Still Here: A Secret Baby Romance (6 page)

"
I
think
you agreed to spend so much time with him because you have a thing for him." My mother took my dinner plate from me and slid it into the sink.

She always knew what I thought before I did, and it was part of why I didn’t want to tell her about my date. Because she would spoil my own feelings.

I stood and followed her, joining in our old after-dinner routine. She would wash. I would rinse. It was the perfect little pair. We were such a happy family.

Until I went off to college. I thought I was bigger than Laurel, Montana. I thought I could rule the world.

I thought there would be an entire life waiting for me outside of it.

I was wrong.

"It's not about him, mom. It's about the money. Fifty-thousand dollars is a lot of cash. I want to make sure that you're taken care of. That you have everything you need." It was a lot of money, especially for us. Especially here.

Money could buy a lot of things, but it didn’t buy that tall stack of sexy that wanted to see me. No matter how much I tried to deny it, I couldn’t help but admit that I liked the attention.

Wyatt Graves was every bit the bad boy he ever was, and I was drawn to him. Like the way a moth is drawn to flame, even though it gets burnt every time.

I'd be lying if I didn't admit that who it was had a little bit to do with it. I mean, I wasn't going to sell my time to just any man that came off the street. No, it was Wyatt. I could trust him.

I could trust him not to take advantage of me.

"Well, if that's the case," She said as she looked at me, "At least he's hot."

"Mom!" I said in surprise. I hadn’t expected her to agree with this, let alone encourage it.

"Well, he is." She grinned. "I might be too old for a fella like him, but I can look, can't I?" She snapped the towel at me and I giggled.

She wasn't lying. He was hot as hell. Everyone knew it. That wasn't what was up for debate.

"He must really like you if he's offering fifty-thousand just for some dates. Not even a guarantee of a goodnight kiss!" she giggled.

That's right. Not even a guarantee. At least, I hoped he understood that.

We hadn't actually gone over the ground rules.

Shoot.

What had I gotten myself into?

I
need
to talk to you.- Text Message

I
grinned
down at my phone. I knew who it was, but something about her made me want to give her grief. I guess that was just the way I rolled. She was fucking sexy when she was angry, though.

W
ho is this
?
I asked.

R
ose
.

H
ow did
you get my number?

I
got
it from Jess.- Rose
Of course she did.

C
ouldn’t get enough
of me, could you?
I was being a jerk and I knew it.

I
need
to talk to you.
She repeated.

I
see
. Isn’t that what we are doing?
I wrote back as I chuckled.

I
ran
my hand through my hair as I imagined what she looked like right at that moment. It was after two pm; she had to have been starting to unravel. At least a little bit. Business casual with her hair up, the stray strands flaring out. I imagined she even had some wrinkles in her blouse and that her makeup had started to fade.

She would’ve been absolutely beautiful.

W
hat
? No! Ugh. We need to talk.-Rose

Y
ou are
aware that you are in possession of a phone, correct? Call me.

I
was being
petulant on purpose. I knew that. Still, it was fun as hell, and she deserved it. At least it was all a game.

I waited, sitting at my desk, not filling out the documents and forms my father wanted. They could wait until Friday, but when he needed something he needed it now. He was in such a damn hurry to get out of here and head right to the islands with whatever girl he wanted. I couldn't remember her name, he had so many.

He was a demanding tyrant of a father, and in his capacity as boss even worse. I was glad to give him what he wanted and send him on his way so that I could get back to running things. The entire office breathed better, and the tenants were less likely to get angry. We both knew the truth. He was a hard person to work for.

And he was less forgiving of me.

Still, I wanted her to call. Wanted to hear her voice. I didn’t give a damn about what my father would say.

F
ine
- Rose

A
nd then it rang
. I grabbed it and I waited. I let it ring. Once, twice. Almost to voice mail. I didn't want to seem too eager. I didn't want her to know how much I was looking forward to this. I needed to keep playing the game.

I needed to keep her on her toes.

"Hello?" I said as I grabbed a stack of papers. I wasn't going to let her make me nervous. No woman had ever made me nervous before. I wanted to be calm. Cool. Collected.

If I couldn't win her over with my money and my charm I had to figure out another way. It couldn't be too hard. Could it?

I scanned to the back of the documents and started signing. Might as well get these things done.

"Hey, what do you need?" I asked.

"I wanted to talk."

"I got that. You've said it about five times now."

A long pause on her end. Was she nervous? Now I was interested.

"What do you need, Rose?" I asked again, more forcefully this time.

"I think we need to talk about rules. For our dates."

"Rules?" I asked. Oh, now this was good. I put down my pen and focused on the conversation at hand. "What do you mean?"

"Well, I'm going on ten dates with you for money. But that doesn't mean I'm-"

“You don't need to say it, Rose. I already know.” I wasn't going to allow her to imply in any way shape or form that she was a prostitute. That wasn't what this was about. This was about getting to know her. About her remembering who I was. “I don’t think you’re Pretty Woman, if that’s what you are asking.”

About rekindling that spark we had all those years ago. I could already see her lips parted, smell the taste of her mouth. She broke my heart when she left. Didn't give me a reason, not really, she just took off.

