Lost and Found (18 page)

"He said from now on, I'm here for you and your sister. I didn't forget, but he's not here now, is he? He's at work, isn't
he? He's always at work!" Gideon’s mad looks a lot like
Cash when he's mad, and I'm amazed at the similarities.

"No, he isn't. He took off today and he had all intentions of
coming and picking you up, but your little sister asked him
to push her in her swing and he didn't have the heart to say
no to her, so I came to pick you up." He looked up at me
and grinned.

"Eden asked him that? She never talks to Daddy. Ever.
She always says she's scared of him, when we talk about
him."

"I know, but your Daddy really is trying to make it up to
you two. So, what do you want to do when we get
home? Do you have homework?"
He started kicking his feet from excitement, wipes his
tears away with his sleeve, and can't contain his excitement.

"Nope! No homework for me! You wanna know what I
want to do? My favorite thing in the whole world. Mrs.
Williamson wouldn't ever let me, because I think she knew I
loved it so much." I started giggling, because he was
bouncing in his seat now.

"What is your favorite thing to do in the whole world?"
What a mean vicious woman she was to not let him ever
have any joy.

"Swimming!" He had me laughing my head off by the way
he said it. What a mess he is and so adorable. I wished I
had knocked her on her ass before she left, for the way she
treated him.

"Then swimming it is!"

I could barely keep him in his seat, as we pulled in the
driveway, he was so excited. When we finally reached the
house, he ran inside. I walked in after him and Cash was standing
there with a kid on each hip, grinning.

"I guess we are all going swimming. Let’s go get our suits
on."

Oh, the three of them are quite the trio. No one would have
ever believed how the last five years had gone for them.
Everyone was so excited that Lucas went swimming with
them as well. Lucas and Cash kept taking turns throwing
the kids in the air and it became a game between them of
who could throw which kid the furthest.

I must say. Cash in his bathing suit, without a shirt on, was
a sight to see and I was glad I didn't miss it. Claud was
right about her Greek God comparison and watching him
with the kids without a care in the world, made him even more attractive.

He kept trying to talk me into getting in too, but I didn't
have a suit and never even thought about buying one on my
little shopping spree. I didn't mind, though, because I would
have rather watched the bond he was forming with his
children, which was one of the most beautiful things I've
ever seen happen right before my eyes.

After everyone was tired from swimming, they washed
up and changed and went upstairs to dinner. Eden made sure to sit between me and Cash and Gideon got on the
other side of his daddy, and talked his legs off all throughout dinner.

Cash hung on to every word he said and I still couldn't
believe how just the day before, this place seemed like a
mausoleum, because it was so eerily quiet and now it
sounds truly like a castle full of children laughing, with lots of belly laughs from the adults as well.

At bedtime, I pulled Cash aside and asked him if it was too
much too soon and how did he feel about helping me with
their baths and bedtime.

"Are you kidding? Too much? I've already missed too
much, Liv. There's no going back for me. I'm done being a
shit to them, like I have been. You were right about them, ya
know. Not only is Gideon like looking in the mirror, but
he's smart and funny and man he's tough. He got that from
Vanessa. If I were stronger like her, I wouldn't have treated
them the way I have and for him to just let me pick up
where I left off with him, with no judgments? Like he
already loves me?" He's going back down that road again
and I can't let him.

"Cash, he's ALWAYS loved you. Haven't you always
loved him?" He nodded.
"It's the same for him too. He's just been waiting for you and he has been very patient, and yes, he is strong, but he
never quit loving you. You have to realize that." I give him
a hug and whisper in his ear.

"You're doing well. One step at a time and quit being so hard on yourself. Kids are more resilient than we are, ya
know. Just love them. That's all you have to do." I pull
away and look at him.

"You're right. This is not about me anymore. I can do this."

Pep talk over. I was never a cheerleader, but I suddenly feel
like one, and Cash is my starting quarterback that I'm
rooting for, telling him he can do what is expected of him.

"Then help me put your kids to bed, Mr. Kingston." The
look on his face was priceless, because I knew how he hated
it when I called him that.

I giggled and dragged him upstairs and he helped Gideon
with his bath, as I helped Eden with hers and when we had
them both clean and in their pajamas, my last memory from
last night was Cash between his two children in the middle
of Gideon's king sized bed, all three of them with their
arms around each other asleep after story time.

I'm finally all packed up and ready to go home for the
weekend. The kid’s grandparents had just picked them up
and I had forgotten a few things while packing.

As I'm walking down the stairs, I'm all turned around and
realize that I had taken the wrong stairway. I still haven't
seen the entire castle and hadn't even thought to ask for a
tour, because everyone's been so busy and tied up with the
kids, so I had no idea where I was.

I hear something to my left and I go to check it out, when
someone picks me up from behind and puts their hand over
my mouth, as I scream and get pulled into a dark room. I
immediately recognize his smell and his hard body pressed
against mine. I feel his breath at the back of my neck.

