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“Oh, those glasses were the worst. I got picked on for those.”
“Those glasses cost a fortune!” his mom insists.
“You think those kids cared about that? They had no idea how much they cost. They still called me bug eyes.”
“Do you still wear glasses sometimes?” I ask.
“Once in a while. I have a few pairs I wear at night after my contacts make my eyes itch,” he says.
“Well, if I saw you like that, I’d be the last person to call you bug eyes.” I reach up and adjust the pair I wear most of the time.
“You don’t know how bad these glasses were. Mom was shopping for comfort, not the style.”
“Sounds like me.” I turn to his mom. “Did you know that Kaison didn’t recognize me the second time he met me because I was wearing these glasses instead of contacts?”
“Those glasses look nice on you,” Mrs. Keith says. She shoots Kaison a disapproving look. “You could have at least pretended to know who she was.”
“I had no idea. She looked totally different.”
“It’s okay,” I say. “That night I’d let my cousin give me a makeover. She pretty much went all out.”
“Well, that would have been fun to see,” Mrs. Keith says. “I bet Kaison went crazy over that.”
I could have agreed with her, but I keep quiet. It’s not like she needs any encouragement. It’s been feeling more natural being around Kaison, and his family has been unexpectedly welcoming to me.
And that’s scary. I’ve lost so much in my life. I don’t want to get too attached. If Mrs. Keith had it her way, she’d match me up with Kaison, but what guarantee did I have that he wouldn’t return to his player ways when he got tired of me? I can’t allow myself to get too invested into something that could be taken away from me at any moment.
I’ve been letting myself get caught up in the whirlwind of his welcoming family, and I need to stay grounded in reality. There’s nothing between Kaison and me. Period. I can’t let myself forget that. As much as his mom wants us together, there’s no guarantee that Kaison is ready to settle down.
Something furry brushes against my leg, and I glance down. A gray striped kitten is rubbing all over my ankles. That’s cute and all, but I can’t be friends with cats because I like to breathe.
The cute kitty jumps into my lap, and my eyes start to water. I twist my head away and sneeze.
“Mittens, get off of her,” Mrs. Keith scolds.
Mittens’ tail flicks up above the table as she jumps down. “Sorry. I do like cats, but I’m allergic,” I say. “How many cats are here?”
“Just Mittens and her brother Zebra.”
Aww. Just what I need. Some adorable little furballs to climb all over me and make me sneeze when I’m trying to get work done. I do love kitties. But I like breathing better.
“If it’s a problem, we can have our family doctor come over and offer you an allergy shot.”
“That might be best,” I say.
“Dr. Bradley is an old family friend and has been practicing medicine in Blue Mountain for years,” Kaison tells me as we finish up with breakfast and head into the conference room to get started for the day. “He comes and makes house calls sometimes.”
We sit across from each other with our laptops in front of us, and I start building the program we need to streamline the company’s finances. After a couple of hours of hunching over my laptop, my body is stiff and my shoulders ache.
Kaison stretches and yawns, and I get an eyeful of muscles flexing beneath his fitted dress shirt.
I’ve made an effort to dress up as well. We may not be at the office, but I’m still at work. I’m in the house of my boss, and it’s more important now than ever to look my best. That doesn’t mean I have heavy makeup or anything, but I am dressed in office attire. I even put on some heels today. Farah would be proud of me. These shoes are a bit more edgy than what I usually wear, but they go well with the slim-legged dress pants I’m wearing.
“Want to take a little break?” Kaison asks.
“Sounds good to me.”
“It’s nice outside. Want me to show you around a little? We can keep talking business, but we’ll be getting a little exercise in as well.”