AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“And Cami agreed to pretend the two of you were dating?” Trina asks.
“She knew that I liked someone else, but unfortunately, I didn’t think that woman would give me the time of day.”
“Who was that woman?” Trina prompts.
Tim’s head slowly turns until his eyes meet mine. “That woman is Paige Holland.” As I try to swallow the lump of emotion that’s developed in my throat, he continues, “Paige and I have known each other most of our lives. She knows why I came on the show, so I was afraid she wouldn’t believe me when I told her how I felt about her.”
While there’s no music playing, I can almost hear a dramatic crescendo build. “What does Paige mean to you, Tim?” Trina asks.
He inhales deeply while staring at me like he’s sending me a psychic message. “Paige is that kind of woman you dream about.” He hurries to add, “And not just because she’s beautiful, either. Paige is smart, funny, and down-to-earth. She’s comfortable withwho she is, and she never tries to pretend she’s someone else. Paige is the complete opposite of my ex-wife.”
“Tim,” I start to say but I stop. My thoughts are swirling around my brain like they’re in a blender and I can’t seem to formulate a proper answer.
Thank goodness Trina comes to the rescue. “It sounds like someone has a bit of a crush on you, Paige.”
That’s exactly what it sounds like, and I’m having a hard time believing it. Although if it weren’t true, what are Tim and I doing here? I finally manage, “When I found out that Cami and Tim were faking their relationship, I assumed Tim was faking interest in me, too. You know, to make his ex jealous.”
“That’s a completely reasonable assumption,” Tim says. “But it’s not true. I likeyou, Paige. I want to dateyou, and no one else. So much so that I don’t care if the world knows my wife left me. I don’t care what anyone thinks of me, except for you.”
Tim went to such great lengths to make sure people never learned about Eva, I realize there’s no way he’s lying to me right now. Even so, a wave of fear washes over me while I try to decide how to respond. That’s when I hear Missy’s voice in my head telling me to go for it.
I finally look at Tim and confess, “I like you, too. But I’m scared.”
He reaches over and takes my hand. “There are no guarantees in life, Paige, and that’s always scary. But I already think of you as a good friend, and I can’t imagine starting a relationship on a better foundation than that.”
For some reason I feel the need to say, “We’ve only kissed once.”
“Is that a challenge?” he wants to know.
Is it?“Maybe …”
He scoots closer to me and says, “Come here.”
“I’m not going to kiss you on television.” I sound like a schoolmarm straight out of the Old West. You know, if they’d had televisions and there were dating shows.
Tim leans closer to me. “You are an extraordinary woman, Paige Holland, and I like you.” He leans in even closer and says, “And I want to kiss you for the world to see.”
Tim draws me in like we’re opposite ends of a magnet. Slowly but surely, he claims my lips with his own, causing tingles to start at the tips of my toes. They don’t stop until they reach the base of my neck.
I no longer care that the whole world is watching. All I care about is the man who just bared his soul to me. Tim and I have been on an emotional journey the likes of which I’ve never experienced before.
While we continue to explore our amazing chemistry, I hear Trina say, “And that’s what love is all about, folks. You never know when it’s going to hit, and there aren’t any guarantees, but even so, these two make you want to give it a shot, don’t they?”
EPILOGUE
PAIGE/ SIX MONTHS LATER
After connecting his phone to the television, Tim sidles up to me on the couch. “Even though it won’t be aired, I’m glad Trina sent us my parents’ interview.”
“They never told you what they talked about?” I’ve gotten to know Tim’s parents well in the last several months, and they talk about nearly everything.
He shrugs his shoulders. “It’s a mystery.”
We stop talking when the image of his parents pops up on the screen.
Trina looks a bit uncomfortable, and I can only imagine it’s because Tim was nearly banging down the door while the interview was taking place. She smiles at her guests and says, “Ellen, Gregg, thank you for joining us.”
Tim’s mom smiles back. “We’re happy to be here.”