"What are you doing so close to my dungeon? There are
fines for trespassing, ya know." His deep husky voice tickled me behind my ear.

Oh my God, I am so turned on right now and so terrified by
this man at the same time. He's still holding me tight
against him and has one hand still over my mouth and the
other grazing up and down my side, and I can't dare myself to move a muscle.

"I'm going to really miss you while you're gone this
weekend, Liv. The last two days have been truly amazing
and I just wanted to thank you in a proper way."

He turns me around and kisses me with everything he has,
hard and demanding, while his hands roam all over me, up
my back, and into my hair to pull me even closer to him. I
break away and push him back.

"Cash. You have got to stop this. You're my boss."

I can't deny that I'm not attracted to him, but I'm also not
going to deny that what we are doing isn't going to hurt me
further on down the road. I'm not the kind of girl that just
casually makes out like a teenager when the urge hits.
Granted, we have kissed a couple of times, but they were
due to loneliness and the need to feel close to someone, and
joy at this new zest for life we have both been feeling.

"Liv, come on. Don't you feel it? This attraction we have? I
feel so alive when you're around, and I didn't realize how
much I missed feeling like this. You don't wear perfume, do
you?"

I shook my head. There are lights on now, but they're as dim as candlelight and all I can see are his piercing blue eyes staring intently into mine. He stands closer to me, leans in, nuzzles my neck,
and starts kissing me behind my ear. I hear him inhale,
like he's breathing me in.

"What is it about your scent that hypnotizes me before you
even walk into the room? That's how I knew you were outside the door."

Lavender has always been my favorite flower and he's
referring to my body wash and shampoo. Him saying that,
reminds me of how I feel when I smell his cologne. I'm
having problems finding my voice.

"It's lav.... lavender that you smell. It's in... Mm mm my
shampoo and body wash."

Why am I stuttering? He brings his face close to mine again,
breathes in, and grazes my lips with his teeth, which has
me losing my balance and crashing into his rock hard body,
pushing him back into the stone wall. He wraps his
arms around me and pulls me even closer.

"Lavender, hmmmm. I think I have a new favorite scent.
Can I talk you into staying for the weekend?
We would have the whole place to ourselves. Lucas and
Carmen always leave me alone on the weekends. I'll even
pay you extra for your time."

I seriously was tempting it carnally at first, because I knew
what his intentions were, but he lost me at paying me. Pay
me extra? Like I'm what? A whore? Because he wasn't
insinuating us palling around swimming in the pool or watching a movie or a game on TV, like friends would do.

I pushed him away with both arms, forcefully and walked
out of the room. He caught up with me, as I reached the stair
way where my bag was, and I leaned down to pick it up.
He grabbed my arm and turned me around to face him.

"What was that, Liv?" He's yelling at me and looks
confused.

"What was that? I'm not a whore, Cash! I will see you
Sunday when it’s time to CLOCK BACK IN for the job I
am PAID TO DO!"

I can yell too. I yank my arm out of his hand and walk away from him, while he has a confused look on his face.
As I'm practically running down the stairs, I hear him trying
to catch up to me.

"That's not how I meant it! I swear! Liv, I'm sorry!"

I didn't even turn around to look at him, as I walked out of
the door and got in my car. I headed home, wanting to
crawl into my bed and not come out all weekend to deal
with the humiliation at how he made me feel with that one
sentence.

CHAPTER TEN

As I pull into the driveway at home, Claudia is sitting on the
porch talking on the phone. I get out of my car and get my
bag out of the trunk, start walking up the walkway, and I
hear what she said.

"Yeah, she just pulled up and I'll tell her." She hangs up the
phone, smiles and gives me a big hug.

"I'm guessing that that was Cash on the phone?" I knew immediately that it was, because even though she's a cut
throat lawyer, she can't lie to me to save her soul.

"Yeah, he seemed really upset. Said he hurt your feelings
and you took something that he said wrong. O, what's
going on? I can tell that you're upset and have been crying."

"Claud, I don't want to talk about it, not right now. Just
give me a few minutes, ok?" I go to walk into the door and
the smell hit me as soon as I opened the door. Claudia was
yelling at me, as I walked in.

"I might as well prepare you for the flowers!"

Lavender. Everywhere, all over the house in every
fashion. It was if he had bought every lavender plant and
bouquet that he could from two counties. I didn't even
want to look at any of the cards; I just collapsed on the
couch and looked around at the entire array of colors
all over the house.

They were on the kitchen table, the floor of the kitchen, and
there wasn't much of a walk way in the living room. I bet
there's even some in my bedroom. Good lord, this man has
gone from grief stricken to...to what?? It's just way too
much too soon. My emotions are all over the place.

"Looks like he's trying to prove a point, huh?" I just shook
my head and looked at Claudia.
But what point would that be, because I don't even know.
Yes, we are definitely attracted to each other, so much
that it has me scared to death!!