Accidental Heartbreak (The Accidental Series, Book 2) (7 page)

She found herself there today, sitting on a
big red cube, reading to a group of ten kids who were sitting in a
circle around her. The story was about a little girl who wanted to
be star. “There once was a little girl who wanted to be a…” She
paused, turned the book to the kids, showed them the picture of a
yellow star and they all blurted out, “Star!”

Shayla smiled. There was something
refreshing about working with children. The joy of them – those
cute, adorable little faces who had not a care in the world – had a
way of making her forget their troubles. She looked at the book and
continued reading. “She loved to play dress up and try on her
mom’s…”

“Shoes!” the children blurted out when she
turned the book their way.

“She brushed her hair and put on a
pretty…”

“Hat!” they clamored.

Shayla smiled and continued, “Then she sung
her favorite song as loud as she could. The end.”

“Yay,” the kids crooned, clapping their
little hands.

“Read us another one,” one little girl
said.

“Sorry, sweetie,” Shayla told her. “That’s
all for today.”

“Aw,” they whined a harmonious whimper.

“But come back next Saturday, and I’ll read
more, okay?”

“Yay!” they cheered again, then scrambled to
their parents.

Shayla stacked the ten books she’d read and
turned them in to the librarian. Then she went to lunch alone and
returned to her hotel room for a nap.

* * *

When she finally got up, it was six in the
evening. Having overslept, she missed the window of opportunity to
go apartment shopping. She eased off the bed, dug her fingers in
her hair to shake some life into it, then grabbed her purse and
headed out the door for dinner. It would be another lonely, boring
dinner and that bothered her, not because she would be in a
restaurant full of people who would watch her eat by herself, but
because she would be thinking about Carter while she ate, imagining
he was sitting across from her with that dazzling white smile of
his.

At the restaurant, she found herself doing
just that. She was in a daze, holding the fork in her hand, staring
out the window, watching the rain spot and string down the glass.
She wondered what Carter was doing at this very moment.

“You look like you could use some cheering
up.”

She turned her head in the direction of the
familiar voice and saw Donovan standing there, in a black suit like
he’d just left the office. “What are you doing here?” she asked
him.

“This is one of my favorite spots. I’m
surprised you found it. Most out-of-towners don’t know about this
place.”

“Well, I have a lot of time on my hands,
so…”

“Mind if I join you?”

After a long pause, Shayla gestured for him
to sit.

Donovan smirked, then sat down across from
her.

“You worked today?” she inquired.

“Yep...didn’t do much, though. I had a
meeting and some reports I needed to get done.” Donovan watched her
turn towards the window again, watching the rain. “Why do you look
so sad?”

She looked at him like she was surprised
he’d asked the question. “Just have a lot on my mind. I still need
to find a place and—”

“Speaking of finding a place, when are we
going apartment hunting?”

“I don’t know,” Shayla said. Albeit she
needed one, an apartment would be something that would give her
roots in Norfolk and she wasn’t ready for that. “I don’t want to
take up your time.”

“I don’t mind. How about one day next week?
Maybe Friday evening?”

Shayla thought hard about it. She didn’t
want to spend much time with her boss, but now that he’d joined her
for dinner…

“Think about it and let me know by Monday so
I can make sure I don’t plan anything, okay?” he told her.

Shayla nodded.

Donovan ordered a fish platter and dug in
right away, especially since Shayla was done with her dinner. To
keep her from leaving, he insisted she try the cheesecake. Said it
was to die for and the best in the area. His plan worked.

“So what did you do today?” he asked, but he
already knew she was at the library. He followed her there before
he went to the office.

“Not much of anything.”

He gave her an inquisitive glare. “No?”

“Um…nope. Oh, wait. I did go to the library
to read to a group of kids this morning.”

“That’s admirable. You like children?”

“Yeah…always wanted some of my own,
but…”

“Just never happened, huh?”

“Gotta find the right man, first. I’m a
first-comes-love, then-comes-marriage type of girl.”

“Okay,” Donovan said with a smile on his
face. He could respect that, but he knew Carter definitely was not
that type of man. At least he didn’t used to be.

