Love Me Last

by Parker, Weston

  And I was actually enjoying myself. Really enjoying myself. I could tell that Hayden was opening up a bit more with his son around.

  “This is nice,” Hayden said quietly, swinging his feet below his branch as he craned his neck to watch Booker scamper back up the tree again, chasing after a bird. He grinned and shook his head. “He really likes this.”

  “I’m glad,” I said quietly, looking up as well. “It’s been a while since I’ve been out here. Actually, since before my mom got sick.” I hadn’t really planned to tell him about that, but the words slipped out naturally, and I didn’t regret saying them.

  Hayden didn’t look at me with pity like most people did when they heard about Mom. Instead, he nodded slowly. “Well, I’m glad you brought us here,” he said.

  “Me too,” I told him, smiling.

  “So, should I get some work done while I’m here?” Hayden joked as we climbed down out of the tree. “I think I owe you a little time from the days that I was late this week.”

  I laughed and shook my head. “Come on, you worked way later than even I did this week. You’re excused.” I glanced at Booker, who was still coming down the tree. “Besides, I imagine it takes a little while to get Booker ready to go in the morning on top of everything else.”

  “Yeah,” Hayden said, smiling fondly back at his kid. “But we’ve got a good routine by now.”

  “Well, if you wanted to make bringing him here part of your weekly routine, I wouldn’t mind that,” I said, feeling bold.

  Hayden laughed. “We might just do that,” he said.

  We drove around for a little while longer, until we were back at the parking lot.

  “Thanks for letting me drive!” Booker said excitedly.

  “I think you’re a better driver than I am, Booger,” I joked. “You can be my chauffeur any time.”

  Booker giggled and gave me a surprise hug around the legs. Then, he turned to get in the car. Hayden grinned at me. “He seems to like you,” he said quietly.

  “He’s a great kid,” I said, honestly. Personally, I was struck by the urge to give Hayden a hug, or even a kiss. But I didn’t know if he would appreciate that with his son sitting right there, so I held back.

  Besides, there were other reasons I wasn’t sure he would appreciate it. I just couldn’t tell what he was thinking. Our little fling in the office had been great, but did he want a repeat, or had that been a one-off thing? I had seen the look on his face when I said ‘it’s a date’ when we were planning this. He didn’t look thrilled, that was for sure.

  I paused. I didn’t want to have a serious conversation with him right now, not with Booker waiting patiently in the car for his dad. But at the same time, I didn’t want to let him go without talking to him. Especially not if the next time I saw him was going to be Monday, at work, with other employees around. Plus, I didn’t want to keep distracting him from his work. I wanted him to get to the bottom of the problem in the books as soon as possible.

  So finally, I took a deep breath. “So, when do I get to see you again?” I asked, peeking up at him from beneath my eyelashes.

  Hayden grinned brightly at me, and I could see the relief in his face. Like he’d been waiting for me to ask just that. “You know, I was thinking. I still owe you a proper first date. One where I’m on time.” He glanced back at the car, his grin broadening. “And one where it’s just the two of us.”

  “I’d like that,” I said, surprised at the way my heart fluttered. I remembered what Leslie had said while we were getting our hair done. She had cautioned me not to get too attached to him. But I wasn’t, I told myself. It was just nice to have someone interested in me. I liked the idea of going on a date with him.

  I wondered, for a moment, whether that was really such a good idea. He was working for the winery at the moment. But at the same time, it wasn’t like he was permanent staff. He was only here as a consultant. Anyway, if he didn’t think it was a problem, then why worry about it? We were both consenting adults, and I was sure that I could trust him to stay professional around the winery.

  “Why don’t I take you out tomorrow?” he suggested. “I have your number; I’ll message you, and you can give me your address. I can pick you up.”

  I grinned, feeling surprisingly shy around him. “Sounds like a plan,” I told him.

  Hayden smirked. “I’ll wear something nicer than jeans this time,” he said.

