Page 26 of Honey Bun
He smiled and placed his hand on my back as if he would catch me if I fell. I wouldn’t, but his nearness was nice. “Because you make my life… better just from being here.”
Warmness grew in my heart. He came closer, and my lips tingled as if we were about to kiss. This wasn’t good.
I shook my head as he opened the door. “Let’s talk about the velvet chairs I’m wanting to rent for your party.”
He waited for me to pass through. “You’re the professional. I trust you.”
I wasn’t ready for more, even if every cell in my body wanted him. “I’m not. Party planning is just taking me back to a passion.”
He smiled like he was proud of me. “Well, if you want to get a degree, I can—”
“You’re doing enough,” I interrupted before he offered to pay for something else in my life.
He rubbed the back of his neck, and his face reddened as we headed to the stairs. “Maybe it’s a bad time to have you go into your room.”
My heart pounded with adrenaline as I rushed to the stairs. “What? Why?” As I pushed open my room door, I saw the closet open and dresses, shirts, and pants hung up. I turned toward Arman, who stood in the doorway. “What’s this?”
He held out his hands. “Surprise.”
I intended to hack my way through the first few weeks of work and buy myself clothes. I let out a long breath. “You bought me a wardrobe?”
He played with his earlobe. “Yeah. This is just a sample for you and your daughter.”
What is he saying? Does this mean the apartment he’s arranged will already be stocked for us?I tensed. I needed to repay his kindness. I wiped away tears from the corners of my eyes as I stared at him. “Why did you do this?”
He shrugged and came toward me. My bed was behind me. Heat rushed into my veins as he said, “You’ll be in Manhattan tomorrow, and you’ll represent my company. I need you looking sophisticated.”
I tried to calm down. The clothes were about appearances, not intimacy. I moved closer to him. “This is too generous.”
He took my hands and gazed down his nose at me. I felt safe. “You’ll accept because you need it. I called a client and secured Aurora’s spot at Dalton.”
My head cleared, and I widened my eyes. My daughter was the most important person in my life. “Is that private?”
He nodded and squeezed my palm. “I didn’t think you’d want her in the all-girls school or Trinity, and the public schools would have way more people in them than anything you’re used to.”
“Why did you think that?” I asked even though it was true.
His eyes grew darker. “Because you want a different life for your daughter than you were allowed.”
“You know me well.” My lips ached to kiss him.
He stared down at me, and I almost went up on my tiptoes as I said, “I like to think so.”
But I let him go. I was not ready to take a chance. Arman was seriously the perfect guy, but I wasn’t in his league. It was better that we keep our relationship professional.
Madeleine
Jeff texted that the papers were signed. I was free. I had questions to ask him later. My heart had hardly had time to process this.
Arman, Aurora, and I walked out of the parking lot together as if we were a family. The air at the carnival smelled like the beach mixed with cotton candy. And I wasn’t cold despite the lack of sun in the evening, thanks to my new sweater.
Watching Aurora laugh as she played with her friends was a highlight of the night out. I would talk to her later about the news. Then I laughed. I hadn’t gone thirty seconds without being grateful that Arman was beside me. His being with me was the best gift I’d ever received. The bright lights and games people played all around us tinged the air with possibilities. Maybe life was like a game and it was possible to level up.
As we headed to the dock to look out at the water, my gray-haired mother stepped in front of us, holding a potted fiddle-leaf fig tree. I stepped back. “Mom, you normally hate carnivals.” I turned to Arman. “Can you give us one minute?”
He nodded. “My brother’s right there. I won’t be far.” He stepped back about ten feet.
Once Arman was far enough away, my mother said, “I wanted to say goodbye to you both.”
