Signs of Love (9 page)

After gathering up their things, she and Caden headed out to grab their bus home. Their ride consisted of a lot of questions and observations by Caden, mostly centered on Justin. Alana had mixed feelings about the information she'd gotten from Beth about her brother. On one hand, she was glad for a bit more insight into the man who had so captivated her son. However, she knew that the understanding that had come because of Beth's revelations made her vulnerable to Justin.

Surely she wouldn't be that stupid again. Not that it would matter. She had a feeling that even if she did fall for Justin, he'd never feel the same way about her since he didn't seem to be in the market for something serious, and that was all she'd consider. She just needed to keep her distance and focus on why she was in his life to begin with.

That was easier said than done though, when, shortly after she'd gotten Caden tucked into bed, her cell phone rang. She stared at the number for a moment before tapping the screen to accept the call.

"Alana? This is Justin."

She pressed a hand to her stomach. She did
not
just get butterflies. "Hi, Justin. What can I do for you?"

There was a bit of a pause before he spoke again, his words measured. "I understand now the importance of learning sign language in order to communicate with Genevieve." Another pause. "But what I said about languages not being my thing is true. I wondered if I might make a deal with you."

"A deal? What sort of deal?"

He paused again, but Alana suspected it wasn't because he was at a loss for words but more that he was trying to figure out the best way to present his deal. "I think I could probably benefit from additional lessons apart from the ones with Beth and Daniel. I would be willing to pay you for those lessons or if you're interested, I could teach you something in return."

Alana took the phone from her ear and looked at it for a moment. "Teach me something?"

“Well, uh...given what I know of your past..." Another pause, but this time it felt more awkward than the previous ones. "Um...if you were interested, I could teach you some self-defense and even how to shoot."

"Shooting? As in a gun?" Alana sank down on her day bed and tucked her feet up under her.

"Yes. As in a gun. BlackThorpe has a shooting range, and I could give you some lessons if you'd like."

The idea of learning to defend herself and even shoot a weapon held a strange appeal. And yet she knew it wouldn't have saved her from the situation she'd ended up in with Craig. But part of taking care of Caden was protecting both of them. Learning self-defense could be a good thing. Shooting wouldn't be much use since she couldn't afford to buy a gun.

"So? What do you think?"

"I can give you lessons without payment or you having to do anything in return," Alana said. When it came to teaching people sign language, she just couldn't bring herself to charge. It wasn't usually something people were learning just for kicks. For the most part, the people she came in contact with had to learn because they wanted to be able to communicate with someone special to them.

"I would prefer to think of it as an exchange of services. You can teach me something I need to learn, and I can teach you something every woman should know."

She should say no. She needed to keep her distance from a man like Justin. A man like the one who had ruled her life for far too many years already.

But Justin isn't like that
.

Alana pressed her fingers to the spot right between her eyebrows. Common sense screamed at her to say no. But then she thought of how Justin held Genevieve and of how he'd smiled at Caden earlier. Teaching Justin sign language would mean that her son could communicate with his hero.

"Alana?" Justin's voice rumbled in her ear.

Realizing her pause had lasted longer than all of his put together, she said, "I'm here. Just thinking."

"What's to think about?" Justin seemed genuinely puzzled about why she wasn't jumping to take him up on his offer. "It's mutually beneficial. We each get something we need."

Of course, he didn't have the pitfalls in front of him that she did. After having a man in her life who used and abused her, to come in contact with one so protective of those he loved was like a breath of fresh air. And it tugged at her, made her long for things she had no right to. She wondered what it would be like to be loved by a man as protective and caring as Justin. Even though he had hurt her during their meal together, she understood more of why he'd done what he had. And he had apologized for what he did.

"Okay. I guess when you put it that way it really is a no-brainer." Alana pulled her knees up and wrapped an arm around them.

"Exactly." Justin's voice rang with confidence.

Too bad all she could see ahead was possible heartache. She cleared her throat. "How did you see this working? I don't really have anyone I can leave Caden with for any length of time."

"Not a problem. You can bring him along. We can meet at the BlackThorpe offices for the self-defense stuff. They have a full gym there we can utilize. Then we can go back to my place or yours or even stay there at BlackThorpe, and you and Caden can teach me sign language."

It all sounded so simple. Obviously, in Justin's eyes it was. If she could only keep it that way in her perspective as well. Having Caden there would help. He'd be a distraction, but with his serious case of hero-worship, spending even more time with Justin might not be a good thing.

"If you want to come by tomorrow afternoon, I can show you around so you know what I'm talking about."

Alana scooted to the edge of the bed and grabbed the notebook and pen she kept on the small table beside it. "Can you give me the address?" She scribbled the information down as Justin recited it, hoping there was a fairly direct bus route. "I can be there around two. If that works for you."

"That would be fine," Justin said. "I know I've offered already and you've turned me down, so I'm going to just lay this out there and say if you ever need a ride, just call me."

"Okay. Thank you." After the call had ended, Alana slid off the daybed and went through the motions of getting ready for bed. Her thoughts, however, were on what the next day held.

~*~*~

Justin made sure he arrived early for the staff meeting the next morning. He settled into a seat at the large boardroom table and glanced at the man sitting next to him.

"No word from the lovely Lindsay?" Justin asked.

Than scowled at him. "It's only been three days. I'm sure she'll call soon."