  I laughed. “All right,” I said, nodding. I could already picture him in something a little nicer. Maybe something that showed off his muscular physique. Maybe something dark that would emphasize the color in his eyes.

  I was excited at the very thought of it. “I’ll see you tomorrow,” I told Hayden.

  “See you tomorrow,” he said. He turned towards his car, then paused and glanced back over his shoulder. “By the way, I like your hair like that.” He got into his car, and I got in mine as well, trying my best to hide my goofy smile.

  Just like I thought, I told myself. If anyone was getting their heart broken here, it would be Hayden. But I did like spending time with him.

  Chapter 21

  Hayden

  I couldn’t believe I was taking Mallory out tonight. When Ace had first set me up with her, I’d been so sure that I didn’t really want to date anyone. It was nothing to do with her, per se. She looked fine. But I just didn’t have room in my life for anyone else. I wasn’t interested in a quick one-night stand, either.

  Now, I was actually starting to wonder if I had judged things too soon. Yesterday at the vineyard had been fun. She’d been great with Booker, and I’d really enjoyed myself. It felt like the more I got to know Mallory, the more I liked her. The more I wanted to spend time with her.

  Of course, I still wasn’t sure this was the smartest move. Especially since I was starting to have second thoughts about having introduced Booker to her. I guess I hadn’t really thought that through. I had never introduced Booker to a woman before. I hadn’t seriously dated anyone since he had come into my life, and I hadn’t wanted to introduce him to anyone that I wasn’t seriously dating.

  There was something about Mallory that made me want to introduce them. But now that I had seen the way they hit it off, I was a little worried. Suppose Mallory and I screwed things up between us? What would Booker think if we never saw Mallory again? I had always kind of wished that Booker had some sort of female influence in his life. But I didn’t want him to get the impression that any females in my life were just temporary things. That was exactly the opposite of what I wanted, in fact.

  I didn’t know how to talk to him about that, though. And it wasn’t just that I didn’t know what I wanted. I didn’t know what Mallory wanted either. Until we had defined our relationship somehow, I didn’t think I was going to be able to explain anything to Booker.

  But he was a smart kid, and not explaining was only going to confuse him. I knew that they had talked about families in his classes at school. And he knew it was okay that he didn’t have a mom in his life. But would he start to consider Mallory his mom?

  I just didn’t have any experience with this. For so long, it had been just the two of us. Was it wrong for me to rock the boat now? Should I at least wait until he was older? But could I keep myself away from Mallory, if we decided to go that route?

  The more I thought about it, the more nervous I was about the date that night. I was planning on taking her to one of my favorite steakhouses. They had a decent wine list as well. But should I take her to someplace nicer? Or was I putting too much pressure on this already?

  Finally, I called Ace. If anyone was going to give me advice on how to handle this, Ace was the one. I didn’t really want to talk to him about it because I knew he was going to make it out to be more than it really was. He was going to crow about how it was his idea to set me up with Mallory in the first place. But he was the date-master, and he was also, I hoped, going to be able to babysit Booker for the night.

  “What’s up?” Ace asked whe
n he picked up the phone.

  “I need a favor,” I told him. “I have a date tonight, and I was wondering if you could watch Booger." I had debated on how much I wanted to tell him. Maybe I should invent some sort of work excuse. But he knew that I was working for Mallory at the moment. And it wasn’t as though I had ever been much good at lying to my brother. He would see right through me.

  Might as well tell him the real reason that I was asking. I had a date tonight.

  “Sure thing!” Ace said brightly. I could hear the grin in his voice. “I don’t think I set you up on this one, did I?”

  “Not exactly,” I said. “But sort of.” Might as well just tell him it was with Mallory. If I didn’t tell him, he would only keep pestering me for details. And I knew that Mallory was one of his clients at the gym. There was a possibility she would mention something about the date there, and then it would seem like I was trying to keep something from him.

