Page 102 of The Billionaire's Virgin

I smiled. “I don’t know what you’re presuming—”

“Oh please,” Jennifer said. “Don’t even bother denying it. It was evident the moment I walked into this apartment tonight. You and Taylor have the whole domestic family bliss thing down pat. I almost referred to her as your wife.”

My wife: the sound of those words didn’t feel wrong at all. In fact, they sent a shiver of excitement through me, and I realized that I wanted them to be true immediately.

“We’re telling Jenna about us soon,” I told Jennifer.

“Really?” Jennifer asked, raising her eyebrows. “That’s a big step. In fact, I would argue that it’s a bigger commitment than… moving in together for example.”

“That’s good,” I replied. “Because we’re doing both.”

“She’s moving in with you guys?”

“After we tell Jenna, yes.” I nodded. “Taylor has agreed to move in with us permanently.”

“As in… she’ll sleep in your bedroom?” Jennifer clarified.

I smiled. “That’s the plan.”

“Wow, you know that Jenna will expect you to marry Taylor one day, right?”

“I know,” I replied. “And I’m okay with that.”

“Wow,” Jennifer said again. “This is more serious than I thought it was.”

“I thought you thought it was pretty serious,” I said, frowning at her.

Jennifer smiled. “That was just my way of trying to pry the truth out of you. It succeeded pretty well, I would say.”

I laughed. “Apparently.” I nodded. “And I know it’s fast, and I tried to be cautious and think it through but no matter which way I come at it from… I still want to be with Taylor. And I actually think having her around has been great for Jenna.”

“No, I agree with that wholeheartedly.” Jennifer nodded. “In fact, I think it’s been great for both of you. You’re not such a mean old crank anymore.”

“Excuse me?” I asked. “When was I ever?”

“Please… you were all work and no play,” Jennifer pointed out. “You never used to joke or tease or take a day off for that matter. Now you seem more family oriented. Your priorities have shifted.”

“I think I was just scared before,” I admitted. “I mean… I think I just didn’t know how to be a single father. Taylor’s shown me how; I know how to interact with Jenna now. I know what she likes and how her day is. I know her friends in school. I know the teachers she’s most comfortable with. I know that she loves the aquarium and she might be the only kid on earth who hates gummy bears. Believe it or not, I didn’t know all this before Taylor came into our lives. In a weird way, she introduced me to my daughter.”

“Wow, Reed,” Jennifer said, shaking her head at me. “That was quite the emotional speech.”

“I don’t believe I got emotional,” I said.

“No… but everything you were saying, it was so sentimental,” Jennifer said. “See, that’s what I mean about you having changed over the last few months. You’ve finally let yourself become a three-dimensional person. You’ve finally embraced a healthy, well-balanced lifestyle. In fact, you’ve inspired me so much that I resolved to do the same.”

“Meaning?”

“I decided to focus on feeding my soul and doing something unrelated to work,” Jennifer admitted. “Like take up a hobby, join a class… go on a date every now and again.”

“Interesting.” I nodded. “And have you made any progress on that front?”

“I went on a date last night actually,” Jennifer admitted.

“No way,” I said. “Who’s the guy?”

“His name is Garry Hedland,” Jennifer replied. “He’s forty-five and divorced, but no children. He owns a small gourmet food store in the city. I’m planning on stopping by sometime tomorrow.”

“Oh… does that mean you can’t stop by and help me with these files?”