Falling in Love Again: A Valentine's Day Proposal

“I don’t need that right now,” I shoot back snippily. “Thank you for your time though.”

“It won’t take me long to go through everything, I can just make you see…”

I can’t get Raelyn out of my brain, the way that she snapped at me was ridiculous. I’m seething and Leon is about to get the tail end of it, all. “I don’t want to see anything, Leon. I’m done with this.”

I’m being bitter and irritated, I know that, but I can’t stop it. I don’t need either of these men looking at me as they are though. It isn’t helping to improve my mood even one bit. I do the only thing that I can and I spin on my heels to stalk away too, leaving them to sort it out among themselves. I think I have made myself more than clear.

“She’s right,” I mutter with bemusement. “Whatever you say, Gary. See the production? No thanks, Leon.”

The thing is I still have the pieces in my hands so when I get back to my office, I have no choice but to examine them. I hate to admit it, but Gary is right. I hate how damn smart Raelyn is. It’s so fucking irritating. It’s crazy how much that gets to me. Anna was manipulative, but not smart like this, and she managed to screw me over, so imagine what Raelyn could do to me. I refuse to have the wool pulled over my eyes again.

“She might be smart,” I tell myself. “But I will out smart her. I will.”

I slam the pieces down and rub my forehead hard, trying to will the intense headache away. It’s pounding like there’s a freaking building site in there, hammering and bashing away at my brain.

“Carter!” An unwelcome female voice bursts into my head, practically shaking the walls of my office. This is the absolute last thing that I need right now. It’s like the universe is trying to punish me. “Hello there!”

“Mom,” I reply weakly, forcing my eyes up off my desk to check it’s really her. “What are you doing here?”

“Well, since you never call your mother like you always promise you will, I thought I would pop in.” She takes a seat and stares at me, challenging me. I guess she isn’t going anywhere for a while. “I was in the neighborhood anyway, so I wanted to come in and see what you are up to. It seems like you have expanded.”

“Hmm, yes.” I don’t want to get into too much detail about that right now. “But yeah, I have.”

“I know. I was just talking to that wonderful new woman that you have hired.

Raelyn.”

Oh shit, does she know too? “Er, right, I see. You were talking to her, were you? What did she say?”

“Oh, she was just telling me about her work. She’s a very clever woman, isn’t she?”

Mom isn’t yelling, which probably means that Raelyn hasn’t told her about how I have been acting. That would be ripe for me to get my ass kicked. Mom would hate it. The more that I think about what her reaction would be like, the more upset at myself I become. What the hell is wrong with me?

“Yes, I guess so. That’s why I want her to work with me.”

“Hmm, because she was becoming serious competition, I bet.” Mom rolls her eyes. “But I’m glad. She’s beautiful too, isn’t she? A very pretty lady. Wow…” I can see her looking at me, eyeing me curiously, wondering what I think about the whole thing. “Do you like her? Is she married? Maybe you should ask her out.”

“Jesus, Mom, I work with her. Do you really think that’s appropriate?”

“Why do you have to make it so complicated? I just think you would like each other.”

“Mom, I am not talking to you about this. Stop trying to fix me up with people, seriously. I’m happy.”

“Happy now, but you will end up lonely, and that’s what troubles me.” Her face falls. “I don’t like what Anna did to you. It isn’t right. You are such a wonderful man and you deserve it all.”

I almost cave and stop being so cold, but then I think about Raelyn again and how she crashed into my life and turned everything upside down. If Mom can’t see that, then it’s her issue.

“I don’t need what you think I do to make me happy. I am doing okay. I always will be fine. I wish you wouldn’t worry so much because I don’t need you to. As for Raelyn, that will never happen, so stop thinking about it, okay? I don’t want to make things awkward when they don’t need to be.”

Mom shakes her head at me, frustrated. She doesn’t seem to believe me, she thinks that it will happen anyway, no matter what I say. I guess I will just have to make sure that I call her more so she doesn’t come back.

“Now, come on, Mom. Let’s go get some lunch. I need a break from here anyway.”

That seems to cheer her up which will distract her for the moment, but I have a feeling that this won’t be the last time we talk about Raelyn Owens…

“Mmm, you are very handsome,” a husky female voice declares, making my heart skip a beat. “I never noticed it before, but there is a real sexiness to you. I think I might want to know more…”

She moves towards me, I can see the outline of a sexy, petite female form. My cock springs to attention, needing a release, and as my mouth runs dry, I know that if I’m not careful, I’m going to lose control. There’s only one thing that I know for sure, and it’s something I’ve been wanting for ages.