  “Sort of?” Ace asked, and I could tell that I had piqued his curiosity.

  “Yeah, it’s actually with Mallory,” I said.

  Ace was silent for a moment, and I wondered if the line had gone dead. I didn’t know what I had expected. I mean, he had been the one to try to hook me up with her in the first place. And he had been trying to hook me up with someone for a while now. Each time, I had refused to go out with them for more than a date or two.

  So, I wasn’t expecting him to say, “Are you sure that’s a good idea?”

  I froze for a moment, wondering if he knew something that I didn’t. “I thought you liked her,” I finally said.

  “She’s great,” Ace said, sounding impatient. “But aren’t you working for her at the moment? I thought you needed to fix her company’s numbers so that they don’t lose everything when they get audited.”

  “I’m still doing that,” I said, having a hard time not sounding defensive. “This isn’t going to interfere in that. I know how to be professional.”

  Ace sighed. “Just be careful, okay?”

  I frowned. It wasn’t like Ace to tell me to be careful. If he felt the need to warn me about something, then maybe this wasn’t a good idea after all. I thought back to everything that I knew about Mallory and about the winery. It was such a family place, down to and including the way that she treated her employees. If any of them were to find out that Mallory and I were dating, what then?

  Mallory didn’t seem overly worried. But then again, she had been the one to rush out of there after we’d had sex, after reminding me that we couldn’t talk about that around anyone. I doubted she wanted anyone to know, but I wasn’t sure how I felt about keeping our budding relationship a secret either.

  On the other hand, who knew where this relationship would even go. Maybe it would just be this one date, and we would realize yet again that we were actually incompatible. And should it go the other way, well, I wouldn’t be working at the winery forever. I had a month to get the books straightened out before the IRS started auditing the business. After that, once the books were fixed, they wouldn’t need my services any longer, and I would be able to date Mallory freely.

  Besides, we had technically started dating before I had ever started working for the company. That had to count for something, didn’t it?

  “I know you’re the master when it comes to dealing with the books of all sorts of companies, no matter how messed up they are,” Ace said. “I just don’t want you falling head over heels for someone who ends up hating your guts because you weren’t able to save her business or something like that.”

  I snorted. “We’re just going on one date,” I told him. “I’m hardly about to fall head over heels for her. I just like spending time with her. That’s all. You’re the one who’s always telling me to have a bit of fun and date people.”

  “I know,” Ace sighed. “And seriously, I’m glad to hear that you’re dating someone. I just would be happier if it wasn’t someone you were working for right now. But anyway, I’ll be more than happy to watch Booger tonight. Why don’t you bring him over here and we can play some video games? Then I’ll take him straight to school in the morning.”

  I laughed. “For someone who doesn’t really support this date, you sure are suggesting that I have a good time on it,” I joked.

  The grin in Ace’s voice was evident when he responded. “Well, put it this way, I think it could do you both some good to get laid,” he said. “Just be careful.”

  I rolled my eyes but chose not to respond to the warning. “Okay, then. In the spirit of getting laid, I need some advice on what to wear,” I said. “I’m thinking I’ll take her to Rotation, but I don’t want to dress too formally. I don’t want tonight to feel stiff and uncomfortable.”

  Ace sighed. “Normally, I would tell you to wear slacks, but I know you. At least put on some nice, dark jeans. And tuck in your shirt. And do something about your hair. You look like a crazy person half the time. Especially when you get nervous and start running your fingers through it.”

  I grinned, unable to help it. “You don’t think she’ll mind if I’m in jeans?” I asked.

  “Just make them look good,” Ace said. “I know you’ve still got shit in the back of your closet from when we used to go out to the bars together. Anyway, drop off the Booger whenever. I’ll be here.”

  “Thanks, Ace,” I said, before hanging up the phone and diving into my closet, going all the way to the very back to find the clothes I didn’t normally wear anymore.