Somehow she believes it was all my fault. I had to find out why. I had to understand what happened.

"I just want it to be clear. Ten dates. Nothing is expected. Nothing." She sounded nervous. Hell, she was nervous. I could hear it in the way her voice was shaking.

"Yes. Absolutely. This isn't about that, Rose. Trust me. If I needed-"

"I don't need to hear about your escapades." Curt. Cold. Her nerves were gone. "I get that it's about your ego or whatever, just, I wanted to be sure."

I let that last little dig slide. I wasn't going to chew her out for it. I knew she was struggling. Knew she was looking for a way to blow this all up. I wasn't going to give it to her. I wasn't going to provide the out in this case.

She was stuck with me. At least for ten dates.

"That's fine, but that doesn't mean I can't hope for more." I said. I let my voice dip down a little, let her know what my intention was. If she understood exactly what I wanted she would claim she'd been tricked.

I was on to her, but that didn't mean I wasn't going to keep playing these games.

I wanted more of them. I wanted more of her.

"I'll see you Friday." I double checked my desk calendar. It would be perfect. I knew exactly where I would take her.

"Friday?" She asked.

"Five-thirty. I'll pick you up at your place,” I confirmed.

"Fine. Date number one." She was so stubborn about it, but she would like it. She’d see.

That's right, it was the first, and if I did it right I'd leave her wanting more than ten.

W
hy am I doing this
?
I knew the answer. Because he was hot, and I wanted to.

It wasn’t about the money, and I knew it.

I looked down at my outfit then back up at the mirror. He'd texted to tell me to dress casual. Well. This was casual. A pair of jeans, a nice peasant top and a jacket perfect for this balmy spring weather. No matter where we went I had a feeling I was going to fit in.

Laurel Montana was not the most upscale of towns. They had a couple of nice restaurants, one of which catered, but the rest of it was exactly what you would expect of a small town community.

I couldn't imagine where he was taking me but I knew that if I was dressed like this I wouldn't need to worry.

"That's what you are wearing? On a date?" My mom asked as she looked up at me through her glasses. Her bodice-ripper romance was wide open as she shook her head. "You have to go out looking nicer than that."

I sighed. "He told me to make sure I was wearing jeans, mom. I'm not going to get all fancied up and find out he wants to take me to the Rodeo in Billings."

There is a good chance that's where we were going. I liked the thought of it. The busy crowds, the number of people around, the anonymity of it.

"Whatever. You could at least unbutton the top button of that little blouse," she said as she raised her eyebrows.

"You're one to talk," I joked back. She hadn't so much as looked at another man since my dad died. I knew that was the truth, even if I wasn't living here. She never talked about guys, never mentioned dating, and when I did she shrugged it off.

"I read a lot of romance, I should know," she said as she smiled.

Sadie stood up, waggling her back end as she walked over to the door then back to me, then the door. It meant someone was here.

Wyatt.

"Wait for him to come to you," my mom said as she saw me heading for the door. "I want to see you two off."

"Mom, we've already done this."

"I know, but that date was a dud. I don't think this one will be." She put down her reading glasses and shifted her hips so that she was sitting.

I wondered if she was lonely. If she'd even thought about dating. I knew she missed my dad, but she didn't have to be alone. She didn't have to live in solitude.

I felt the weight of guilt weigh down on me. I should’ve been a better daughter. I should’ve come home to visit more. I’d stayed away, swore I wasn’t interested in coming back. I’d put up a wall between us that I never should’ve. She was my mom.

I should’ve been there for her more than I was.

“Where are you going, sweetie?” she asked as she stood up and looked into my eyes. “The look in your eyes tells me you were far away, and they weren’t happy thoughts. You need to think happy thoughts.”

She put her hands on my shoulders.

“I miss dad.” Don’t cry, I told myself. Whatever you do don’t cry.

“I do too,” she said, her eyes soft. She was probably holding back the same tears I was. It didn’t seem to get any easier. No matter how much time passed.

“I’m sorry I wasn’t here,” I admitted. I should’ve been there for them. It was wrong of me.

“You’re here now. I don’t know for how long, but that doesn’t matter. I’m just glad you’re home.”

A soft knock on the door broke the spell of the moment. Why was I nervous? I felt nervous. I felt almost scared. I shouldn’t. It was just a stupid contractual date. A way to get one over on me. A way to force me to live through the pain of the past.

Maybe it was a punishment for leaving. I didn’t know, I was just glad to be angry instead of nervous. I balled my fists and then answered the door.

“Are you ready?” I asked as I grabbed my coat. I didn’t want him to linger. I didn’t want him to talk to my mom. I wanted to make sure that this remained what it was. A business deal. So I set my jaw and pushed my way out onto the porch.

“I wanted to at least say hello to your momma, first,” He said as he moved around me and waved at her. “I hope you are doing well, Ms. Shannon.”

“Please, call me Miranda,” she said.

"Miranda." He smiled. He was good at that. Good at the charm. No wonder Suzan called him a player. It was obvious that charisma came natural to him.

I'd been caught up in it before, when I was young. But I wasn't going to let it happen to me again. Not this time.