Romantic Interludes Part 24

"Elijah's picking on you because he thinks you're pretty," I said.

She wrinkled her nose. "I know. He wants me to be his girlfriend."

Nathan choked on his taco sh.e.l.l. I shot him a grin while he gulped his water.

After dinner, Arwen took me by the hand and led me to her bedroom. A white canopy bed was filled with fluffy pillows and stuffed animals, and every inch of the soft pink walls were covered with princess posters. And there was a pink bookshelf-filled to the rim with books. Excitedly, she pulled me toward the shelf, and the three of us sat down on the carpet while she introduced me to her library.

"I forgot your gift on the kitchen counter," I said. "Would you mind getting it for me?"

Her little face beamed before she climbed to her feet and ran out of the room.

"She really likes you," Nathan whispered.

"I like her, too."

The peaceful expression on his face made me weak in the knees. He looked relieved, happy, and just a little amazed.

"You seem surprised."

"Actually, I'm not surprised at all, Jada."

We smiled at each other just as Arwen reappeared with the purple gift bag. Positioning herself between the two of us, she eagerly reached in and pulled out the book. Her happy gasp filled me with relief.

"It's Belle!" Arwen squealed, showing her dad the cover of the Disney storybook. "Thank you, Jada!"

"You're welcome."

"Can we read it now?"

"After your bath," Nathan said gently.

Arwen nodded and rushed toward her dresser. She pulled out her pajamas and slammed the drawer before sprinting out of the room.

Nathan chuckled. "Normally, getting her into the tub is a fight."

I glanced down at my watch, my heart sinking a little when I noticed the time.

"I should probably head home and let you get her settled."

"You're welcome to stay. All I'm allowed to do is start the water. She won't even let me wash her hair anymore."

I laughed. "She's an amazing little girl, Nathan."

"Thank you."

Arwen yelled for her dad, and he offered me a heart-stopping smile before climbing to his feet and walking out of the room.

After the quickest bath in history, Arwen was finally tucked into her bed with her new book. She'd struggled with some of the harder vocabulary, and that's when she asked me to join her. I glanced at Nathan, making sure it was okay, and he smiled approvingly. Slipping off my shoes, I climbed into the canopy bed, and Arwen snuggled close as I read aloud. At one point, I noticed Nathan slip out of the room, only to return moments later with a sketchbook in his hand. He settled himself on the floor and began to draw as Arwen and I took turns reading about Belle and her beast.

The little girl was snoring before we reached the happily ever after.

I gently closed the book, and when I looked up, I was startled by the expression on Nathan's face. He was watching the two of us intently, his eyes sparkling with some emotion I couldn't quite name.

"What are you drawing?" I whispered.

Nathan smiled sheepishly. "You'll see."

"Can I see now?"

He shook his head. "It isn't finished."

Lowering his head, he continued to sketch. I wondered what he was thinking, watching as I held his little girl while she slept. Was this level of affection typical for her? Was she naturally so open with strangers? I'd expected her to be a little distant and unfriendly, but she'd been nothing but sweet and talkative all night long.

It made me sad, because I knew she had to miss having a mom. I hadn't given much thought to her until now. I'd been so excited that Nathan wasn't wearing a ring that I didn't consider the fact that his daughter was growing up without a mother.

Tonight had been unexpected, in more ways than one.

Eventually, Nathan closed his sketchbook and rose to his feet. I took that as my cue, and I slipped out of the bed, careful not to wake Arwen. Nathan gently tucked the blankets around her and leaned down to kiss her forehead before the two of us crept quietly out of the room.

Silently, we walked toward the living room. Nathan led me over to the couch, and we settled against the leather sofa.

"You look overwhelmed," he murmured.

"I am, a little."

"Is it a good or bad overwhelmed?"

"Good, I think."

"That's how I feel, too," he said, smiling softly as he scooted closer to me. "It was . . . really something, seeing the two of you together. She's not usually so friendly with the women I date. That's why I don't go out much. To be honest, this is the first time I've had dinner with someone who wasn't my daughter in a very long time."

"What happened with the other women?"

He sighed deeply. "I didn't let them meet Arwen until we'd been dating a few months. The last thing I wanted was for my little girl to become attached to someone if I wasn't sure there was a chance it'd work out between us. I was very clear from the beginning that Arwen was, and always will be, my first priority."

"Well, of course she is. That's how it should be."

Nathan smiled sadly. "They didn't see it that way."

"So, tonight's dinner was a test?"

"Sort of, I guess. I really did want to have dinner with you, and the sitter really did have plans, so we didn't have a lot of options."

I grinned. "We could have gone out another night."

"I didn't want to wait." Nathan reached for me, sliding his hand along mine until our fingers entwined.

"Did I pa.s.s the test?" I whispered, loving the feel of his hand against mine.

Nathan laughed lightly. "My daughter asked you to read her a bedtime story. That's never happened."

Warmth flowed through me.

He grabbed the remote, and the two of us pretended to watch whatever was on the television screen. It was something about a man . . . and his dog . . . or was it a cat? I had no clue, because all I could focus on was Nathan's hand and the way he was drawing little patterns against my palm with his finger.

"Tell me something about you," he whispered.

"What do you want to know?"

It was almost hypnotic, the shimmering blue of his eyes.

"Everything."

Wrapped in our own little bubble, we sat on the couch until long after midnight. I told him the most mundane facts about my life, beginning with my birth date and ending with details about my brief marriage to Austin.

"We were just kids . . . two friends who thought it'd be cool to get married. Once the honeymoon phase was over, and we actually had to be spouses, it dawned on us pretty quickly that we'd made a stupid decision. We were divorced within a year."

Nathan told me about his life in Oklahoma. His father owned a construction company in Tulsa, and his parents had divorced when he was twelve. His mom loved real estate and actually co-owned this building-which explained how he was able to afford such an expensive place.

Then, he told me about Arwen's mother.

"We met in college during my soph.o.m.ore year. In our life drawing cla.s.s, we were asked to draw nude bodies. Amy was one of the models. Long blond hair, legs that went on forever . . . to a teenage guy, she was every fantasy come to life. We started dating, and within three months, she was pregnant."

I squeezed his hand, giving him a little encouragement to continue.

"I wouldn't trade my daughter for anything, but for a nineteen-year-old kid, it was overwhelming to know that I was going to be a father. Amy was wild, which was something that hadn't really bothered me while we were dating because I didn't care. I wasn't in love with her. We were just kids, and you're supposed to do that crazy stuff in college. You experiment and you dabble in things you probably shouldn't. The problem for Amy was that she experimented too much. I didn't realize how much until we found out she was pregnant. The doctor told her she couldn't drink, and she completely freaked out. She was an eighteen-year-old alcoholic, and she was carrying my child-a child she didn't want. I had to promise to raise the baby all by myself. That's the only way I could convince her not to have an abortion."

My stomach twisted. How could she not want her child?

"How did you keep her from drinking while she was pregnant?"

"Money," Nathan admitted with a sigh. "My parents deposited $50,000 into a trust. The cash was hers if she stayed sober during her pregnancy and signed all parental rights over to me once the baby was born. She had to consent to weekly drug tests, too. Once we got her through detox, it was a little easier. She seemed content with the knowledge that she could drink to her heart's content as soon as she gave birth-which is exactly what she did. Our daughter was born just before Christmas. By May, we were attending Amy's funeral."

"I'm so sorry," I whispered, my heart breaking for him and his daughter. "What a horrible thing for you to have to endure."

"I couldn't have handled any of it without my mom. I moved out of the dorms and back home, so that she could babysit while I was in cla.s.s. My dad helped some, too. They didn't really get along when they were married, but they're good friends now. My daughter couldn't have two better grandparents. Amy's folks are dead, so I didn't have to deal with any of her family getting in the way of the custody agreement. I know that probably sounds cold . . ."

"No, it doesn't. It sounds like a devoted father."

Silence filled the air, but it wasn't uncomfortable. We continued holding hands, and I'd occasionally look up to find him gazing intently at me.

"You're blushing," Nathan murmured.

"You're staring."

"You're beautiful."

I was flushed red like a traffic signal now. I could feel it.

"And I really, really want to kiss you right now, but I know it's too soon."

I was terrified. We'd only known each other two days, and I'd already met his daughter. Already, we'd shared our deepest heartaches.

"I want you to kiss me."

Nathan placed his hand beneath my chin, lifting it toward his face.

"But it's too soon," he whispered.

"Yeah."

Neither of us sounded too convincing, but he closed his eyes and nodded. Very gently, he placed his palm against my cheek and pulled me closer, placing a soft kiss on my forehead. His mouth lingered there, and my pulse raced, loving the feel of his warm lips against my skin.

"I should go," I whispered after we pulled away.

Nathan walked me to the door, his hand remaining firmly attached to mine until I stepped out into the hallway. We said goodnight, and he gently lifted my hand, pressing a kiss against my knuckles.

The elevator was unnecessary. I'm pretty sure I floated all the way down to the lobby.

"This is dangerous, Jada, on so many levels."

I sighed deeply and continued checking my email while she hovered around my desk. What had possessed me to tell Annalise about my night with Nathan and his little girl?

"First of all, you're going to get attached to his daughter."

"And that's bad?"

"It will be bad if it doesn't work out between the two of you," she said softly. "Jada, look, there's something you have to understand about seeing a single father. Dating is serious business to them. It's not a game. They're looking for a wife. They're looking for a mother for their child."

I thought about Nathan and the expression on his face while I read the story to Arwen. He'd looked so peaceful and content, and it had warmed my heart. Would it really be so bad if he was looking for more than just a quick fling? Dating had never been my favorite thing, and in a city like New York, it could be downright painful. Would it be so terrible to find a man who was looking to settle down? Someone who wasn't into playing games or sending mixed signals?

"It was just one dinner, Annalise."

My best friend eyed me closely. "Just be careful, please?"

"I will."

With the interrogation over, Annalise made her way back to her desk. "At least you'll have a date for tomorrow night's party! We could hit the stores after work. Find you something slinky and s.e.xy to wear instead of that black c.o.c.ktail dress you wear to everything."

I grinned. She was right. I could totally invite him to the dance. All of the employees were expected to make an appearance, so we'd be going anyway. With Nathan by my side, maybe it wouldn't be a horrible evening.

"Okay, you can take me shopping," I said, and my best friend fist-pumped the air.

The rest of the morning continued in a blur of meetings and conference calls. Everybody was excited about the unveiling of Cupid's Arrow and expected the cards and gifts to be our bestselling line of products this year. The little winged men were still dangling from the ceiling, but today, they didn't seem to irritate me as much. They were actually kind of cute, hanging there with their pointy arrows, just waiting to shoot some unsuspecting soul and render them star-struck.

I shook my head at my silliness, but that brief moment of sentimentality was exactly what I needed to write a few greetings. I worked through lunch, eager to get finished so that I could leave early and hit the stores. Annalise was right. I needed something besides my trusty black dress. For once, I was actually feeling festive, and I wanted something pretty and red to wear to the party.

Which reminded me . . .