AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Jessica would be a great companion for the event.
Chapter Six
Two hours later, Tim left work to visit the Perkins and give Brianna a bag of clothes.
By now, Erin should be at work, which was better. Simmering with resentment and bitterness, he might offend her sensitive nature with a wrong word or action. The poor woman had suffered enough in her life.
When he knocked on the door, David opened it and pumped fists with him.
“Hi, Coach Tim. Granny’s in the kitchen. The girls and Chip are playing in the backyard.”
“I’ll go see Granny. I can smell chocolate.”
“Yeah, she’s baking a dessert.”
Tim followed the boy to the kitchen where Teresa busied herself in front of the counter. On this glorious spring day, the wide-open door to the backyard allowed easy supervision of the children swinging and the toddlers playing in the sandbox.
“Hi Teresa. Something smells good in your domain.” He kissed her cheek. “Here’s a bag for my daughter.”
“Leave it near the stairs. I’m making tiramisu. You’ve come at the right time. Pour yourself a coffee and have a seat. I’ll have you sample a piece and expect you to give me your honest opinion.” She put a wedge of the sweet confection on a plate and set it in front of him.
He tasted the pastry and sighed with exaggerated bliss. “Delicious. As you said, I’ve come at the right time.”
“Glad you like it. How’s your stomach?”
“My stomach?” He automatically blurted.
“Yesterday, you left early. We thought you had a stomachache.”
He shook his head. “I’m okay now. Glad the kids are having fun outdoors. Those truck tires make for amazing swings.” He considered Brianna and Debbie, sitting next to each other on the black rubber wheels, swinging and rotating, chatting and laughing. His daughter was lucky to have bonded with Debbie Perkins and inserted herself into this family.
“Ben installed the swing set a few years ago. He used to build a lot of things around the house. He stopped doing so when he became too busy at work.”
So Ben had been a devoted father. According to Teresa, he’d used his time and skills to compensate for his lack of money, making sure his kids never missed fun games. Considering his large brood, he must have been a loving husband and an eager lover.
By comparison, Tim paled, having only one offspring as proof of his passion. Annoyed with his mental comparison to Erin’s late husband, Tim snorted and glanced at a frame on the dining room buffet—an older family picture with each smiling parent holding a little girl, while the two oldest kids stood in front of them, a happy family destroyed by the plane crash.
A surge of protectiveness filled his heart for the lonely woman dealing with too many responsibilities and too many mouths to feed. He was attracted to her, only one step away from allowing strong emotions to overwhelm him.
Cursing under his breath, he braced himself against tender feelings at the wrong moment—when his heart was struggling to recover from betrayal, his mind seeking a comforting revenge, and his body burning with repressed lust and a need to make up for months of celibacy.
“Tim, about your company ball—”
“Forget it. I’m not interested anymore.” He’d already accepted a suitable partner for the ball.
Teresa frowned. “Why not? It sounded like a nice event and a good distraction for you two.”
He stiffened. “Nope. It’s just an elaborate business meeting. Not the right type of outing for… For a distraction as you said.”
Yes, he needed a distraction. Today, he’d decided he would start going out. Jessica struck him as a good partner, easy-going, living by her own rules, fiercely protective of her independence, not expecting much, and not ready to give more. A relationship with Jessica might lead to a few nights in bed. Was he ready to indulge in meaningless sex? Why not? He needed to unwind…with Jessica
Not Erin. Sweet Erin was certainly not the type of woman he would take to bed just for the fun of it. He cared too much about her. Besides, she was still dwelling in the past, mourning her late husband, unable to turn the page to start living with another man.
“Ah.” Teresa peered at him, anxiety shadowing the dark blue eyes so similar to her daughter’s.
“How long has it been since you lost your husband, Teresa?” He asked to change the subject of conversation.
Her lips pinched. “I’ve never been married.”