They'd spent more time talking than sparring when Than had come to the compound on Saturday. He felt a bit sorry for the man, but Justin figured things would work out for Than and Lindsay. However, he wasn't really great at understanding women himself, so what did he know?

Marcus and Alex walked into the room, and the conversations around the table faded out. Though they were partners, Marcus usually took control of the meetings and today was no different.

"Before we start, I believe you had something you wanted to share, Trent?"

Justin glanced across the table at the man seated beside Eric. He had a large grin on his face as he nodded.

"Yep. Victoria and I are getting married, and you're all invited."

"You two finally picked a date?" Than asked, sitting forward, his own romantic woes apparently temporarily set aside.

Trent nodded. "Yep. We finally just put all potential dates into a bowl and pulled one out."

"Seriously?" Adrianne asked, a skeptical look on her face.

"Yeah, seriously. We've been having a hard time settling on a date, so this just seemed the easiest way. It's nothing fancy and will be rather small, but I would like you all to be there if you're available." 

Justin made note of the date on the calendar on his phone as Trent gave them the particulars.

"Well, congratulations to you both once again, Trent," Marcus said, a rare smile lifting the corners of his mouth. "I will clear my schedule to make sure I can make it."

"Thanks, Marcus."

Justin looked at the people seated around the table. Two down now with both Trent and Eric tying the knot. Something told him Than wasn't going to be too far behind. That left the three Thorpes, he and Marcus. He supposed it wasn't so surprising that people were dropping like flies in the romance department given their ages ranging from late twenties to late thirties. Prime marrying age. If he had to make a guess, Justin figured the next one to go was likely to be either Adrianne or Melanie Thorpe. Eventually, it was going to be just him and Marcus.

Justin pulled his thoughts from that direction as Marcus guided the meeting to the business topics on the agenda. Thankfully, things moved fairly quickly, and soon Marcus was tying things up.

"Justin, can I speak with you before you head back to the compound?" Marcus asked.

Now what?

Justin nodded his agreement then stood with the others. He spoke briefly with Alex and Melanie before he left the board room and made his way to Marcus's office. Might as well get it over with.

"Marc. What's up?" Justin said as he walked into the office.

Marcus looked up from the papers he was studying. He pointed his pen at the chair across the desk. Though Marcus was his boss and had four years on him, it still rankled Justin when he did stuff like that. But he sat anyway. Stretching his legs out, he interlaced his fingers across his stomach and looked at Marcus.

"So I spoke to Beth the other day."

"Yes, she mentioned that."

"I'm sorry to hear about what's happened with Genevieve. How are Beth and Daniel doing?"

"As well as can be expected, I suppose. They're in the process of learning sign language and doing what they can to adapt to the diagnosis and what it means for them."

Marcus's blue gaze was piercing as he looked at him. "Is there anything at all that can be done? Do they need money for tests or treatments?"

Justin shook his head. "They've gotten several different opinions, apparently. Dan gave me copies of the tests they've done and the results. I did some research using that information and everything I've read indicates it's a permanent condition."

Marcus's brows drew together. "Do they know what caused it? Is it hereditary?"

"No, it doesn't appear to be genetic. For now the cause of the hearing loss is unknown."

"Unknown? In this day and age, how can that even be a diagnosis anymore?"

Well, that was one thing he and Marcus agreed on. "Yeah, it was kind of hard for me to accept that myself."

"But you have?" Marcus asked.

Justin shrugged. "I didn't want to, but you know, the bottom line is that Genevieve is still healthy. There could be so many other things wrong that wouldn't have the outcome this one does. I try to keep that in mind whenever I start to get too angry about it."

"If there's anything I can do, let me know. We're family after all."

Yes, they were even if it didn't feel that way most the time. Justin wasn't altogether sure why he held Marcus at arm's length. They hadn't been close even before the tragedy, but it hadn't been this awkward then.

"If something comes up, I'll let you know."

He saw a flash of surprise on Marcus's face. Justin understood it since he usually rebuffed any offer of help from him. But they were talking about Genevieve here. Justin would do pretty much anything for her. Including make nice with Marcus and learn sign language.

~*~*~

They'd ended up having to walk a couple of blocks from the bus stop, but since the day was nice, Alana didn't mind. Caden was nearly dragging her along the sidewalk in eagerness to see Justin. He'd been thrilled when she'd revealed the plans for the day, and even though the hours had seemed to fly by for her, she had a feeling they'd dragged for her son.

She hadn't been sure what to expect from their visit to the BlackThorpe offices, but as they got closer to the address Justin had given her, Alana was a bit taken aback by the large wall that ran next to the sidewalk. Her grip on Caden's hand tightened as she spotted a sign reading "BlackThorpe Security" and then just beyond that was a large black iron gate. Justin hadn't given her any instructions on how to get inside. She'd just assumed she'd walk into a building and give his name.

"Can I help you?" A man's voice interrupted her thoughts.

She turned to see who had spoken to her. A large man in a black uniform stood in an opening beside the gate that led into the compound. It didn't escape her notice that he was armed and had a build much like Justin's.

Caden pressed against her side as she took a step toward the man. "I'm here to see Justin Morrell."

"And your name is?"

"Alana Jensen."

"Just a moment, please."

The man stepped back and closed a smaller black iron gate. She wasn't sure if she hoped they were in the right place or the wrong one. The level of security around the tall building was a bit overwhelming.

The man reappeared, a clipboard in his hand. "Do you have some ID?"

ID
? She clutched her purse. "I only have stuff like a bank card."