Page 4 of Honey Bee Library
“Mommy.” Jasper’s whisper from the back seat had me glancing over my shoulder to see him staring out the window with his eyes wide. “Is this where we get to live now?”
I wanted to say no. I wanted to turn my car around and drive as far away from this place as I could. I wanted to erase the image of this house from his mind because there was no way I would ever be able to afford anything close to this. I didn’t want my son to be disappointed in what I could provide. Even if he was only five.
Once again, I waited too long to act. Jasper pulled open his door and was climbing out of the car before I could stop him. As soon as his feet were planted firmly on the cobblestone drive, he slammed the door.
I sighed. The genie was out of the bottle and I was never going to be able to stuff it back inside. Jasper and I were staying the night.
Cole didn’t appear to be having any regrets. He’d parked his car inside the garage and was making his way toward us when I finally climbed out of my car. He didn’t say anything as he approached. I half expected him to take back his offer or declare that this had been some sort of sick joke. Instead, he lingered next to the trunk, waiting for me to press the release.
“Is this your house?” Jasper asked. He was standing next to Cole but was turned so he could stare at the mansion in front of us.
Cole glanced down at Jasper. “It’s my rental. My house is in Miami,” he said as he pulled one of the duffle bags up onto his shoulder, followed by the second one.
“Are you a prince?” Jasper’s eyes were wide as saucers as he turned to study Cole.
Cole chuckled. “Naw, not a prince.”
“But you live in a castle.”
Cole slammed the trunk shut. He paused as he smiled down at my son. “Wanna see the inside?”
Jasper whooped and jumped into the air with his left fist raised. Cole laughed and started up the cobblestone walkway to the front door. Jasper raced to keep up with him. Not wanting to leave this man alone with my child, I hurried to join them.
The inside of the house was just as breathtaking as the outside. The soft glow of lamps lit up the dark rooms, but from the sheer number of windows, I could only imagine what this place looked like with the sun streaming through them.
Cole set our duffle bags down in the foyer while Jasper made a beeline for the living room straight ahead. Not wanting him to climb on any of the white furniture with his shoes on, I hurriedly kicked my own shoes off and followed after him.
“Jasper,” I said as I reached out and caught his arm, “we need to take our shoes off.” I pointed to his feet.
Jasper complained, but I didn’t respond as I led him back to the front door. He must have realized that he wasn’t going to get anywhere until he obeyed, so he dropped down onto the floor next to my shoes and began loosening his laces.
Once they were off, he popped right back up. “Can I go now, Mommy?” he asked as he stared up at me.
“Show me your hands.” I needed assurance that he wasn’t going to leave a mark on Cole’s furniture.
Jasper jutted his hands out and then flipped them back and forth a few times. “They’re clean,” he complained.
I grabbed onto his wrists and studied his palms. I was surprised to see that they were actually clean. “Okay,” I said as I dropped his hands. Jasper was mid sprint when I hurried to add, “No jumping!”
I looked over to see that Cole had been watching me with a mildly amused expression. I frowned as I dropped my gaze before slowly bringing it back to him. “What?”
He shook his head. “Nothing.”
“Okay,” I said slowly.
That’s when I realized I might have made a slight miscalculation. Yes, staying with Cole meant finally sleeping in a bed and taking a hot shower. But I was beginning to realize that it also meant talking to the man. Was I ready to have full-blown conversations with him?
From how vulnerable I felt with him staring at me, the answer was, no, I wasn’t. The only interaction I’d had with him was at the diner, where I could carefully craft what parts of me he saw. But here at his home, staying the night with him, he was going to get to know me more intimately than I was ready for.
“I plan on paying you back for letting us stay here.” I blurted out before I could stop myself. I needed Cole and me to be on the same playing field. I didn’t want to owe this man anything.
I needed there to be a line drawn in the sand of his generosity.
He frowned. “You don’t…you don’t need to do that,” he said as he shifted his weight.
“Yes, I do.” I steadied my voice so he would know that I was serious.
He blinked as if he were taken aback by my response but then nodded. “Okay. If you insist.”
