Balancing Act (13 page)

Seth turned and leaned a shoulder up against the porch pillar. He reached out with one long finger and stroked a stray piece of hair from her face.

“It’s tough to always feel like you’re the responsible one.”

“I never felt that way until I got the call at school about the accident.”

“How did it happen?”

“One of those freak things,” Tessa said as she stared into space. “They were coming home from a business dinner. A trucker was passing them when his tire blew and slammed into their car. My stepfather lost control. He died at the scene.”

“What about your mother?”

Tessa bit her bottom lip. “I was able to say goodbye. It was almost as if she waited, you know? Once she said goodbye and asked me to watch out for Zach, she kind of let go.”

Seth squeezed her shoulder. “You miss them.”

“Both of them. Jack was more a dad to me than my father ever was, and I watched the way he was with Zach. He was a great parent, and he loved my mom so much.” Her voice trailed away toward the end and she swallowed. “I’m sorry. I don’t usually dump that on people.”

Seth pulled her into his shoulder and pressed her against his side. His voice was a deep rumble as he said, “I don’t want to be just ‘people’, Tessa. You do know that, don’t you?”

His gaze was sincere, intense.

“I know,” she whispered.

He tilted her chin and kissed her then. Rather than an attempt to start anything, his kiss was gentle and undemanding, more of a benediction. He released her and stood up, a half smile tugging at his firm mouth.

“I’m leaving now, while I still can. I’m leaving because you do have that little brother inside, and I won’t have him think less of you if I stayed.”

She nodded and watched his easy stride as he walked to the Escalade. Warmth flooded her. She’d dated a few times since Zach came to live with her, but had never before felt respected because a guy left. She smiled and shook her head. It was still difficult to realize he was the same man who growled at her from behind newspapers and barked orders left and right when he was at work. Which man was the real one, or were they both parts of the whole?

Seth sprang the wedding preparations on her Monday, right after he grunted his way through his morning coffee. As he outlined what he wanted her to do, Tessa stared at him. No problem, she thought. In forty-eight hours they would fly to North Carolina for his sister’s wedding, where Seth would give her away, then Tessa would somehow have managed to cater a luncheon reception, complete with a wedding cake for about twenty people at the groom’s parents’ home. Of course, all he knew was their last name and that they had a horse farm.

Tessa nodded through all of his instructions.

“Will that be a problem?”

“Not at all,” Tessa assured him and turned on her heel. She would not give him the satisfaction of letting him see what she really wanted to do was drop her mouth open, stare at him and ask, “Are you crazy?”

She made a few well-chosen phone calls and came back before lunch to set the travel itinerary, the menu and the choices for wedding gifts in front of him. She refrained from giving voice to the
na-na-na-na-na-na
.

“If you’ll select one of these gifts, I’ll have it ready to leave with us Wednesday morning. I assumed you might want me to come along with you and Brandon, since I moved your meeting with the West Coast division to Thursday, and you could use the travel time and any downtime to complete your meeting prep.”

Seth gaped. “You’re done already?”

“Piece of cake. No pun intended.”

Now and then, through the rest of the day, she caught him staring at her, which was so rewarding, as if he couldn’t quite believe she had managed to carry out his orders.

The trip went without a hitch. Tessa stepped in to organize getting everyone to the church on time, enjoying being able to watch Anna’s baby girl, Becca. After Seth sat next to her during the ceremony, she couldn’t stop a little wishful thinking. What would he be like as a father? In her heart of hearts, she already knew the answer. She saw how he was with her brother, how he put Zach at his ease and explained things to the boy with a patience that would have surprised anyone who knew him from Barrett. Yes, Seth would make someone a wonderful husband, but it would not be her. Pedigree or no pedigree, money married money, and that was one thing she didn’t have.

Unless she counted the cash that had appeared in her bank account. The problem nagged at the back of her mind all day. She’d hoped for a moment to call the bank, but so far that hadn’t happened. She’d discovered the snafu as she’d done her monthly bills and balanced her checkbook before logging online to verify that it jived with her actual balance. She’d sent the bank an email, but that late at night, all she’d gotten in response was the standard form reply that someone would look into it.

Now, with Seth’s sister getting married and both he and Brandon in high spirits, Tessa didn’t want to think about it, let alone mention it. Some way, somehow, a very large amount of cash had appeared in her checking account. Money that should not be there, was there, and she would have to figure out where it had come from. She didn’t play the lottery, and her luck had been pretty spotty, so it was doubtful the money belonged there. It made her nervous, but until she could get the bank on the line, there was little she could do.

By the end of the day, as they got ready to return to DC, Tessa began to feel some of the fatigue that plagued her most often in the evenings. She hadn’t been sleeping well since the elevator incident, but she suspected the stress of all the recent upheavals with a job change, the custody hearing and a nagging uncertainty over what was going on with Seth were threatening to overwhelm her. The foul up in her bank account was one more stressor she could do without.

Tessa stumbled as she prepared to get on the jet, and Brandon caught her arm.

“You okay?” He glared at his older brother. “Are you trying to work this girl to death, bro? She looks beat.”

Seth helped her into the jet and to a seat near the window, his brow furrowed with concern.

“Tessa, are you feeling okay?”

“Just tired.” As he took the seat across from her, he continued to frown at her, until Tessa felt like she needed to add something. “I haven’t been sleeping well, and I’ve been busy trying to get Zach ready for camp. It’s nothing. Really.”

“Take tomorrow and Friday off.”

“There’s no need–”

Seth cut her off. “It will give you a chance to get Zach set for camp and, Tessa?”

She looked at him, weariness dragging at her.

“I’ll come by and pick you and Zach up Friday, and then I want to take you to the beach house for the weekend. Will you come?”

It was on the tip of her tongue to pour everything into his lap, but she held back and pushed the matter of her bank account out of her mind, along with any of the doubts she still had. Seth, the man she found incredibly attractive, was inviting her to spend a weekend in a beach house with him. What was wrong in that? He’d already told her there were no strings attached. She knew he meant it. If there was one thing she knew about him since coming to work at Barrett, it was that Seth was honest. He demanded it of himself and those who surrounded him.

Tessa nodded and his frown disappeared. It was amazing what a sense of relief she felt. As the whine of the jet’s engines intensified before they started down the runway, Tessa leaned her head back and stared out the window. After the initial pressure of taking off, the jet climbed to its cruising altitude. Tessa’s eyes drooped and she quit fighting her need for sleep.

* * * *

As Tessa dozed on the way home, Seth frowned. She did look washed out and faint circles even makeup could no longer disguise lay under her eyes. He felt like a heel. She was always so efficient, it was easy to keep driving her at the same pace he drove himself. But on top of work, she also had the care of her little brother, and he suspected that could be draining more often than not. He knew firsthand how high-energy Zach was. It would take a lot out of a mother and a father, but here she was at twenty-four playing both roles. Difficult enough with a regular kid, but Zach’s special needs would make it even tougher.

Seth rubbed his hand over the center of his chest. She was too young and too fragile to be taking on so much by herself. And he could imagine how well that idea would go over if he ever mentioned it to her.

They landed less than an hour later. Tessa had slept the whole time, only stirring as they touched the ground, but she was still not quite awake. Seth loved the way her cheeks flushed in sleep, and the slight confusion in her expression when she awoke, then dozed off again.

Brandon glanced at the two of them with a faint grin, and Seth frowned at him.

“I’ll see you later,” his brother called as he ducked out the doorway.

“Hmm.” Seth acknowledged him, his attention still on Tessa. He wished he could let her sleep. “Tessa,” he murmured. “Sweetheart, wake up.” The endearment slipped out so he was barely aware he’d even used it, but it felt right.

Her eyes fluttered open once more, and she turned her head. Awareness returned, this time all the way. She smoothed her hair back and unbuckled her seatbelt.

“I’m sorry. You should have awakened me sooner.”

“We’ve just arrived. Don’t worry about it.” Seth held out his hand. “Come on, I’ll run you home, and I meant what I said. Take tomorrow and Friday off.”

Tessa smiled. “Thanks. I guess I could use a break.”

As they pulled up in front of her apartment, Seth turned his head and caught her watching him. The expression on her face made his cock stir. God, he wanted her, but he’d screwed it up so much in Chicago. She swallowed and blushed, sending his desire that much higher knowing she also felt something.

“What time do I need to come get you and Zach Friday?” His voice was a little hoarse.

“Noon. They leave from his new school by bus at one.”

“If you’ll have your things packed, we can go on to the beach house after his bus leaves.”

“All right.”

He came around to help her out of the SUV. When he’d handed her down, he caught hold of her wrist, ducked his head and brushed her lips with his. He wanted so much more than that, but didn’t dare. Not yet.

“What was that for?” she whispered, her eyes wide.

Seth stroked her cheek. “Thanks. For your help. It meant a lot to Anna…and me.”

She nodded. “I’ll see you Friday.”

Seth leaned against the SUV as she hurried up the sidewalk and through the door. A weekend. It was more than he’d dare hope. Now all he needed to do was convince her he was interested in more than a romp in bed. As he walked back around the Escalade, he asked himself what he was interested in–a relationship for sure, but more permanent than that he couldn’t wrap his mind around yet. Moreover, he wasn’t sure Tessa would be able to either.

Chapter 8

As impatient as she was to have Zach’s last minute camp list out of the way, Tessa waited to do anything until she could get hold of someone from her bank. She could find no actual deposit to her account, just a balance that read ten thousand dollars more than it should. She was past the initial heart failure stage, now she was anxious to get it straightened out, but the bank was little help.

“I’m sorry, Miss Edwards. We’re doing what we can, but so far we haven’t been able to track where the money came from…or where it should be.”

“Can’t you move it out of my account?”

“Until we can locate the exact source of the money, no. If it turned out to be a computer glitch of some sort, then your account would be overdrawn to the tune of ten thousand dollars.”

Tessa pressed her lips together in irritation. “Fine, but I need some reassurance that this will be taken care of as quickly as possible.”

“We are working on it. I can assure you of that.”

She hung up to see Zach standing right behind her.

“Get your clothes on, bud.” She gave him a bright smile. This was her problem. Not his. “Let’s go get your stuff for camp.”

Thursday passed faster than Tessa would have thought. After rushing around all morning, the afternoon was spent packing. Tessa made sure everything was labeled and stowed so it would be easy for him to find without having to tear his whole trunk apart–though that would happen anyway. She included some snacks and a double amount of sunscreen, knowing how Zach needed to keep from getting fried to a freckled crisp.

Friday morning she took him out to breakfast. He loaded up on his favorite, pancakes smothered in butter and syrup. It was almost enough to make Tessa, who was not a big breakfast-eater, gag. She sipped coffee and munched buttered toast as she ran back down the list of things he was supposed to have.

“Don’t forget to turn over your medication to the camp counselor,” Tessa reminded him. “I put it in a plastic bag, along with written instructions.”

“Tess,” Zach said around a mouthful of food, “I’m not a little kid anymore. I can remember that.”

Tessa smiled at him. “Sorry. Oh, and Zach?”

“What?” he asked in exasperation.

“Have fun.” Tessa grinned at him.