Authors: Natalie Frost
“Caleb Malone is back in town.” Rachel felt like the words landed square in her stomach, knocking the air out of her.
“What?” she squeaked.
“Yeah, he’s been back for a few days. I’m surprised you didn’t know.”
“How would I know, Amanda?” Rachel answered quickly, not meaning for her tone to be as aggressive as it was. “I’ve been a little busy raising my son to keep up with everyone from school!”
“Well,” Amanda shrugged, “he’s here. Are you going to see him?”
“No,” she said firmly. “No. I’m sure he’s moved on. He probably has his whole life mapped out. I don’t want to get in the way of that.”
Amanda looked at her with a sad, almost pathetic look. “You’re a martyr, you know that? If I knew my baby’s daddy was the son of a multi-billionaire, I’d be trying to bank on that.”
Rachel reached out and punched her in the shoulder. “Amanda! I don’t want a handout. Joel and I are doing pretty well these days. I don’t need any of Christopher Malone’s money. And I don’t need help from Caleb.”
Her plan to avoid him didn’t work very well. Just a few days later she saw the familiar perfect smile, the short, dark hair, and the mesmerizing, brown eyes staring at her across the restaurant. He was sitting at her table; of course, he was sitting at her table.
CHAPTER TWO
“You look good, Rachel,” he said quietly.
“You, too,” she said, staring down at the notepad in her hand.
She noticed that he was alone, which she thought was weird. He smiled up at her, kindly, and waited for her to catch control of her nerves. He always had such a good way of sensing how she was feeling.
“I didn’t know you were back,” she half-lied.
“I just got into town a few days ago.”
“When do you leave to go back to school?” This was the first time he’d been home since leaving to go to college. He usually spent his summers with his family at their lake house, and went to see his grandparents in Florida for the holidays.
“I don’t,” he said excitedly. “I’m done. I graduated.”
“Oh,” she felt her cheeks flush red. “Of course, I hadn’t realized it’s already been so long!”
“I would have called…” he started.
“It’s alright,” she shrugged. “I’m sure you’ve been busy.”
An awkward silence fell over them. She tried to keep her heart rate from accelerating, but every time she peered at him over the edge of her notepad she felt her hands begin to shake slightly.
“What can I bring you?” she finally asked.
“We’ll start with two glasses of Merlot,” he said glancing past her at someone walking towards them.
She turned to see who it was. When she saw, her heart stopped suddenly. It was a woman—a beautiful, tall, thin, woman. She had dark hair and dark green eyes and was absolutely stunning. “Right,” she said scribbling their order down and hurrying away.
Throughout their meal, she could sense that it wasn’t just her that was uncomfortable. Whenever she neared the table, Caleb and his date would exchange quick glances, and the woman would toss her hair over her shoulder and look up at Rachel with harsh, cold eyes.
By the time they asked for their check, Rachel felt like she was emotionally drained. She set the small leather case down on the table quickly and walked away without saying a word.
Escaping quickly to the bathroom she locked herself in a stall and let her emotions out. Her eyes filled with tears and her hands started to shake. She should have told him. She should have told him the day she found out she was pregnant. It was too late now, though. He was happy. He had moved on and he was happy.
She was ready for her shift to be over. She needed to get out of the restaurant; she needed to get back to her son. Thinking of a quick fib, she told her boss that Joel was sick, and she needed to leave early. He was understanding, and being that it was a slow night he let her leave early.
Stepping out into the fresh, warm summer air, she felt herself relax slightly. The sun was just setting in the distance, and it was casting shades of pinks and reds across the sky.
“It’s a nice night,” she heard Caleb say from somewhere in front of her.
She looked around quickly and found him leaning against the passenger side door of her car. “Caleb,” she said walking towards him quickly. “What are you doing here?”
“I needed to see you,” he said reaching out and wrapping his strong arms around her.
The feeling of being close to him again filled her with a warming, relaxing sensation. It felt familiar and safe. “But I thought…” she stuttered.
“Come with me,” he said, taking her by the hand and leading her to his own car.
They drove in silence. She didn’t know what to say to him. Every time she opened her mouth she felt like she was going to let the truth out.
The car turned into the nicer part of town—the part that she only dreamed of ever living in. When he pulled into a long drive, she sat up straighter to look around. The house in front of them was enormous, with a large wrap-around porch and a three-car garage. “Whoa,” she said under her breath.
He laughed a little at her surprise. “I just moved in, so it’s not furnished or anything yet.”
“It’s amazing, Caleb.”
He led her inside, and she saw that he was right. There was no furniture to be seen. She wondered where he ate or slept or did anything, but she didn’t have the chance to ask. He led her down the hall to an expansive, open room with a large bay window. The empty space glowed a soft red color, reflecting the light of the setting sun.
He stopped suddenly and turned to face her. Wrapping his arms around her he pulled her towards him, kissing her passionately. His lips were soft and his body, pressed against her, was strong. She wanted so badly to let go, to melt into the moment with him. But, she couldn’t help but think of her son back at her parents’ house and the woman at the restaurant.
She pressed her hand to his chest and pushed him back slightly. “What’s going on, Caleb?” she asked softly.
“I want you, Rachel. I need you,” he whispered in her ear. The feeling of his warm breath against her neck made her body surge with desire.
