12

Marilyn tossed and turned in bed, then finally gave up and decided to lie on her back, staring at the ceiling as Jonathan’s words ran through her mind. Think about me. She’d been unable to do anything else since that kiss.

Had it been almost a week since they’d met for ice cream and he’d walked her home? A week since he had entered her home for the first time, doing so in a way that indicated it wouldn’t be his last.

Now a restless need she could not define flowed through her, taking over her senses and making heat curl in her stomach. Nothing like this had ever happened to her before. But then, she’d never been kissed like that before, either. Just from that single kiss, she now knew the shape of his lips, as well as what it felt like to have every inch of his body pressed close to hers. More importantly, she now knew how it felt to be kissed by a man who knew what he was doing. It hadn’t been that way with her only high school boyfriend, Marshall Tindal. Looking back, she was surprised he hadn’t soured her on the experience completely.

All week she’d wondered...had Jonathan’s kiss really been that mind-blowing? Or was she so inexperienced that she’d only thought it was? She didn’t know. But when he’d slid his tongue between her lips, it was like nothing she’d ever felt before.

She should be annoyed with him, not mooning over him. Especially since she’d had a visitor on Monday morning, right before she left for work. A nice woman who looked to be in her mid-twenties had appeared on her doorstep, telling Marilyn that she was there to drive her to school. Marilyn hadn’t needed to ask who had arranged such a thing. She’d become angry until the woman explained that Mr. Madaris had only made the arrangements. He wasn’t paying her. The woman, a widow named Robin Ingram, had told Marilyn that it was up to the two of them to come up with a way to cover the cost.

Robin had also explained her own situation. She was single mom with a seven-year-old disabled daughter name Nola, and she needed the income that this kind of work generated. So she operated a private car service during the hours her daughter was taken care of by her parents.

By the end of the week, Marilyn realized that the arrangement was working out superbly. And she’d gotten to know Robin better, as well. She’d discovered the accident that had left her daughter paralyzed had taken the life of her husband. But thanks to arrangements made by Jonathan, Robin’s daughter was being home-schooled through the Houston school system, since they’d refused to make accommodations for the girl to attend regular school. The home-school concept had been an idea Jonathan had pushed in his school district.

The week had passed uneventfully. Ms. Chapman, who’d also attended the leadership conference in New Orleans, had returned to school on Thursday. She’d wondered if Jonathan was home as well.

Carolyn had called her later that evening. Although she liked Carolyn, Marilyn was careful not to reveal too much to her gossip-loving friend. The last thing she needed was to have anyone speculating about her relationship with Jonathan. Because there wasn’t one. All he’d done was kiss her.

She drew in a deep breath. As much as she wanted to downplay their kisses, she couldn’t. She’d tried to convince herself that the first one hadn’t really counted as a kiss. It had been a quick a brush across the lips, nothing more than a peck, really. And as far as the second kiss...well, the fact that she hadn’t kissed him back should count for something. But she hadn’t needed to participate. Jonathan had taken complete control, leaving her feeling wanted, desired...cherished.

She’d relived that kiss more times than she could count throughout the course of the week. It was something she couldn’t seem to get beyond. Not when her toes tingled whenever she thought about it.

After she finished talking with Carolyn, Traci had called too, but had had to rush off. When Marilyn’s phone rang again, she figured it had to be Traci, calling her back. They’d been talking about Jonathan, and what Marilyn should do about him, when their conversation had been interrupted by Erika, who needed Traci to come and tuck her into bed.

Marilyn picked up the phone, ready to pick up where they’d left off. “I stand behind my decision, Traci. I will not date Jonathan. If you think he’s such a good catch, then you date him.”

There was silence on the other end of the line and Marilyn got a funny feeling in the pit of her stomach. How could she be such an idiot? What if it wasn’t Traci on the other end, but Carolyn, the last person she wanted knowing her business?

When there still wasn’t any sound on the other end, she said, “Hello?”

Then a male voice came on the line. “I agree with Traci. You should date me. I’m flattered that she thinks I’m a good catch, but I don’t need a replacement. You are the woman I want, Marilyn.”

* * * *

Jonathan couldn’t help smiling. So Marilyn had been discussing him with this Traci person? That meant he’d been on her mind, whether she’d wanted him there or not.

“Why are you calling me, Jonathan?” He could hear the annoyance in her voice and could imagine the expression that went along with it. He’d seen it before and honestly, he thought it made her look even cuter.

“I thought about you, a lot. But then, I told you I would, didn’t I?” he asked.

“Yes, but…”

“But what, Marilyn? I shouldn’t have?” He sat down at his kitchen table with a cup of tea and rubbed a finger across his jaw. “I couldn’t help myself. You are unforgettable.”