“What about you? You like children?” Shayla
asked.

“Yeah. I have a son. He’s five.” Donovan
wiped his hands, took his wallet from his back pocket, pulled out a
picture of his son and handed it to her.

“Aw…he’s cute. Looks just like you,” she
commented.

“That’s what everyone says.” Donovan took a
sip of water.

“What’s his name?” she asked, handing the
picture back to him.

“He’s a junior, named after me…my wife’s
idea.”

Shayla hadn’t realized he was married until
now. She glanced at his ring finger to see if he was wearing a band
and sure enough… “I didn’t know you were married.” She told him,
not that she was hitting on him or anything. She just stated
it.

“I
was
married. My wife died giving
birth to our son.”

“Oh, no.” Shayla grimaced. “I’m so sorry to
hear that.”

“It’s okay. It was rough the few years after
it happened, losing my wife and instantly becoming a single father,
but five years later, I think I’m finally ready to move on.”

“Well, good for you.” She turned her head
towards the window again. It was beginning to rain harder and she
wondered if it would let up before it was time to leave.

“It’s weird because I never thought I wanted
to get married again but I miss the married life. Being a bachelor
takes a toll on a man.”

“How so?”

“It’s draining…the amount of attention I get
from women…makes me wonder what happened to the days when men had
to almost beg to go out with a woman. Now, women are more
aggressive. Call me old-fashioned, but I like to be the chaser, not
the chasee.”

“I think that’s the way it should be.”

He smiled and nodded. A woman with some
common sense, finally. “So where are your folks from?”

“My Mother passed when I was very young and
I never knew my father. Why do you ask?”

“Your last name…the spelling of it isn’t
that common and I know a few Kline’s.”

“They live here?”

“Near here…in Virginia Beach.”

The waitress brought over a slice of
cheesecake, dripping with strawberry sauce and decorated with the
biggest, juiciest strawberries Shayla had ever seen. The single
slice was so huge, it could be cut into four smaller slices that
would equate to normal serving sizes.

Donovan watched her dig the fork in it, then
tasted a chunk of it. “Good, right?”

“It’s delicious, but there’s no way I can
eat it all.”

“I’ll eat the rest,” he told her.

After a few more bites, Shayla placed her
fork on the table and stretched her arms up in the air. The rain
had calmed down considerably to a misting and this was her out.
“Well, I’m tired and sleepy so I’m gonna head out.”

“You can’t leave yet. I haven’t had any
cheesecake.”

Shayla smiled.

“Give me ten minutes,” Donovan mumbled
through chewing a piece of fish. “Ten minutes.”

“Okay.” She watched him eat, then with her
right elbow on the table, she balled a fist, leaned her head
against it and looked out the window.

Donovan wiped his mouth and took a sip of
water. “So what are you
really
doing here, Shayla?”

“I told you…starting over.”

“From what?”

“Um…” Shayla smiled and frowned at the same
time. It would be so unprofessional to start spilling her guts to
him about all of her problems, but she supposed she could tell him
a little. “There was this guy. I thought he had feelings for me the
same way I had for him, but come to find out, he was seeing someone
else.”

Donovan shook his head. That’s the Carter he
remembered all right. “Well, I’m sure you’ll have no problem
finding someone who’ll respect you, love you and take care of you
like you deserve,” he said like he wanted the job.

“Yeah, but I’m in no hurry. Besides,
self-discovery is the best medicine. Once I figure out who I am and
why my life is where it is right now, then I can move on and think
about relationships again. Until then, I’m going to ride solo.”

“I feel you on that.” Donovan bit into his
last piece of fish.

“I think I’ll order that the next time,”
Shayla said staring at his plate.

“Oh, I’m sorry. Where are my manners? Would
you like to try some?”

She smiled. “No. I’m stuffed. You go
ahead.”

“When a man offers you some of his food,
you’re supposed to take it, right? Isn’t that what people say?”

Her smile faded away because she remembered
Carter said something similar to her when she was in the
hospital.

“Something wrong?” Donovan inquired when he
noticed her sudden shift in mood.

“No. I’m just tired.”

“Okay, well let’s go.”

