I did the usual routine with Lindsay, giving her a bath and watching as she played. Before I knew it, she would be in school. She’d grow up before my very eyes and I’d have to learn to live without her. I felt tears in my eyes and blinked to stop them. Every part of this process was going to happen whether I cried about it. We had ice cream after the bath and then I tucked her into her gorgeous purple room. Lindsay loved it. She still came into my room on the weekends sometimes but slept well in her bed most of the time. Once I got used to sleeping alone, I enjoyed it. I also blamed that on the fact that Alex tired me out nearly every night on the phone.
When we weren’t having sex at work, we were sexting and having phone sex. It was always late at night an
d hushed but I came all the same. I got to love my scattered, addicting nights with him. It challenged me to balance everything and charged me up to know that I was the one that he wanted.
We ended up working late a few weeks after the winery ad, coming up with an idea for an important client that was opening a large sports center in the city. We bounced ideas back and forth after having crazy sex on the couch the moment the building emptied out.
We managed to finish quickly, and he was hungry when we left. We went to get hamburgers after cleaning up and walked into a little diner, laughing about something. I looked forward, seeing Millie with two other girls at a booth before I grabbed Alex’s arm. “Look,” I hissed as he glanced forward.
“We work together. It’s just dinner,” he murmured as a woman told us to sit wherever we wanted. I dropped my hand, sighing in relief when he took me to a table across the room from the girls, nearly out of sight of them.
“I don’t know if we should be seen like this,” I told him once we ordered coffee. I knew it would mess with my sleep, but it was Friday.
“We worked late. It’s okay to eat afterward. You’re lucky I’m not sitting on the side with you, so I can smell myself all over you,” he told me in a low voice as I shivered. He made me want to allow him to take me right here on the table. I came to my senses, reaching for the cup the waitress brought over. We ordered burgers and fries and I leaned back, nibbling on my lip. “Do you talk to all of the women at your company like that?” I meant to sound teasing, but he raised a brow at me.
“What did you hear?” Alex asked me as I felt my face heat up. “She’s nice but I’ve seen Millie with the other women in the break room. What did she tell you?”
“She mentioned someone named Elizabeth.” I sighed.
“Of course,” Alex said in a cool voice as he brushed his hair back. “I was involved with one assistant. Elizabeth was aggressive, and it happened so fast. It wasn’t half the way I feel about you, but I went for it. She left within a few months.”
“Was she pregnant?” I whispered as he paused with the coffee cup in his hand.
“Jesus. Is that what they’re all saying?” Alex looked riled and glared in the general direction of their table. “She was not, at least that I know of. She got a bit salty when I wanted to end things and we butted heads. It got to where she left and hopefully found a better life. I gave her a good recommendation just to get rid of her, though she was a smart woman.”
“Is that what’s going to happen with us?” I asked as he pinched the bridge of his nose.
“I don’t want it to.” Alex stared at me. “I want more from you. I want to… I want to meet your daughter, Soledad. I want to be a part of your life.” I remained silent as I stared at him, thinking about the nights I’d imagined that. It had been about a month and a half since we got involved but I felt like we’d grown closer. The attraction was undeniable, but he was compassionate beyond that. He did a lot to make my life easier with Lindsay and never shied away from talking about her.
“I want that as well.” He smiled, letting out a long breath as the waitress set our food down. “What about work?”
“Technically, there isn’t a rule about that. As long as business is business, nobody should have a problem.” He grabbed a fry and took a bite, chewing it thoughtfully. “People will talk. You know this, Soledad. Can you just focus on us and what’s between us? Can you trust in that?”
“I’d like to try.”
We managed to go under the radar that night. Millie and her friends did not see us as we went over the ways this was going to work. Alex admitted that he’d seen me with Lindsay already and thought she was beautiful. We made plans to meet at a park near the apartment and go out to lunch if everything went well. Alex dropped me off and I moved to kiss him deeply, feeling something break inside of me. I wanted this man after four years of running away from relationships and a strong gear of men. I had trouble pulling away from him to go inside but I knew there was tomorrow.
I went inside and smiled at Rosie and Lindsay on the couch. I could see that my daughter was tired and tucked her in when she asked me if she could go to sleep. I poured two glasses of wine and sat down with her on the couch. Rosie was as close to a mother that I had here, and I wanted to talk to her. “I have something to tell you.”
Chapter Eight
Alexander
I woke up early to go for a run in the morning light. I thought about Soledad all night and what we were embarking on. I was meeting her daughter in a few hours and knew that it was the first time for Soledad to take this step. We’d discussed the situation briefly with her dad and I knew that he wasn’t in her life, nor was any other man since she split up with him. I sensed that she was shy and even a little scared at times, but she was laughing more with me these days. She was also all over me whenever we were alone, and I hoped for nights at her place soon, even at mine.
I didn’t like women at my place. I usually went to their house and left when the sex was over. There were a few cases where things got more serious, but nobody was like Soledad. I wanted to hold her in my arms as much as I could when we slept and if things went well, I’d get up and make breakfast for her and her daughter.
I groaned as I rounded a curve. My thought process was all over the place with her and I tried to focus on the five miles I still had ahead of me. After that, I was going to shower and work on my project for a bit before leaving for the park.
I sipped coffee after my shower, staring at the screen as I wondered what might happen today. I worried about the gossip getting to Soledad because there would be some of that. There weren’t a lot of people at work that knew me like Soledad and Brent. They speculated about me and when I heard that they said Elizabeth was pregnant, I wanted to rip all their heads off. What would they say about Soledad?
Elizabeth quit and that was all I knew about her. She wanted more than I was willing to give her, at a time when I’d known it was a mistake to get involved with her. It ended badly but there was no other way for it to happen. I was always careful when sleeping with a woman and doubted that any accidents happened. I would be that way until I settled down and found the right woman to have a family with. Hell, I might not ever want kids since it was never something I considered in the past.
I dressed in jeans and a gray Henley with boots to the park. I arrived after they did and parked before looking over the grass, seeing Soledad running across the grass after the little girl. It made me smile to see her so happy as I watched them, feeling a warmth in my chest that was new to me. I exited the car, walking towards them as Lindsay screamed her mom’s name with laughter bubbling out of her. Soledad tackled her, and they rolled over the grass as their dark hair combined on the green grass. I paused a few feet away from them as they laughed, relaxing for a moment.
Soledad looked at me and smiled before she rose. She reached a hand down to Lindsay and pulled her up before walking my way, her eyes locked on mine. I swear she looked more beautiful with this little girl that looked so much like her apart from her blue eyes. Everything else was all Soledad. “Lindsay, this is my friend Alex. I work with him.” I knelt and greeted Lindsay as she looked curiously over me.
“Hi, Lindsay. How are you?” I offered her my hand and she shook it, glancing up at her mom with a shy smile. “I drove by and saw you. I thought I’d stop and say hi.” Soledad grinned at me as she tucked a strand of wild hair behind her ear.