Accidental Neighbor by Sharon Woods
Chapter 22
Jennifer
The next day at work, Helen opens the classroom door and peeks around the door. She smiles wide, a gleam in her eyes when she sees me. “Jennifer, come join me for a chat in my office, please.”
My brows furrow in confusion. “Of course, Helen.”
She closes the door again, and I swivel around to speak to Emma, but she beats me to it. “What will that be about?” Curiosity is etched on her face.
I shrug. “I have no idea. I’ll be back.” I push myself off the carpeted floor and walk to the door.
“Good luck,” Emma calls from behind me. I don’t turn around; I just exit the room and walk down toward the office. What could be the reason she has asked to talk to me? My palms begin to sweat, and the back of my shirt begins to stick to my skin, the nerves kicking in.
I roll my shoulders back and step into the doorway. Helen is standing at the filing cabinet. “Knock, knock,” I say as I step into her office. She swivels, smiling at me, then retreats to her office chair. The grin on her face makes my shoulders sag in relief.
“I won’t take up too much of your time. I just wanted to discuss your application for assistant manager. You have proven to me that you are more than capable, so I would like to formally offer you the job. I will still honor your duties to help Thomas Dunn on Wednesdays so we will keep your Wednesdays as a morning shifts, but the other days will now be a set nine to five.”
She grabs a sheet of paper I didn’t see sitting in front of her, and she hands it to me. My mouth opens and closes but no words come out. I really wasn’t expecting this. I scan the contents of the paper; it's the assistant manager contract. “Read it over and sign at the bottom, and we can transition your role starting next week if that suits you.” I swallow hard, darting my eyes between the paper and Helen.
Tilting my head, I say, “Thank you. This means so much to me. I’ll read it now and sign it.”
She laughs. “No, Jen. Take a minute, read it properly, and then give it back.”
“Yes, right, thank you,” I reply in a shaky voice.
“Alright, well, take it with you and hand it back when you're ready, but you deserve to be recognized for all the extra work you do around here.”
Feeling a blush rising to my cheeks, I glance at the ground before returning my gaze to Helen. Standing up, I clutch the paper between my sweaty hands. “Thank you, Helen.” I turn around, disoriented, and walk back to the room.
I push open the door and Emma spots me. “What happened?”
“I, uh, got the assistant manager position.” I watch her eyes widen, and a smile takes over her face.
“Jen, that’s wonderful! Congratulations. You deserve it,” she squeals.
I smile. “Thanks, Emma.” I place the paper down on a high counter, planning to read it after work.
After work, I sit down in the break room and read through the contract. I’m happy with the new role and all of the responsibilities and the higher pay. I sign it and drop it back at Helen’s office before heading home to tell my family.
◆◆◆
It’s finally Wednesday. I managed to resist text messaging Thomas. I didn’t want to come across as too forward so I didn’t cave in to the desire. This new addiction for him is strange to me. I can’t put my finger on what it is about Thomas that draws me in, only that I know I crave more time with him, his arms wrapped around my body, keeping me safe.
Tonight, I wait for Thomas to arrive home from work, making sure I don’t fall asleep. My knee bounces on the spot as I watch the clock, eagerly waiting. When the door swings open, I feel a lightness in my chest. And when he comes into view, I almost faint. Will I ever get over his handsome face? My body has a mind of its own, and I’m pushing off the couch and wandering over to meet him near the kitchen. His eyes are shimmering and his mouth grinning wide, which makes me smile. He dumps his keys and wallet on the counter before he steps right into my space. He is staring intently into my eyes. I gaze back, unmoving. He reaches out and strokes my cheek with the soft pad of his thumb before he skims the skin all the way to behind my neck. My body is alight with shivers and he pulls me forward, his breath tickling my lips. “Hi.”
I open my mouth but nothing escapes. He doesn’t wait, crushing his mouth to mine. I moan and sag into the kiss. Thrusting my hands to his neck, I cup it into my hands. Our kiss is passionate, our tongues massaging one another for a few minutes before I pull away, gasping for air. My hands drop to rest on his chest, feeling his heart beating a million miles an hour under my hands.
He pecks my cheek and steps forward to wrap his arms around me in a warm embrace. The steam is floating thick in the air around us. I didn’t realize I was missing a connection to a man until I met Thomas. I recover from my onslaught of feelings and passion, and I manage to ask, “Are you hungry?”
He pulls his head back and his eyes sparkle with a deep lust. I swallow hard at the meaning of his stare. His mouth twitches into a large smirk. I smack his chest and whisper, “You know what I mean.”
A deep chuckle leaves his chest, causing movement under my hands. “I know, and yes, dinner would be great.” He pecks my lips and pulls away. I shudder at the cool air hitting me from the sudden loss of his body. He trails into the kitchen to heat up the bowl I prepared for him.
I twist and move forward to sit on the stool, watching his body move effortlessly in the kitchen. “I wanted to talk to you about the other day. I was out front with Nathan who is Olivia’s brother’s friend. I didn’t want you to get the wrong impression. We were just talking. I’m not interested in anyone else.”
