Page 44

TYLER

HAVING JEN INmy home was nothing short of amazing. Her laugh replaced the lonely echo that was my usual companion when I was here, and her graceful presence across from me while we ate her delicious dinner made this house feel more like a home than it had since my grandparents died.

Her dinner was so amazing there were no leftovers. I smiled to myself as I recalled her astonished look when I scraped the remaining mashed potatoes out of the bowl onto my plate and did the same with the salad.

I could get use to this. I’m not sure Jen appreciated just how hard it was not to drag her caveman style into my bedroom earlier and fuck her into tomorrow. Literally. But I also wanted much more with her. Despite my past dating habits, I knew deep down, I could make a commitment, but not until I received the same in kind. I swore long ago that I’d never again try to be something other than who I really was; I had learned the hard way that trying to be someone different could have heartbreaking results. With few exceptions, most women in my experience seemed to become so emotionally attached that they became dependent on their partner for their happiness. I’d witnessed firsthand how conflicting schedules and priorities could destroy a relationship. But Jen was so detached, it was just as scary. I hoped we could find a middle ground somewhere. Being with me meant tolerating long work hours. It meant–

I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket.

It meant dealing withthis.

I ignored the buzzing against my ass and brought the last of the dishes back to the kitchen, where Jen was loading the dishwasher. Counters wiped and the dishwasher humming, I pulled Jen into the living room, carefully avoiding the couch where our ‘conversation’ almost made us burn dinner. I needed some calm to balance the emotional tides that ebbed in and out whenever Jen and I were together.

I picked up a remote and turned on the stereo. “Dance with me,” I murmured huskily. Smiling, she came into my arms. “Last time we did this I got into trouble the next morning,” she said, but I could tell she was teasing by her wink and grin.

We continued to dance quietly. “Hey, Doc, I don’t mean to alarm you, but I think your ass is vibrating.” I didn’t answer her; I just kept us swaying to the music. Before I recognized the ambition of her movement, she had slipped the phone out of my back pocket. Sure enough, I saw Natalie’s name appear on the screen as I looked over her shoulder.

“Damn it.” I blew out a breath as I grabbed my phone.

“Okay, Tyler. Out with it once and for all. Who is Natalie? If she really means nothing to you as you claim, then don’t be afraid to tell me. You’re only making it worse by not saying anything.” She looked kind of cute with her arms crossed and her lips all pouty.

Resigned, I suggested, “Let’s get a drink. We might both need one for this.”

She raised an eyebrow but followed me over to the marble-topped bar. She chose more wine, and I poured my usual Scotch. Jen sat down on the couch and raised expectant eyes at me. I continued to stand, figuring I’d probably need to hit the bar again soon.

“After my mom died, my dad and I sort of danced around each other. I was basically old enough to take care of myself, and he . . . well, he was just angry all the time. He was always sort of intense, and it just got worse after she died, so I avoided him as much as possible. He provided for my needs, and in turn, I left him alone.”

“That’s so sad, Tyler.” Jen frowned, and I knew that my relationship with my dad was a foreign idea to her given how she adored both of her parents. “But how does Natalie tie into this?”

I held up a finger. “A couple years after my mom died, while I was away in college, my dad had a mild stroke. He’s mostly recovered now, but at the time when he was released from the hospital, it was obvious he was going to need some help, and I had another few months to go at school. So I contracted with an agency for a temporary live-in nurse.”

“Natalie.”

I nodded. “I’d call home every few days, and she would answer the phone. She was friendly and sounded professional enough. And when she’d put my dad on the phone, he sounded happier than he had in years. I didn’t question anything because it was such a relief from the coldness I usually received. It was almost a month before I could come home to visit. I walked into the house like I always had. It was so quiet, at first I thought no one was home and that maybe Natalie had taken my dad out for a drive or walk. By then, he was getting around much better. One of the reasons I’d come home was to talk about no longer needing a nurse, certainly not full time anyway. Anyway, I took my gear up to my bedroom, and I suddenly heard a thump and a loud moan. Worried it was my dad, I hurried to his room and opened the door. And well, let’s just say that my first impression of Natalie was of her bare ass as she rode my father in bed.”

“Eww.” Jen’s nose wrinkled and she gave a mock shudder.

“Exactly.” My shudder wasn’t fake as I recalled the scene. Even though most guys silently cheer another guy ‘getting some,’ most don’t want to think about it being their own parent. “Neither one seemed to hear me, so I snuck back out and went downstairs and made enough noise banging dishes around in the kitchen so they’d realize I was there. Eventually, they came downstairs, and I should have won an Oscar for the performance I gave, pretending to be surprised that they were home. And I almost couldn’t blame my dad. Natalie is, in a word, beautiful.” I looked carefully at her as I said the words. My experience was most women don’t want to hear a man describe any other woman as beautiful other than themselves.

But Jen didn’t seem to be bothered by it; she just seemed amused by the story given the way her mouth quirked up on one side. “Was she wearing a naughty nurse’s outfit?” she said with a laugh.

“I’m surprised she wasn’t,” I said dryly. “So, Natalie cooked dinner that night, and it was honestly pretty good. But she started giving me these looks all through the meal.”

“What kind of looks?” Jen asked. I saw her bite her lip just before she hid them behind a hand. She appeared to suffer from a small coughing spell.

I frowned at her. “The kind that suggested she’d like to take a bite of something other than the food on the table. But in my own home, after what I witnessed with my dad, I thought I must be mistaken. But there was no mistaking the way she grabbed my ass in the kitchen when I brought my plate out.”

“You’re kidding?” She no longer attempted to hold back her laughter. “She hit on you? After banging your dad a couple hours earlier?”

“I’m glad you find this so amusing,” I said wryly.

“I’m sorry.” She managed to stifle another giggle. “It’s just almost unbelievable. Like a bad porn video.”

I did crack a smile at that. “Except it was real. And she continued every time she saw me, bluntly trying to corner me, touching me, openly propositioning me, even to the point I found her naked in my bed once after my dad had fallen asleep,” I continued grimly. “But I knew by my dad’s smile, she was still sleeping with him, too.”

“Wow,” she whistled. “Quite the little slut, wasn’t she? And I take it she still hasn’t given up on you?”

“Worse,” I scowled. “Now she’s my stepmother.”