Only in Time (A Mystique Antiques Novella) (11 page)

As the elevator chimed for her floor, she released the breath she’d been holding. Her heels thumped against the carpet with each step she took. Just a few more hours and she could go home. Could open a bottle of wine and soak in the tub.

She didn’t make it to her office before her assistant came rushing around her desk. “Thank God you’re finally back.”

Ally met Heidi’s eyes, noting the way they widened. Fighting back the urge to growl, she hoped her assistant was overreacting. She didn’t need a crisis today. If anything, she’d like to leave early.

Stealing a glance at her watch, the hands pointed to one o’clock. “I’ve only been out for thirty minutes, Heidi. What’s wrong?”

“Thirty minutes?” Heidi’s face contorted with a frown. “Sweetie, you’ve been gone for two hours. It’s two-thirty.”

Ally’s eyes moved past Heidi’s face to the large clock above her desk. She did a double take just to make sure her eyes weren’t playing tricks.

Stupid watch. She’d forgotten to wind it this morning. Had been too busy moping over Jonah. Now it had cost her two hours of her life. Two hours she’d spent at the park, eyes glued to the water fountain as thoughts of him rolled through her mind.

“I still don’t understand what’s wrong. I don’t have any clients this afternoon. Why do you look like you’re about to pull out your hair?”

Heidi rolled her eyes, releasing a heavy breath. “Mr. Taylor’s client showed up a day early. Says he won’t be in town tomorrow and wants to see him, today. Problem is, Mr. Taylor went home early. Guess he’s sick. Mr. Goldman is at a business luncheon, which only leaves you to deal with the client. And he is
pissed
.”

What a great way to end the day. Talking down an irate client. Not that she hadn’t succeeded before, but focusing was a challenge today. She’d need every ounce of her wit to work with this client.

“Where is he?”

“I put him in your office. Twenty minutes ago.”

“Okay,” Ally sighed, gazing down at the file in Heidi’s hand. “Hold all my calls and get Mr. Taylor on the phone. See if there are any important details not included in this file.”

“Right away,” Heidi said as she raced back to the other side of her desk.

Once Ally rounded the corner, she stood outside her door, skimming the file for details on the investment. Damn Rich and his sloppy handwriting. She couldn’t make out any of the words stretching across the paper. Why hadn’t his assistant transcribed this information yet?

Had Ally not known a client was in her office, she would never have seen him. The high-back leather chair hid most of his body. Except for his foot, which shook with force near the armrest. Dealing with this client would be as fun as jumping into an ocean full of sharks. Both would be out for blood.

Quick steps brought her past the chair. “Good afternoon. I apologize for the wait, Mr.—”

“McCabe.”

Had his voice not sent a trail of ice down Ally’s back, his name would have. She gazed up in time to see Jonah staring back.

“Wha—what are you doing here, Jonah?”

“I’m supposed to be meeting with Rich Taylor about an investment. But I guess you already know that.” His eyes trailed down her body then back. “I didn’t realize you worked here.”

Nor had she realized he had the initiative to invest.

Pulling out her chair, she sat across from him, reopening the file as she placed it on her desk. “I apologize for Rich not being here. He’s out sick today, but I can help you with whatever you need.”

He looked as though he wanted to refuse her help, but didn’t. Uncrossing his legs, he leaned closer to the desk, resting his elbows on his knees. “Fine. Whatever. At this point, I just want to get things started. This isn’t the first time Rich and I missed each other.”

“I can’t make out his notes. Would you mind telling me about your investment?”

Jonah held her gaze a moment before turning his head toward the window. “It’s for a project I started with some musicians I work with. Since music classes are disappearing from a lot of school curriculums, I want to make sure children can still have access to music and have resources to learn about it as well. I couldn’t imagine where I’d be had music not entered my life.”

Neither could she. He loved playing. Or at least he used to enjoy it. Which is why finding out about his career change surprised her.

“Music and children. You’ve always had a soft spot for both.” She managed to put a smile on her face as memories came rushing back. How Jonah used to volunteer at the local hospitals, playing his guitar and singing to ill children, especially around Christmas. He’d even managed to drag her and Cassie along for his last performance.

The way those children’s eyes lit up when he’d sing had made her fall in love with him even more.

“So, tell me more about your project.”

His eyes met with hers again. A hint of a smile teased his lips. “I approached a couple of musicians about my idea and they loved it. Even got some of the record labels on board. We want to provide free music to children as one of our services. Most of the songs are being purchased by the musicians themselves. That’s how much they believe in this. We’re also going to do a mentoring program.”

Fighting to keep a smile on her face, Ally read over the file again. Or at least pretended to read. All she could think of was the man in front of her. The more he talked about his project, the more her heart ached for him.

She replayed his and Theo’s previous conversation in her mind. How they had talked about her…and her dance moves. How Theo taunted Jonah about some secret, possibly the same secret he almost revealed before his brother showed up.

But the part that hurt the most was hearing the anger in Jonah’s voice. Especially when saying he could had her
if
he wanted her. Which only meant one thing. He couldn’t see Ally as more than a friend. Regardless of how hard he’d kissed her. He’d been caught up in the moment. Hadn’t thought things through until logic made its way back to his mind. About the same time he pulled away from her in the hallway.

“Ally?”