She tried to remember why this was wrong but she couldn’t. He ran his hands along her sides. She felt a shiver run up her spine as he began to unsnap the button of her jeans. In an instant, there were no reasons why she couldn’t be with him. She couldn’t think of anything else besides that moment.
He swiftly pulled the shirt off over her head then he pulled off his own. Wrapping his arms around her, she felt the feeling of his skin against hers. It sent waves of longing and desire coursing through her. He once again ran his hands over her body, this time letting them rest on her bare breasts.
Her stomach ached with passion, and when he pulled her down onto the soft carpet, she didn’t resist. They both simultaneously slipped out of their clothes. The air around them became warm and charged. Her heart raced in her chest as she traced the muscles of his chest and stomach with her fingertips.
He lifted her chin and placed a quick kiss on her lips before moving his mouth down to her neck, then her shoulders, then to her chest. The feeling of his lips delicately brushing against her skin sent waves of pleasure rushing over her.
Her longing overtaking her, she pushed him back and placed herself on top of him, her legs straddling his muscular frame. When he lifted his hips just slightly, pushing himself inside of her, her entire body surged with the feeling of satisfaction. He wrapped his large hands around her waist and pushed her down, forcing himself deeper inside her.
Overwhelmed with lust and passion, Rachel let herself get lost in the moment. She let herself become one with him. The feeling of being with him was familiar and comforting, but still new and exciting. He seemed stronger than he had before—his movements surer and his desire seemingly unquenchable.
In that moment she wasn’t thinking about anything else. She wasn’t thinking about her life as a single mother, her responsibilities, or the sadness she always seemed to carry with her secretly. In that moment, she was free; she was happy; she was fulfilled.
CHAPTER THREE
“We shouldn’t have done that,” she said quickly gathering up her clothes from around them. “We really shouldn’t have done that.”
“Rachel,” he said pushing himself up and reaching for his pants. “What’s wrong? Why are you so upset?”
“Caleb,” she said turning to face him, her eyes filling with tears. “You don’t understand, okay? That was wrong. We shouldn’t have done that.”
“You keep saying that,” he said taking a step towards her and reaching out to take her hand in his. “But I don’t understand why. It’s not like it’s the first time we have.”
“That’s the point,” she shot back at him.
“Wait,” he said, opening his eyes wide and staring at her. “What do you mean, ‘that’s the point’?”
She took a deep breath and said, “I have a son, Caleb.”
“What?”
“We, actually,” she said quietly. “We have a son.”
The expression that flashed across his face was one of anger. But, it melted away quickly to one of concern and hurt. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“You were gone, and your dad had said, and…” she broke into a quiet sob.
He rushed over and pulled her into him. She buried her face in his chest and continued to cry.
“I’m sorry, Caleb,” she choked. “I know I should have told you. I should have told you the moment I found out. But, I didn’t want to ruin your life—your inheritance, the business. I didn’t know what to do. And now, it’s too late. You’re with someone and,” she pushed him away quickly, “oh God!” she cried cupping her hand over her mouth. “We shouldn’t have done that!”
“Rachel, breathe,” he said taking her hand in his and looking at her sternly. “Elise isn’t my girlfriend. Tonight was our first date.”
“Really?”
“Yes. My dad introduced us.”
“So, he approves of her?” she asked, feeling a twinge of anger and jealousy bolt through her. “She’s good enough for you?”
“It’s not like that.”
“I can’t do this right now, Caleb. I’m sorry. But, Joel is at my parents’ and I really should go pick him up. Will you drive me to my car please?”
“Rachel…” he tried to persuade her to stay.
“Please!” she yelled, turning to storm out of the house.
He followed her out quickly, not saying a word until they were in the car and pulling into the restaurant parking lot. “Can I meet him?” he asked quietly.
“I don’t know,” she said thoughtfully. “It’s not fair to him to have a man just walk into his life with the liberty to walk out whenever he wants.” She collected her things and reached for the door. “Let me think about it, okay?” she asked over her shoulder.
“Rachel,” he stopped her before she could get out. “I really think it’s best if I meet him.”
“You think it’s best?” she shot back at him, a mocking laugh on her tone. “You’ve known about him for all of, what? Thirty minutes? And you already know what’s best for him.”
“Don’t do this,” he said to her firmly. “Don’t try to turn this around and make me the bad guy. You didn’t even tell me I had a son!”
“What would it have mattered, Caleb? Your father would have never let you see him! He would have never let you have any part in either of our lives!”
“It doesn’t matter!” he yelled back at her. “It wasn’t your decision to make! You don’t get to decide if and when I find out that I’m a father!”
His eyes flashed with anger. The light shining in from the lampposts made them look hazel. Staring into his eyes made her feel weak inside. She turned away quickly to avoid being swept away by them. She felt guilty. He was right; she should have told him about Joel a long time ago.
With a sigh, she responded, “fine. You can meet him.”
“Tomorrow,” he said harshly. “I’ll meet you here at noon.”
She noted the finality in his tone and accepted his conditions. There was never any use arguing with Caleb; she remembered that. He was very strong-willed and determined. It was something that had attracted her to him initially.
As she stood in the parking lot, watching him drive away, she couldn’t help but feel like someone was watching her. She turned around quickly but didn’t see anyone around. Shrugging it off as nothing more than old paranoia of Caleb’s father finding out about them, she got in her car and drove to pick up her son.