Page 171 of The Parkers' Handsome Holiday
“Tiffany,” I said. “I swear to you, it’s not a joke or a bet. What will it take for you to realize that I really am into you?”
She didn’t answer, but I could still hear her breathing on the phone, so I knew she was still there.
“Can’t you just accept the fact that I like you for you? I think you’re gorgeous and smart and…”
She interrupted me.
“No one has said those things to me in a long time,” she said. “It scares the shit out of me, if we are being honest.”
Things suddenly started to make sense. No wonder she didn’t have any confidence in herself. I was constantly praised for my looks or my work ethic. I would imagine if no one gave you compliments, you would start to doubt yourself. I wanted to change that. I wanted her to feel as beautiful and talented as I thought she was.
“Tiffany, please just believe me,” I said.
“I do now,” she replied, but I knew she didn’t.
“I’ll see you in the morning?” she said, obviously wanting to end the conversation.
“Sure. Have a good night, Tiffany.”
“Goodnight.” She hung up the phone, leaving me more confused than ever before. I thought after two dates and our time together last night, that she would have no doubts about my feelings. I had tried to show her that I was a gentleman, and I took her to one of the fanciest restaurants in the city. I was flabbergasted and unsure of what to do next. How could I show her that I really cared about her?
CHAPTER 10
TIFFANY
I walked into work the next morning and hoped I would not run into Cayden. Part of me wanted to see him, but the other half was embarrassed after our conversation last night. I hadn’t wanted to admit what was bothering me, but I couldn’t hide it anymore. Even after our romantic dinner and sex, I still felt like something was off. I could not accept the fact that someone like Cayden was interested in someone like me.
I still couldn’t believe we had sex on Saturday night. I flat out told Mandy that I would not give it up that easily. All it took was two dates and a fancy dinner to get in my pants. I didn’t even make him try! I had to blame it on the wine.
As I entered the building, I noticed that it had been decorated for the holidays. There were multiple decorated trees, garlands, and silver stars hanging from the ceiling. While others were commenting on how great it looked, I could only fake a smile. Everyone was excited about the holidays except for me.
Once I walked into my office, I saw a huge bouquet of pink roses and a cup of coffee sitting on my desk.
“Are those mine?” I asked Nikki. She was sitting at her desk with a grin on her face.
“I believe so,” she said. “The florist just dropped them off and was looking for you. The coffee was already there when I came in, so you may want to warm it up.” I was baffled. This surely was a mistake. No one had ever sent me flowers before.
“Is there a card?” Nikki asked. I walked closer to the flowers. I always loved the smell of fresh flowers, but Brad never got them for me. I would always buy my own at the local farmer’s market. I looked around, but there was no sign of who they were from.
“No card,” I said. Weird.
“Are you sure they were for me?” I asked Nikki. She nodded.
“He asked for Tiffany Martin,” she responded. “They are definitely for you.”
“Odd,” I said. I took a sip of the coffee. It was a little cool, but still good. I had actually overslept that morning and had been unable to grab a cup of coffee on the way in.
“Well, you’re one lucky girl,” Nikki said. “I spent all weekend with Maurice and I didn’t get shit this morning.” We laughed.
“You have no idea who those are from?” she asked, turning the attention back to the flowers. I shook my head. Of course, I had some idea. There were only two men in my life that they could be from. One was a longshot, and one was the better possibility.
When I first saw the flowers, I instantly thought they were from Brad. Even after all that had happened with Cayden, I was still secretly thinking about Brad. Ever since I thought I saw Jessica on Saturday, Brad had been on my mind. What if they broke up and they both came back to town? What if the flowers were a way to win me back and apologize for how we ended things?
It took me a minute to come back to reality. Of course, they weren’t from Brad. He didn’t know where I worked, plus if he did, I highly doubted he would ever do something like this. Toward the end of our relationship, he couldn’t even pick up my dry cleaning for me, let alone pay for flower delivery.
Chances were high they were from Cayden, but why did I want them to be from Brad? What was wrong with me? Brad had cheated on me. He constantly put down my appearance and told me my dreams of being a reporter were stupid. He was part of the reason that my self-esteem was so shattered.
Cayden, on the other hand, was always supportive and was always complimenting me. He was obviously a much better man for me. Why could I not let Brad go? It had been over a year. He had moved on with someone else and seemed much happier. Why could I not let myself do the same thing with a great guy?
