by Nina Singh
“I understand that, too. But it could be a start. It would at least give us an idea about whether Sonya might find it helpful.”
Jess chewed the inside of her lip. On the surface, Jordan’s proposal seemed like a reasonable suggestion. Only something about the whole scenario didn’t sit right, made her uneasy. But she’d be doing it for Sonya.
“Of course, I’d be paying you for your time,” Jordan added.
There it was again. Jordan was so ready to throw money at an issue in order to address it.
“I refuse to be paid for this, Jordan.”
“But—”
She cut him off. “I mean it. There will be no money involved.”
Her resolve must have sounded clear in her voice for Jordan didn’t bother to argue, he simply gave her a small nod. “All right. When can you start?”
CHAPTER SEVEN
JESS BLEW OUT a breath of exasperation before she could answer Jordan’s question. Somehow, she’d just agreed to regularly visit Jordan Paydan’s home to provide artistic lessons to his little sister. How in the world had that happened?
“I can’t start until next week,” she finally answered. “I’m heading out of town this Friday.”
He quirked an eyebrow in question. “Oh? An exciting trip planned?”
If only. No, the reason for her absence was not one she was looking forward to. “Something like that,” she answered. “In fact, I’ll be heading into your old home city. Manhattan, to be precise. There’s an event I’m expected at.”
“An event?”
She nodded. “An awards ceremony. My mother is due to receive an industry award. But she’s out of the country still. I’ve been asked to go retrieve it for her at their annual dinner.”
“Sounds prestigious.”
“Oh, yes. It was emphasized to me repeatedly exactly how prestigious it is. I don’t dare dream of missing the honor in her place.”
She hadn’t meant to sound so put out. But Jordan’s reply confirmed that she had indeed. “You don’t sound like you’re looking forward to it in any way.”
“Sorry. It’s just that I don’t really travel in those circles and it’s hard when you don’t know anyone. I’m just going to show up, have a meal, grab the little statuette when it’s handed to me. And then come back home.”
The look Jordan gave her was one of a man who’d just gotten an inspired idea. She could almost see the proverbial lightbulb above his head. That thought nearly had her giggling, even though her head was spinning from the latest development that had her instructing Sonya at his house.
What in the world was he getting at now?
“What is it?” she asked.
“Maybe you don’t have to attend the dinner alone.” He stepped closer to her and she got another whiff of the now oh-so-familiar aftershave that sent her senses soaring.
“I don’t follow.”
“You aren’t going to believe this but I’m due in the city myself this weekend. For a charity auction and banquet. On Saturday evening. It’s being held in honor of the American Auditory Association. They fund several research projects around the world to advance hearing and auditory causes. I normally don’t like to attend such things but given the cause...”
What did any of that have to do with her? “And?”
“And I hate attending such events alone also. But I haven’t had time to think too much about a plus-one given the move and everything else. Maybe we can assist each other?”
“I see.” It was all she could stammer out. If she was hearing him correctly, he was asking her to accompany him to a charity gala. And offering to accompany her to the awards dinner in return. Somehow, in the span of one conversation, her life was becoming more and more intertwined with that of Jordan Paydan’s, between her agreeing to instruct Sonya and now this potential trip.
But maybe she was looking too deeply into it. After all, she’d simply agreed to teach art to a child in her free time. And going to New York with Jordan wasn’t all that different a prospect than how she’d shown him around Bimby’s the other day.
Again, on the surface of it, Jordan was simply making a very reasonable suggestion and offer to accompany her. Generous even. On the surface, she’d be a fool to turn him down.
It was a crazy idea. Of course it was. He shouldn’t have even brought it up. But they were both mature adults. Plus, the travel together would even give them some time to discuss Sonya and any benefits she might get from learning a new craft from Jess. And hadn’t he already proven that he could stay away from her when he wanted to?
Not that he’d actually wanted to avoid her. Just some simple self-preservation.
It was clear Jess was dreading going to this awards ceremony by herself. There was no reason she had to. Not when he’d literally be in the same city at the same time.
Besides, he owed her for what she’d done for Sonya with the play. His little sister had been more engaged and upbeat than he’d ever seen her in the past couple of years. There was no denying the role Jess played in her transformation. And now she’d be instructing the little girl and refused to even be paid for it.
“So, a quid pro quo?” she asked.
“Something like that. We can suffer through our respective events together.”
She chewed the inside of her cheek as she turned it over. “I suppose it makes sense.”
“It’s more a business proposition, really. We’ll be helping each other with our individual transactions.”
She finally looked up to face him. “Why not?”
Not the most enthusiastic of acceptances but what did he expect? It wasn’t as if he was proposing a romantic getaway. Like he’d just told her, simply business.
“It’s a plan, then. I’ll have my assistant relay you the details.”
“Okay. I’d planned on checking into my hotel early Friday morning. Maybe we can meet up later that day.”
“Jess. You’re not going to need a hotel. I have an apartment on the Upper East Side. There’s plenty of room.”
That drew her back a step. “Unless you’re uncomfortable with that for some reason.”
“Uh... No. Why would I be?”
Why indeed? “Well, I assure you there’s enough space that we probably won’t even run into each other.”
“Good to know. Maybe we should draw up a contract and have it notarized.”
He blinked at her. “I beg your pardon?”
“Never mind. Lame attempt at a joke.” A laughing child squealed by, nearly colliding with Jess, and he didn’t get a chance to further inquire what she’d meant.
“If you’ll excuse me, I should tend to some of the other guests.”
Okay. He stepped aside. “Of course, I didn’t mean to dominate all of your time.”
She gave him a tight smile and walked away.
Had he insulted her somehow? For the life of him he couldn’t imagine how. Jordan took another swig of his beer and watched her back. Dressed in a cherry-red sundress with delicate swirly yellow patterns, she looked every bit the attentive elementary teacher. The one most of the boy pupils had a crush on. Definitely much sexier than any instructor he’d ever had. The dress cinched at her narrow waist, its skirt falling just above the knees. Very appropriate, very proper. So why couldn’t he stop imagining taking it off her?
Perhaps he would never really understand this woman or the way he reacted around her.
* * *
It was a mere business transaction he was offering. His assistant had to send her the details. They wouldn’t even have to run into each other aside from their respective events.
Jess blew a strand of hair off her forehead as she thought of the way Jordan had made his “proposition,” as he’d called it. He wasn’t even pretending he actually wanted to spend time with her. She should have told him no. That she’d rather go into t
he city alone. But that would have been a lie. As staid and cold as Jordan made his offer sound, the truth was she would rather attend the banquet accompanied by another person. To have that person be someone as charming and handsome as Jordan was just icing on the cake.
As far as spending the weekend in his New York City apartment, that would require some consideration. She wasn’t sure she was ready for that. Who was she kidding? It was more accurate to say she wasn’t sure she could handle it. Knowing he was so close, right within the same living space. With no one else there but the two of them.
She stole a glance at him as he chatted with some of the other parents. Correction—not parents. More specifically, he was surrounded by several of the moms. Each one of them seemed to be hanging on his every word whenever he spoke. He certainly had their full focus. He seemed natural and at ease in the group. Clearly, Jordan was used to female attention.
Before she could look away, he looked up and caught her eye. Great. He just had to catch her watching him.
A small tug at the hem of her skirt pulled her attention. One of her students, a little boy named Markey.
“Ms. Raffi. Would you dance with me?” He pointed over to the center of the yard where several of the children and a couple of adults had formed a makeshift dance floor and were doing a very silly rendition of the Chicken Dance to a bouncy hip-hop number.
“Why I’d be honored.” She answered the child with an exaggerated mock bow then took his hand to lead him to the group of revelers.
The music changed after a few moments and the dancers switched to the Electric Slide. To her surprise, from the corner of her eye, she saw Jordan join in the dance with his little sister. She could guess whose idea that had been. Sonya was really making large strides toward breaking out of her shell.
Her partner noticed them, too. Markey squealed when he saw his little friend and ran over to Sonya, leaving her standing there doing the Electric Slide by herself. With a laugh, Jess made a move to walk away. But a wall in the form of pure, hard muscle suddenly appeared in her vision.
“Looks like we both lost our dance partners,” Jordan said with a playful wink.
“I guess so. Little boys can be so fickle.”
Jordan bent at the waist in a mock bow. “May I have the honor of taking over for Mr. Markey?”
Jess had to laugh at his playful tone. “It would be my pleasure, Mr. Paydan. What would be your preference this evening? The Chicken Dance perhaps? Or maybe the Twist?”
“Uh. Neither?”
“Ah, free-form, then. I like the lack of structure.”
He threw back his head with a loud bark of laughter. “And people say I’m too rigid and unyielding.”
“Not on the dance floor, it would seem.”
To her surprise, Jordan was a competent dancer. Despite the silly soundtrack—kiddie versions of modern pop songs, he was able to move in tune with the music.
“I’m impressed,” she told him.
One of the children had obviously gotten a hold of her outdoor speaker because the music suddenly grew much louder. “I’m a man of many talents,” he said over the noise.
Jess couldn’t argue the point. Too bad she couldn’t feel as distant about him as he so obviously did about her.
* * *
How had she ended up here? Jess had to wonder as she stared out over the breathtaking view of the Manhattan skyline through the wall-to-wall window of Jordan’s penthouse apartment. Somehow, she’d agreed to all of it—being delivered to his building in the car service he had sent for her, attending two gala events as his companion, canceling her original hotel reservations. