Private Property: a Contemporary Romance Novella (13 page)

“Um,
that little place
over by Travis’ shop.”

He nodded, watching her intently.  She gulped down the juice and set the glass on the table.

Jared moved to place his hand against her neck, rubbing his thumb back and forth across her
jaw line
.  “You look nice today.”

“Thanks.”  She muttered, trying to force her eyes to stay open.  The subtle, rhythmic movement of his thumb was entrancing her.  “Uh, Jared…”

“Yes?”  He set his glass down then stepped closer to her.  He moved her hair off her left shoulder and bent.  He stilled.  “Is that what I think it is?”

“Yep.”  She pressed her lips together in a thin line.

“I did that to you?”

“Well, Kristen certainly didn’t.  Although she got a big kick out of it.”

“Kristen knows?”

“How was I supposed to hide a hickey I didn’t even know I had?”  She practically
barked
at him.

He grabbed her by the shoulders, bringing his face down level to hers.  “Hey, I’m not saying you have
to
hide what happened last night.  I was just asking a question.  I’m sorry about the mark if it embarrasses you.”

She leaned her forehead against his shoulder.  “No, not really.  Although I don’t even remember how it got there.”

“Neither do I.”  He pulled her into him, wrapping her up in a tight embrace.  “But it doesn’t surprise me.”

“Oh, really?”  She pulled back to read his expression.  It was playful, and hinting at something she couldn’t quite grasp.

“Yeah.”  He bent and kissed her. 
A sweet, lingering kiss that pulled her bottom lip
up
in
between his teeth.
  He traced her upper lip with the tip of his tongue.  His hand moved down slowly, grasping her butt through her thin shorts.

“Jared.”  She breathed as he began trailing kisses down her neck.

“Hmmm?”

“I don’t know what I’m supposed to be doing here.”

“Anything you want.”  His hands pulled her firmly up against his arousal.

Her self-control was melting.  “No, that’s not what I meant.  I meant – ”

“
Shhh
.”  He slid his hands
up and
around to cup her breasts.  “You think too much, Tabby.  The whole time you were gone, I kept picturing you in that bathtub.  You
feel like taking another bath…
with me?”

Oh, that was an enticing offer.  She really shouldn’t; she was in enough trouble already.  But his hands and mouth were performing sweet torture to her body and he had begun walking them backwards down the hallway.

Fear welled up inside her.  “I can’t.  I’m sorry.”  She stepped away from him.  “I have some errands to run…I should get that out of the way.”

“Stay.  Whatever it is, it can wait until tomorrow.”  He bent to kiss her again.

She turned her head.  “No.  Tomorrow I have to work.”

“Well, I’m the boss and I say you can take tomorrow off, too.”

“I need the money.”

“I’ll pay you anyway.”

“No!”  She
cut around him,
stormed back down the hallway and out the door.

Tabitha drove around Austin all day.  By the time she made it back to the house it was past dark and her arm was killing her.  Jared’s
vehicle
wasn’t in the drive.  Part of her was relieved that she could just sneak in and out without him being there, but part of her felt the weight of sorrow at not being able to tell him goodbye.

She’d thought about it all
afternoon
and there really was no other way out of this mess.  She’d have to leave.  She slowly gathered up her clothes and stuffed it into her backpack.  Her shoes and personal belongings got crammed into a plastic bag.  There was nothing else to do but leave.  She had enough money to stay at a hotel and had managed to get hired on as a cocktail waitress at a
nightclub
in Austin.  That had been a stroke of good luck
for a change
.

She was to start on light duty Friday night and in a few weeks, once the cast came off,
she could
begin waitressin
g fulltime.  The manager
had even said she could learn to bartend if she wanted.  It wasn’t her ideal job, but it was something and it opened up her days so that she could look for another job working with kids.

The hotel she’d
found was an extended stay
with discounts for paying
in advance.  It was a small room, but had all the amenities she’d need, even offering
a kitchenette,
Internet
and cable TV
. 
All for less than $200 a week.
  She couldn’t beat that.

Pulling onto the freeway, Tabitha burst into tears.  Not quiet, feminine tears that silently trickled down her face, but hefty, loud, wailing tears that spilled from her eyes and made her nose run.  Driving under the handicap of only one arm was no time to get all blurry-eyed behind the wheel.  Tabitha
tried to pull herself together by
acknowled
ging
that it could have never worked anyway.

Jared had a girlfriend.  He also had a thriving medical practice and an active life by all accounts.  She was nothing more than some misfit who just happened to be at the right time and place.  Surely, their intimacy had meant far greater to her than it ever would to him.  She hadn’t left a note, praying that he’d understand and not be too ups
et with her
for
walking out on the
job.

The room was comfortable and in no time she had her belongings stored in the dresser drawer, her three pairs of jeans and two skirts hung neatly in the closet. 
That done, Tabitha settled down on the bed and cried herself to sleep.

Work wasn’t all that trying since no one would let her do much except play hostess
and wipe down some tables
until the cast came off.  It wasn’t excellent money, but it would pay the bills.  Especially since she didn’t have many to worry about any more.

She called Kristen after a week and patiently
listened
while
her friend
railed into the phone
,
going on about how worried everyone was when she’d just disappeared and that she should have cared enough to at least call and tell her she was okay.

Tabitha apologized profusely and admitted that she had needed time to sort her head out.

Kristen was excited
, however, that
she’d landed a job and mentioned as an after thought that Jared had contacted her wondering where Tabitha was.  “He’s worried about you, Tabby.  Can’t you just give him a call?”

“And say what, Kris?  No, it’s better just to leave it alone.”

“He just wants to know that you’re alright.”

“Well, can you call him and tell him that for me?”

Kristen reluctantly agreed and they ended the call with Tab
itha promising to be in touch
again soon.

Before long it was time to visit a doctor about removing the cast and getting new x-rays done.  Tabitha didn’t know where else to turn, so she called the only person that came to mind.

“Drs.
Larsen
and Moore.”  The cheery receptionist announced.  Just the mention of his name had Tabitha sucking in a steadying breath.

“I’d like to set an appointment to see Dr. Moore about removing my cast.”

“Alright.  He
has an opening
tomorrow afternoon at 3:00.  Will that do?”

“Perfectly.”

“Can I get your name and phone number please?”

After passing on her information, Tabitha hung up the phone, praying that Jared wouldn’t be in the office the following day.

It was easy to locate the building and Tabitha waited in the car until she was absolutely certain she wouldn’t have to wait too long in the lobby.  She was so damn fearful of running into Jared that she’d taken all kinds of extra precautions
– even going so far as to mask her identity somewhat
.  She
had slung a jacket over her shoulders
to hide the cast even though the temperature had
soared past 100 degrees by noon;
she had on dark sunglasses, and was wearing her hair up in a bun.

The nurse ushered her back into a room as soon as she arrived and she sat filling out paperwork on the small examination bed until a slight tap at the door broke her concentration.  She could feel the adrenaline dump into her body as she watched the door open, praying it wouldn’t be the one person she was trying to avoid.

Her relief was palpable as Dr. Moore’s countenance filled the entryway.

“Ms.
McLean
, how are you?”

She broke out into a huge smile.  “I’m good, but I’d be doing better if I could get this cast off.”

“Well, let’s see if I can help you out with that.”






Her arm felt light as a feather now that it wasn’t encased in the heavy plaster.  But the scars on her arm and hand were hideous.  Dr. Moore had explained that she
’d
need
to do exercises to improve her grip and
strength
and that vitamin E would lessen the appearance of the scars.  The surgic
al scar running only about two
inches up from her elbow was a trim, neat little incision that had been beautifully sewn back together.  The bulbous, puckered one above served as a reminder of the terrifying ordeal she’d gone through the night she’d met Jared.

Tabitha prepared herself for work, happy to be on full-duty finally.  Her boss, Patrick, would be relieved.  The waitress she’d be replacing was due to go on maternity leave at any moment and they had all been waiting on bated breath for Tabitha’s arm to heal.

The night was fast-paced and profitable.  Tabitha finally got to make tips on top of her miniscule hourly wage and
brought home a whopping $175
in cash for the night.  It was past three in the morning by the time she collapsed on the bed, the red message light on the phone blinking like a beacon in the darkness.

Tabitha
really didn’t feel like expending the energy to get back up
to listen to a message so she opted to let it sit until morning.  And maybe if she turned her back on the phone, the red light wouldn’t be so obnoxious.  When that didn’t work, Tabitha rolled over in a huff and snatched the handset off its base.

“Tabitha,
” The message began with a deep, husky voice that made her heart sink into her stomach, “it’s Jared.  Dr. Moore told me you were in today.”  There was a long, painful pause.  “I’m glad that your arm healed well and that you’re doing okay.” 
Another long, uncomfortable pause.
  “Give me a call sometime. 
I’ve – I would like that.”  T
he
message abruptly ended with a soft click
.

It had been almost four weeks since she’d seen him last, remembering all too well how she’d run from him.  As much as she wanted to call him and talk, explain her actions and just listen to his voice, there was no way she’d be able to.  The hurt had finally begun to subside.  And although the voicemail had produced a minor setback, she needed to continue trudging forward.  It was the only way.

One year later

“Tabby, how did
you get those scars on your arm and leg
?”  The small girl called out from above.

“Falling out of a tree because I was too busy talking to pay attention to what I was doing!”  Tabitha called back, cinching the line and propelling herself up onto a higher branch.  “Hook into the
zip
line
, Leanne, and go!  You’re holding up traffic, hon.” She burst out laughing as the girl whizzed by, screeching as her body shot through the canopy of branches to the stopping point at the next big tree.  Tabitha assured that Ben
, her co-counselor,
was at the ready to catch the girl before heading up to the launching step with the other kids.

She watched as the kids went zipping along on the wire mounted high above the ground, harnessed into a makeshift seat.  Deciding to stay in Austin and continue waitressing until a position opened at the
Ropes
academy had been the best decision she’d ever made.  Three months ago, Mr. Parker had called with a full-time position offer.  She’d be a certified counselor in another 90 days and her classes began again in the
fa
ll.  She’d decided to major in
child
psychology.  It was tough going, but she had nothing better to do.  She still worked at the club on weekends, and went to school
on week
nights.  That way she had time to spend with the kids that came in from different area schools during the day.