His gaze flicks to mine, his face relaxed with a smile turned up. “It’s fine. You can talk to anyone; I trust you.”
My shoulders relax. It’s so different with him; most guys are jealous. But Thomas trusts me, and it's refreshing. Wanting to change the topic and get off the whole Nathan talk, I ask, “How was work today?”
He sighs loudly. “Good but just so busy. A few of the buildings are in early preparation so there is lots of design planning."
"So, wait, you design the buildings?” I ask.
He laughs. “No, I manage the electrical design of the building, make electrical orders, and look after the electricians and on-site managers. There is lots of sketching and meetings with builders after the initial contract sign-up. Sorry, I’m probably boring you, so I'll shut up now.” He swiftly takes his bowl from the microwave before strolling to the utensil drawer to pull out a fork, then he sits on the stool next to me.
“No, it’s not at all boring. Please, continue,” I plead, twisting to face him, resting my elbow on the white stone and propping my head up in my hand. I want to know every detail about Thomas. I find him utterly fascinating. The more our connection grows, the more I need to peel back his layers. “The buildings you are currently running are all in the city?”
His gaze flicks to mine with awe in his eyes. I flinch and dart my gaze away. The sudden emotion is too much right now. It’s so unexpected, it causes a sea of butterflies in my stomach to flutter.
“No, they can vary. I have two new apartment buildings in the city to design where the electrical will go. But I have established schools and mall parking lots in suburbs too.” He begins to twirl his spaghetti around his fork inside his bowl. I watch as he lifts the fork to his mouth and wraps his lips around it and the food disappears inside his mouth. Feeling jealous of the spaghetti, I want his lips and tongue on me. Shaking my head, I try to clear my thoughts. I ask more questions to refocus.
“That sounds interesting. Did you always want to do this job?”
I can see his mind ticking, and I watch his throat bob before his stare meets mine. “I started as an electrician and then went on to study project management and then recently my friend Josh offered me a job in his business… But enough about me. How about you? Did you always want to work in childcare?”
I watch as the change of his face turns from curiosity to care, making me want to melt into a puddle. “Yes, I have always loved kids and I would love some of my own. I have always wanted a large family and I want to be a young mom.” I glance down and rub my legs with my hands.
Raising my eyes back up, the horror on his face shocks me. I wouldn’t have expected that, so I change the subject, blurting out, “I actually received a promotion to assistant manager. I have been waiting to see how my application went for weeks. And don’t worry; we worked it out so I can still help you on Wednesdays.”
His shoulders drop with relief. “Congratulations.” He slides off the stool and leans forward to kiss my lips, which turns into a hard kiss, before turning to walk to the fridge, opening the door, and scanning for something. He pulls out a bottle of water and twists the cap before drinking half the bottle in one go. He replaces the cap and walks back to sit beside me. “I don’t want to hold you back if you need to work on a Wednesday for the promotion. I'm sure I can find someone else.”
I shake my head vigorously. “You aren’t. I love the girls; they are easy. You have great kids, Tom—really great kids. I just can’t help you out on days other than Wednesday.”
His smile is wide and there is a twinkle in his eye—is it pride? But his smile then turns to a cheeky grin. “Are you staying tonight?”
With that one grin, my sex throbs and memories of our last sexual experience come flooding back. Goosebumps cover my skin. I peer down at my lap where my fingers now tangle together before I glance back up, lifting my chin to meet his questioning eyes. “I shouldn’t. We both have work tomorrow. But of course I want to.”
His grin becomes wider, the smile reaching his eyes. I love his eyes when he looks at me like that, with so much happiness, and the added lines increase his sexiness. “There is no difference other than the fact you can’t sleep in, but do you think your family will mind?”
I sigh loudly. “My family won’t notice during the week; weekends are another story.”
I doubt my family would mind. Yes, my family is protective, but they would be happy for me. They have never not supported me. I need to tell them soon if we are to be serious. I just need a good way and time to tell them.
He shakes his head. “Deal.” He reaches out to crush my soft body against his hard muscles. I sag. My eyes feel heavy but I won’t allow them to close. I want to enjoy another night wrapped in all things Thomas.
“Let’s go to bed and put the TV on.” He winks before pulling away from me to take his bowl and cutlery to the dishwasher. He opens it and stacks the dishes.
“I can check on Rose if you want to check on Lily.” His eyebrows round and my cheeks heat. Climbing off the stool, I tuck it under the island, then wander to Rose’s room before walking to his room.
As I enter, he finds a shirt for me to put on. Undressing, he calls out to me, “Did you want to come to the zoo on Saturday? It is supposed to be a sunny day and I was planning to take the girls. We would love it if you could join.”
The gray shirt looks like a nightgown but his eyes flare with heat as I come to bed wearing only that. “That sounds like fun; I would love to go.”
I bite my lip at his intense gaze. I crawl on the bed and snuggle into him. Thomas reaches out and strokes my hair. I gaze up at the television where he has set up an episode of our show, and we both fall asleep.