He saved the file he was working on. He ran his hand through his hair and stared at his business partner and friend. “Beth is history, and I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t bring her name up again.”
“Sure.” Greg held up his hands. “Why don’t you go home? I can handle anything that comes up today.”
Jake was about to refuse, but Greg was right. He needed to get out of his office. Maybe a run would exhaust him enough to where he could stop thinking about Beth. It was worth a try.
“Thanks.” Shutting down his computer, he grabbed his coat. “If you need anything…”
Greg waved him away. “I know how to reach you.”
Nodding, Jake strode out of his office and waited for the elevator. Maybe today would be different. Maybe he could get some sleep and not see Beth everywhere he looked.
Two hours later, he was back in his car. He couldn’t stand his apartment anymore. Everywhere he looked, Beth was there. In his kitchen, at the sink staring at the building next door while she did dishes instead of using the dishwasher. In his bedroom, sprawled out on his bed and the bathroom…he swore he could still smell her cinnamon scent. If he was ever going to get her out of his mind, then it was time to move on.
He’d looked at several houses with a real estate agent, but none worked. His apartment was too full of memories, and a house would be a good investment. Except he wasn’t buying his own line of bull. He wanted—no needed—Beth in his life and his arms. He wanted a house so Rosie would have a yard to run in, and a place where he and Beth could raise their children.
But until Beth could trust him, they didn’t have a relationship. He wasn’t sure she’d ever trust him. He had only himself to blame, he’d crossed the line with the hospital bill. One step at a time, he reminded himself. Find a nice new home, and start making new memories. Who knew, maybe he’d meet a woman who didn’t have trust issues.
Back at his apartment, he sat down in the office and started sorting through his accumulated mail. His heart stopped when he saw an envelope with familiar handwriting. He tore it open and opened the letter.
Dear Jake.
It started.
Enclosed you will find a check to pay in full the amount you paid on the hospital bill. Love, Beth.
“Son of a….” How dare she? Shoving the letter back into the envelope, he stood and shoved it into his pocket. He grabbed his car keys and went out the door. If she thought this would fix everything then she was sorely mistaken. And she was about to find that out.
Jake pushed the door open to Calabria’s and strode right past Carla, even when she tried to stop him. Two steps into the bar area and he froze in his tracks.
Beth stood behind the bar a smile on her face and his heart stopped beating. Lord, he missed her. Her laughter, her smile, her kisses, just being with her. He was whole when he was with her. Now, he wanted to stride over and drag her into his arms and never let her go.
But first they had some very unfinished business. Stepping forward with purpose, he pulled the envelope out of his pocket and slapped it down on the bar in front of Beth.
“What’s the meaning of this?”
Her eyes widened when they settled on him. “Hel…Hello Jake,” she stuttered.
Was she nervous? What did she expect him to do, cash the check and run? Probably. He rubbed the back of his neck. When was she every going to trust him? Never, the word bounced around in his brain. But he wouldn’t believe it. He’d find a way to make this work between them.
“Hey, Jake.” Angelo slapped him on the shoulder. “You haven’t been around all week. Business keep you away?”
“You could say that.” Jake kept his gaze on Beth. Had she not told anyone of their break up? It seemed that way because Angelo was talking to him instead of decking him for hurting Beth.
“Well, it’s great to see you.” Angelo turned to Beth. “Break time. I’ll cover for you until you come back.”
“Thanks.” She turned her back to him to remove the apron covering her clothes. “Shall we go someplace more private to talk?”
Jake’s jaw dropped when Beth stepped out from behind the bar. What in God’s name was she wearing? The purple lace top gathered beneath her breasts, then flared out over a pair of black pants that fit her like a second skin. And her feet…gone were familiar sneakers and instead she wore a pair of flat sandals with laces crisscrossing over her delicate ankles.
“Jake?” she said her voice soft.
He nodded and pulled himself together before following her out the door. The cool night air cleared his head a bit as he followed her up the stairs to her apartment. He’d return the check to her, not take her to bed.
“Do you think your apartment is a good place to talk?”