  A little while later, I headed over to Mallory’s house to pick her up for our date. “You look beautiful,” I said, and she really did, in a form-flattering black dress and long green coat.

  “Thanks,” Mallory said, as she slipped into the car. She gave me a quick once-over. “You look nice as well.” She grinned slyly at me, then continued. “And you’re on time as well. Definitely a step up from our last date.”

  I grinned. “It helps to know I’m actually going on a date,” I said. “But I’m trying,” I told her, hoping she realized exactly what that meant for me. I couldn’t remember the last time that I had tried for anyone when it came to dating. Hell, I wasn’t sure that I had ever really tried before.

  “This is a really nice neighborhood,” I said to Mallory, as I started us towards the restaurant.

  Mallory beamed. “Yeah, I love it here,” she said. “So many trees, and there’s just something about the houses. They all seemed to have some personality to them. It’s an older neighborhood, and I guess that’s part of it.”

  “Did you grow up here?” I asked curiously.

  “Oh no,” Mallory said, laughing. “Actually, I grew up on the exact opposite end of town. And my mom still lives over there. It would be less of a drive in the mornings if I still lived over there, but I’ll take the extra miles to the winery in exchange for the location here. It’s so peaceful.”

  “Must be nice, having your mom close by,” I said.

  “What about you, are your parents close?” Mallory asked. “You and Ace must have grown up here, huh?”

  “Actually, no,” I told her. “I moved out because I got a job here, and Ace ended up following me about a year later. But I can’t imagine living anywhere else.” I hoped she wouldn’t ask about my parents again; that wasn’t really the conversation I wanted to have on our ‘first date.’

  Thankfully, Mallory seemed to get the hint. “Where’s Booker tonight?” she asked.

  “With Ace, actually,” I told her. “He loves going over to his uncle’s house. Ace has a better video gaming system than I do.”

  Mallory laughed. “Honestly, I’m not sure I can picture Booker sitting still for long enough to play video games,” she said.

  “Oh, he doesn’t sit still,” I said, rolling my eyes. “He actually has a tendency to stand up with the controller in hand and start dancing around or jumping up and down or whatever. It’s super cute if you’re not playing alongside him. Otherwise, it’s about the worst distraction in the world.”

  Mallory g
iggled. “Now that’s something I can picture,” she said. She paused, glancing nervously over at me. “I’m just going to go ahead and ask this, and I’m sorry if I’m being too blunt here. But, is his mother in the picture at all?”

  My grip tightened on the steering wheel. “No,” I bit out. I could see that Mallory looked embarrassed at having asked, and I took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. I didn’t want her to think that I minded the fact that she’d asked. I still just couldn’t believe myself that Booker’s mother had just abandoned him. How could you do that to a child? Especially a great kid like Booker.

  But his mother had never really been the smartest or most mature girl out there, and I knew from the letter she’d left that although she had originally planned to shape up and be the best mother possible for her young son, when faced with the reality of parenthood, she had decided it was just too much for her.

  “Booker’s mother has chosen not to be involved in his life,” I explained to Mallory. “She just couldn’t handle it, I guess.”

  “Oh,” Mallory said. She bit her lower lip, and I could tell she was trying to figure out a tactful way to ask whatever it was that she was thinking about in response.

  “Just say it,” I sighed. “Seriously, I’m not going to get upset with you for asking. I promise.”

  “Were you married?” Mallory finally blurted out. “Sorry, I know that’s a super personal question, I’m just trying to figure out what I’m dealing with here.” She trailed off, looking mortified at having said that last bit.

  As for myself, I had to laugh. “What you’re dealing with is me. Just me—and Booker.” I shrugged, then just dove in. “Gina and I never even dated let alone got married or anything else. She was just a woman that I slept with a handful of times. When she found out she was pregnant, she was determined to keep it, but a few months after Booker was born, she realized she didn’t want to do it. She left Booker on my doorstep.”