It’s been about five years since Mom passed away, and I’m happy he found someone special.”
“How did your mom die?”
“She had heart disease and had a lot of issues over the years. Her heart was too weak and finally gave out. ”
“I’m so sorry.”
“Thank you. She passed away in her sleep, so I like to believe she went peacefully.”
She set her hand on mine. “I’m sure she did.”
I gave her a closed-mouth smile, and she took her hand back.
“Do you think your dad and June will ever admit to being a couple?”
I chuckled. “I think so. They’ve grown pretty close, and we never have a conversation that doesn’t include her name a dozen or more times.”
“That’s so cute. It gives me hope that it’s never too late to find love.”
She returned her attention to reading her list of words to me, but I was stuck on what she’d said. Sometimes, I wondered if it was too late for me. My life was all about the girls. And I didn’t have the time or energy for the dating scene.
“Last round. Add up your totals,” she said when she’d finished.
Her face lit up when I told her my score.
“I win!” She smiled confidently.
I stretched and rested my arms along the coffee table behind us, one arm along her shoulders.
She trembled slightly, then leaned forward to put the lid back on the Boggle board and glanced at the wall clock. “It’s getting kind of late. Is it okay if I sleep here?”
My eyes shot to hers.
“I can stay on the floor by the fire to keep warm and add logs to keep it going.”
My heart began to thump loudly in my chest as I pictured us lying together in front of the fire, holding her close in the dark. I tried to push the thoughts away, but they wouldn’t listen.
We stared at each other in the stillness of the night. Everything was so quiet without the hum of electricity. The only sound was the crackle of the fire and our rapidly accelerating breaths.
She tilted her head away, looking over at the fire, and some strands of her hair fell over her eye. My hand moved on its own, reaching for her, my fingertips sliding through her silky hair. Her breath caught as I tucked it behind her ear, and I wasn’t really breathing at that point, either.
The warmth of her body heated my arm where it rested against her back, and like the pull of a magnet, I felt drawn to her. A million thoughts raced through my brain. I needed to think about the results of my actions, but I couldn’t think of anything but this beautiful woman before me whose lips I wanted to feel against mine. All thoughts of right and wrong flew out the window as I began to lean closer, staring at her mouth, anticipating my lips brushing the pillowy softness of hers. Her eyes dropped to my mouth as I tilted my head and leaned in slightly, until …
The lamp beside us suddenly flickered. Its bright glow bursting through the darkness as electricity returned, startling us, and bringing to light what had nearly happened.
With wide eyes, Natalia abruptly untangled herself from the blankets and stood.
“The power’s back.” I stated the obvious like a bumbling idiot.
“Good. I … I won’t have to sleep on the floor after all.” Her voice was shaky as she placed the Boggle game back in its box and put the lid on before grabbing my plate .
“Natalia,” I spoke softly, and she looked down at me. “What if the power goes out again?”
Her mouth opened, and she glanced at the fireplace before looking back at me. “I know how to light a fire.”
I watched her walk into the kitchen and heard her set my plate in the sink before she rushed out of the main house.
“Darn right, you do.”
I sat by the fire for long minutes after she left, nervousness settling in the pit of my stomach. I was thankful the lights had come back on when they did because any attraction I felt for Natalia had to be squashed. If not, it would get me into a lot of trouble. As much as I wanted to be selfish here and do what felt good, I couldn’t cross that line.
I’d obviously made her uncomfortable since she bolted out the door quicker than a blink. I was older and more experienced and in a position of authority over her, and I’d been seconds away from inappropriate workplace behavior. I was supposed to know better, and I felt ashamed. She could’ve filed a sexual harassment lawsuit and been right to do so. I worried that I’d scared and intimidated her and wondered if I should apologize or if that would make her even more uncomfortable. At the very least, I needed to be careful about being alone with her because I wanted nothing more than for her to feel safe here with us.
I remembered her words. It gives me hope that it’s never too late to find love. She deserved to find love. And she deserved a first love without all this baggage, someone who didn’t come with an ex-wife and an insta-family. Someone better than me .
The fact that she was single and so was I did not help matters. At all. If only she had someone in her life—someone her own age—maybe this preoccupation I had with her would go away. Maybe it would click in my mind how off-limits she was because my brain clearly wasn’t getting the message.
I thought of what she’d said about her dating life and how shy she was with new people. What if I could help her get over that? What if I could teach her how to talk to new people? I’d done similar things many times in my professional life—coached employees to set reachable goals and encouraged them to develop new skills and expand their capabilities.
The more I mulled it over, the more I realized this was totally doable. After searching the internet for a while, I came up with a solid plan to help Natalia. Her shyness would be a barrier to work through, of course, but I was confident I could help her overcome it.
Now, if only she’d go for it, this could be the solution to both of our problems.