“No, Donovan. You don’t have to rush off
with me. Stay and finish your food.”

“I’m done.” He tossed the last chunk of fish
in his mouth.

“What about the cheesecake?”

“I’ll get a to-go box for it.”

He took his check and hers from the table to
see how much they were, pulled two twenty dollar bills from his
wallet to cover it. Once the waitress boxed up the cheesecake, he
stood, took her hand and helped her out of the booth.

Side-by-side they walked on the wet,
puddle-filled pavement until Shayla was standing at the driver side
door of her car. It was dark outside and the tall lights in the
parking lot were bright enough so that they could see each
other.

“Thanks for dinner,” she told him.

“You’re welcome. Have a good night,
Shayla.”

“You too.”

She pressed the unlock button on her
keychain remote.

“If you would like, I can follow you to your
hotel…make sure you get there safely,” Donovan offered.

“Thanks, but I’ll be fine.”

“Yeah, but then I’d be left wondering if you
made it okay.” Unbeknownst to her, Donovan would be following her
anyway in order to report back to Carter, but she wouldn’t know
that.

“How about I call you when I get there?”

“What if you forget?”

Shayla laughed. “I won’t forget.”

Donovan grunted. “Okay, but as soon as you
make it to your room, call me.”

“I will.” Shayla thanked him for dinner
again, opened the door and sat in the driver’s seat. “I’ll see you
back at the office next week.”

“Okay.” Donovan pushed the door shut for
her, watching her start her engine. When she drove off, he jogged
to his car so that he could be minutes behind her on the road
because he would sit in the parking lot of her hotel and watch her
again tonight.

* * *

Shayla sat alone in her car at the hotel.
She’d shut off the engine, took her purse from the driver seat and
placed it on her lap. Before she could get out of the car, tears
sprang from her eyes, the same as every night this week. It was
happening so often, it seemed to be an involuntary action. She
moved away from Carter and started her life over. Why was she still
upset to the point of tears?

She buried her face in her hands and cried
her eyes out. She knew why Carter didn’t want to be with her—knew
she wasn’t good enough for him. That was a hard thing for a woman
or anyone to come to terms with. For her, it was especially
difficult because Carter was the only man, besides Jacob, that
she’d loved and felt comfortable with. And he didn’t want her…

The melodic tapping on the window startled
her. Shayla jumped and felt her heart rate increase. With flooded
eyes, she turned to see who it was and there was Donovan, standing
there. She thought she’d left him at the restaurant.

“Shayla, unlock the door,” he told her.

She did as he asked, then stepped out.

“Come here,” he said, reaching for her and
holding her in his embrace, her tears dampening his suit
jacket.

Shayla didn’t ask him what he was doing
there. She just fell into his arm and cried harder.

“It’s going to be okay,” Donovan told her,
consoling her and rubbing her back. His concern and care only made
her cry harder.

“Come on. Let me walk you to your room.” He
threw an arm around her shoulder then as they walked, she tearfully
told him her room number, taking a room keycard from her purse.

Unlocking the door and letting her pass,
Donovan watched her sit on the bed. Tears were dropping from her
eyes and she had the saddest face he’d ever seen on a woman.

He walked over and kneeled in front of her.
“Whatever’s bothering you, force it out of your mind, sweetheart,
because it’s not worth it.”

Shayla dabbed her eyes and hung her head
low. Her hair hid her face.

Donovan unbuckled her sandal straps and slid
her shoes off one-by-one. He stood, turned her covers back and
summoned her to get in the bed.

Once she was comfortably positioned, he
pulled the covers over her, tucking her in and caring for her.
“Just so you know, I’m not leaving until you’ve stopped
crying.”

More tears rolled from her eyes, then she
closed them and slowly began to relax.

Carter sure did a number on you
,
Donovan thought as he watched her fall asleep. He had to assume she
was somehow involved with Carter and when things went sour, she
left Charlotte. And it must’ve been pretty bad if leaving the city
was her only recourse. He looked at her again, watching her breathe
gentle and sweet. He eased up from the bed, slowly, so as not to
wake her. Then he took one of her room keycards, turned off the
lights and exited her room.