The sound of Jonah’s voice ripped the thoughts from her head. But the ache in her heart continued. Especially when she met those smoldering eyes again. “I’m sorry,” she said, clearing her throat. “What were you saying?”

Pressing his back against the chair, he cocked his head to the side, letting his eyes roam her face. “Why didn’t you answer my calls this weekend?”

“I was busy.” What a horrible liar she was. Jonah wouldn’t buy it either. Not if he continued staring at her.

Gripping the edge of her desk, she rolled her chair away before standing. A few steps later, she neared the wall of windows. She wished Heidi would interrupt them. Hadn’t she told her assistant to call Rich?

Steps sounded behind her, alerting her of Jonah’s presence. A second later, his image reflected in the window. She prayed he wouldn’t touch her. There’s no way she could fight back the tears if he did.

“I don’t know how much you heard the other night, but—”

“I heard enough, Jonah.”

“At least let me explain before you judge me.”

Anger pulsed through her body at his words. “What is there to explain? I confessed my feelings for you. You tried to tell me you wanted me, too, yet you told your brother you weren’t interested in dating.”

Jonah stepped closer. The heat of his body radiated to hers, causing her to take another step away. But she couldn’t escape his voice. “Did you know about the date he and Cassie were arranging?”

“Cassie mentioned something about it the same day we ran into each other outside the antique shop.”

A snort echoed off the windows. “Yeah. We literally
ran
into each other.”

Spinning around to meet his gaze, she crossed her arms over her chest. “This isn’t the time for jokes. I confessed my feelings for you. If you weren’t interested, you shouldn’t have kissed me.”

“I wanted to kiss you, Ally.” His eyes seemed to plead with her. “I wanted to make love to you, too, but I couldn’t. Not until you knew the truth. I wanted your first time—”

“It wouldn’t have been my first time, Jonah. I’ve had a relationship before.”

“I was going to say I wanted your first time
with me
to be special.”

Ally’s cheeks burned until her skin felt charred. She prayed the floor beneath her would open up and swallow her. Anything to get away from the anger in Jonah’s eyes. But the anger faded to curiosity. His narrowed eyes said as much.

“You were seeing someone?” He took a step back toward the chair when she nodded. Guess she’d forgotten to mention that before, though he never asked about her previous relationships, only if she had a current one. “Was it serious?” He waited until she nodded again before continuing. “How serious?”

“Why are you asking, Jonah? I’m not asking you about your previous relationships—”

“I haven’t had one. Not a serious one.” A few long strides had him standing a foot away. His bright eyes shimmered under the lights as he leaned in to look into hers. “So how serious was it, Ally?”

Tearing her eyes from his, she looked at the navy blue carpet at her feet. “It doesn’t matter.”

“
How serious
?” His raised voice reverberated off the window, making her cringe. She couldn’t understand his anger, or why he’d yelled at her for the first time, ever.

Turning her back to him, she gazed out the window once more, dreading the response to her next answer. “He asked me to marry him.”

* * *

What little air Jonah had inhaled seeped past his lips as he gripped the chair. His treacherous lungs refused to take another breath, even though they burned from the lack of oxygen. But none of that mattered. Not with the news Ally just gave him.

Then another thought plagued his mind. What answer had she—

His lungs seized, unable to take another moment without air. He drew in a deep breath. A cherry scented breath. Ally moved in front of him. She clasped his shoulder, giving him a firm shake. Her lips moved, but no words drifted to his ears. Only the sound of his heart as it raged inside his chest.

He’d been a fool to believe…

“I should’ve known.” The rasp in his voice muffled the hardness of his words.

“Should’ve known what?”

“That you’d find someone. That you wouldn’t waste one minute of your life, waiting for someone like me.”

Ally’s brows shot skyward, crinkling her forehead. “What are you talking about, Jonah? You didn’t want me. You’ve never showed any interest. In fact, you made plans to leave with your brother. I tried to kiss you that night and you…”

“I told you what I had to tell you.” He gripped her arms, leaning his face closer to hers. “I had to give you a chance to live your dreams. I had to set you free. I never wanted you to go.”

A range of emotions played across her face. Confusion. Hurt. Anger. Jerking her arms from his grasp, she took a step away from the chair. “Don’t you dare pull this crap on me, Jonah McCabe. Don’t pretend like it was more. We were friends. Foremost and utmost. Remember telling me that?”

He gave her a little shake, not once moving his face away from hers. “You know it was more than that! How many times did I hold you in my arms while you cried? About your dad. Your mom. School.”

He hated the way his voice shook. Hated even more the way regret played in her eyes. “Jonah—”

Wrapping his arms around her waist, he drew her body to his, forcing her to look him in the eyes. “I held you night after night, not because you needed someone to care for you. I did it because I knew I wanted to be that someone for the rest of my life. I did it for the same reason I showed up at the train station the night you left, a few minutes too late. Because I love you, Ally.”

His eyes fell to her lips as he watched them press and part. Every second she didn’t respond increased the ache in his gut. Before he could beg her to answer, her voice cleared.

“I…I don’t know what to say. Why are you doing this? Why are you lying?”

The last chord of hope snapped from Jonah’s chest. “I’m not lying! I tried to stop you that night. Would have succeeded if I hadn’t been dealing with your drunk mother.”

The words flew out before he could stop them. He’d always planned to tell her the truth if given the chance, but not like this. Not with them yelling at each other.