“Yes.” She glanced back at him. “We need privacy and this is the only place we’ll get it.”
He was here. Beth could hardly believe it. Well, wasn’t that the purpose of sending him the check for fifty thousand dollars? The check was good. After a long talk with the bank and help from her friends, she’d secured a loan. Sending the check to Jake had been a calculated risk, but one she had to take.
He hadn’t just cashed it and written her off. Instead, he was here ready to confront her just as she’d planned. Her palms tingled and she fought against the nervousness bubbling up inside her. Once inside her apartment, she waited until he entered then closed the door.
Heart pounding, she stood quietly while he took in the changes she’d made in her apartment. Changes, with the help of her friends, she’d come to realize would make her life easier and help her apologize to Jake..
“Would you like something to drink?”
“Where’s Rosie?”
“Probably asleep in her bed, she’s been very restless lately.” And Rosie wasn’t the only one.
“Why?”
“Why what?” He couldn’t be talking about Rosie. “Have a seat.” She gestured to the newly refurbished sofa.
Instead of taking a seat, he held the envelope out to her. “Why did you send me the check? Don’t you know by now I won’t accept it?” He pulled the check out and ripped it into little pieces.
“I wanted to show you, your money wasn’t what I wanted.”
“You made that perfectly clear on more than once occasion.” He rubbed his forehead.
“Yes, I did.” She took a deep breath. “Money isn’t important, but our relationship is.” Not giving him a chance to respond, she plunged on. “I want to show you something.” She gestured to a large photo album and a scrapbook sitting on the small coffee table. “Would you please sit down with me so I can show you?”
He followed her to the sofa and sat. Taking a calming breath, she picked up the album and opened it. “This is a picture of me and my father.” Her finger shook as she ran it over the old photo. “I was only four when he left me and my mother. When I saw this picture, I remembered him bringing me presents whenever he came home from his business trips.”
She flipped the page. “That’s the newspaper clipping when my father remarried. You see, my father defied his family to marry my mother, but he finally gave into their pressure and married a woman his family deemed worthy.”
“My parents would never ask me to marry someone I didn’t want to. I’ve told you all about them.”
“I know.” She placed her fingers over the back of his hand. “My insecurities were so deeply rooted I didn’t even realize they were there.” She flipped to the next page. “This is my mother’s first lover, after my dad, Vincent DePalmer.”
“The shipping magnate,” he stated.
“Yes, then there was a banker, a hotelier, a couple of playboys, and…” She broke off when his fingers touched her lips.
“I get the picture.”
“My mother always felt money was more important than love. One day we’d be living in a mansion in Pacific Heights, the next in a shelter with only the clothes on our backs. I promised myself I would never let it happen to me, I would never let a man with money control my life.”
“I understand, but—”
“Please Jake, let me finish.” She had to get this out. Putting the photo album back on the table, she picked up the scrapbook. “I’d forgotten all about this stuff until I was cleaning out my closet. You see, I always thought my mother loved money more than me, but I was wrong.”
Her hand shook as she opened the scrapbook. Her heart was pounding so hard, she was sure he could hear it, but she would get through this. She would lay everything out for to Jake, including her love.
“Inside this scrapbook are all my report cards from school.” She flipped the pages. “Playbills from my school plays and music programs, she kept every one. My mom was so determined that I would live a better life, she hooked up with men that had money. It didn’t matter they didn’t love her. She wanted to make sure I was secure and that was the only way she knew. Money controlled my mother’s actions and I refused to let it control me. It wasn’t until you told me I didn’t trust you that I realized it wasn’t you I didn’t trust, but me.”
Unable to sit still, she set the scrapbook on the table, and began pacing around her small living room. “I was so afraid of being like my mother and losing the man I love because of money.” She couldn’t look at him. “My father left because of pressure from his wealthy family, my mother’s lovers left when my mom became too demanding. My ex-fiancé left me for a woman with money. I was determined to live my life on my terms and no one else’s.”
“You’re nothing like your mother,” Jake said quietly. “You’re a fighter. You cared for your mother when she was ill and kept working. You were paying her medical bill, even though you could have let it go. The hospital would have eventually written it off.”
“I couldn’t be that irresponsible,” she whispered. “I had to pay it off. It became a symbol of my independence. All I’d seen growing up was my mom taking money from her lovers, and I vowed never to do that. Then you showed me how wrong my thinking was.”
She gestured to her living room. “Thanks to my friends, they helped me see you weren’t trying to buy me or my affections, but make things easier, better. When you paid off the medical bill without telling me, I couldn’t find one logical reason for you to do that, except you wanted me indebted to you.”
Jake rose to his feet. “There was a very logical reason.”
Beth gazed at him. “I know that now, but at the time all I could see was my mother, begging her lover not to throw us out. She was always at the some man’s mercy.” Stiffening her back, and gathering her courage, Beth stepped over to Jake and placed her palms on his chest. “But you never made me feel that way. The TV, towels and cable meant nothing to me without you in my life. You may have bought them for your comfort, but they were for me, too.”
“You’ve worked so hard to get where you were, never giving an inch.” His hands framed her waist. “I couldn’t figure out why you wouldn’t take the day shift.”
“Because the tips are better at night. When you kept pressuring me to take the day shift, I saw it as a way to keep me under your control. The less money I had, the more dependent I would be on you.”
“You are the most stubbornly independent woman I’ve ever met.”
Her lips tilted up. He wasn’t pushing her away. “I won’t argue with you there. I love you Jake, and I believe you love me. I promise from here on out there will be no secrets between us. My life will be an open book with you.”
“I’m not sure, Beth.” He shook his head.
Her heart stopped, the hope she’d been keeping alive died. She let her hands fall from his face. “Then I guess there’s nothing left to say.”
His hands tightened on her waist when she tried to step away. “Actually there is.” Pulling her close, he placed his forehead against hers. “I want you to promise me that you’ll come to me and talk things out. And I promise to discuss any bills before I pay them. Okay?”
Beth nodded.
“And one more thing.” Beth held her breath. “I love you, will you be my wife?”
Her jaw dropped open.
“I love you so much and only you. What I have is yours. My money, my house, my car, my life and my love. I want to share everything with you and I was waiting for you to realize I wanted to share your life, too, good or bad. Together we can conquer anything.”
“But…”
“There is no but.” His lips brushed hers. “I love you and I want you to be my wife.”
Tears filled her eyes. Jake was accepting her, warts and all. He wasn’t demanding she change, but they’d changed together and work together. “Yes, I’ll marry you.”
“Hallelujah.” He captured her lips with his and her heart sang with happiness. When he broke the kiss several minutes later, they were both breathing heavy. “Promise me we can get married soon, I can’t wait to have you as my wife.”
“Name the date, Jake. In the meantime…” She took his hand and tugged him down the hallway to her bedroom. She smiled when he stumbled to a stop in the doorway.
Gone was her double bed, in its place was a queen bed, a new dresser sat beneath the window, and her closet door was open with a sign hanging in the empty spot that said “for Jake’s clothes.”
“I’ve been waiting for you to show up at the bar. I knew you would be angry at me for paying you back. I wanted to show you there’s more than enough room in my life for you, Jake. A life I want to share with you.”
“Tomorrow.” He whispered. “We’re flying to Vegas and getting married tomorrow.” His lips trailed down her neck, while his fingers began unbuttoning her blouse.
“Whatever you say.” Her hands weren’t idle, undoing his belt and unfastening his pants. Within minutes, they were naked and in bed.
He surged into her warm welcoming depths. “Maybe the day after tomorrow.” His hips moved. “No, make that forty-eight hours, we have a lot of making up to do.”
Wrapping her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck, she said, “I’ll marry you whenever and wherever you want. I love you so much.” Then her pussy shuddered around his cock.
“Come for me,” he urged.
“Together,” she whispered. “Always together.”
When they finally came down from their mutual climaxes, Jake cradled her against his chest. “I put my apartment on the market.”
“Why? You love that place.”
“Because we need a house with a yard for Rosie and our children.”