“Jonathan Madaris, your nose is growing.”

He couldn’t help himself... He tilted his head back and laughed. The woman was one in a million. Surely she knew how special she was? Umm, then again, given her dating history, maybe she didn’t. But she should have been told--and told, often--just what an unforgettable woman she was. A real man would make sure she never forgot it. And he was the perfect man for the job.

“Glad I’m amusing you, Jonathan.”

If only she knew what else she did to him. “You do amuse me, Marilyn, but not in a negative way. It’s all positive, trust me. But the reason I’m calling is to see if you’ll go out with me tomorrow. Then you can see that my nose hasn’t grown at all since you saw me last.”

“I thought you understood the reason I don’t think we should date.”

Jonathan took a sip of his tea. “Sorry, I still don’t buy it. You’re a single woman and I’m a single man who would like to get to know you better. You’re not a man-hater, are you?”

“Of course not.”

“Then, what’s the problem?”

* * * *

In all honesty, Marilyn knew the problem was of her own making. Hadn’t Traci just pointed that out to her? What if she and Jonathan had met at church instead of at Parkwood? Would she be this hesitant to go out with him? She knew the answer would be no. So why was she resisting now?

Was it because she knew he was a man who was used to getting his fair share of female attention? Someone who women, including herself, drooled over, in the same way women drooled over her brothers? Was she being fair to him by comparing him to her brothers, who acted as if they were God’s gift to women?

And then there was the fact that for two months, he had been her boss. Why did that matter to her? The main thing was that there had been nothing going on between them while she’d been at Parkwood. She’d noticed him, of course. What woman wouldn’t have? But he’d never given any indication that he’d been interested in her then. In fact, she’d bet he hadn’t even looked at her twice.

That, in itself, made this whole situation kind of strange. Why would he seek her out now, after seeing her at Barbara’s campaign party? Had he seen something in her that night that sparked his interest, something he hadn’t noticed in those two months at his school? Could men suddenly see a woman in a whole new light, like that?

“Are you thinking about a good answer to give me?”

Jonathan’s voice made her realize she hadn’t responded to his question. Drawing in a deep breath, she made a decision. “No, because there isn’t a problem.” She then thought of something. “Thanks for sending me Robin.”

“You’re welcome. I hope the arrangement is working out for you, Marilyn.”

“It is. I like her.”

“I like her, too. Her husband Justin and I were childhood friends. Around our neighborhood, we were known as the two J’s. When you saw one, you saw the other. Losing Justin in that car accident was hard on all of us, especially for Robin.”

“I could tell she loved her husband a lot.”

“Yes. They were high school sweethearts. I’m glad they got the driver of the car that smashed into theirs. He’d been drinking. As far as I know, he’s still serving time for Justin’s death. The extra money Robin earns with her private car service helps pay for the portion of Nola’s medical bills the insurance doesn’t cover.” Then as if Jonathan needed to change the subject, he said, “So if there’s no problem, will you go out with me?”

Marilyn knew what her answer would be. “Yes, Jonathan. I’d be happy to go out with you.”

* * * *

Jonathan resisted the urge to do a jig around his kitchen. But he couldn’t get ahead of himself. Even though she had agreed to a date tomorrow, he had to make sure she knew what she was getting into, that she wouldn’t consider it just one and done. She might as well know now that he didn’t go away easily.

“That’s great. Think you can be ready at noon?”

“Noon?”

“Yes. I think you need a day of fun.”

“A day of fun? Why?” she asked.

“You said it best yourself. You’ve worked hard to get where you are, and your social life has suffered for it. I want to change that.” If only she knew how badly he wanted to change that.

“What do you have in mind?”

He knew she was oblivious to the flirtatious nature of her question, so he didn’t tease her about it...this time. “I thought we could start off by going roller skating. There’s a great adult rink on the outskirts of town. That way, we won’t have to compete against the kids for space.” Not only that, he didn’t want to run into any of his students. Weekends were his time to relax and refresh his mind.

“An adult skating rink?”

“Yes. You’ll love it. And then after skating, we could grab something to eat before taking in a movie.”

“My goodness, you want to make a full day of it, don’t you?”

He chuckled. “Just a half day. If I’d wanted to make it a full day, I’d have started off by picking you up for breakfast and taking you home to enjoy some of my famous beef sausage and waffles, with a cold glass of milk from my family’s dairy.”

“Sounds delicious.”

He smiled. “It is. One day, I’ll invite you to try it.” There, he’d issued the invitation. Sometime soon, he’d make sure she accepted it.

“I will be ready at noon, Jonathan. For now, let’s just go roller skating and then have dinner. We can decide then if we want to do a movie later.”

“Sure. But I have to give you fair warning. You’re going to enjoy my company so much, you won’t want to go home.”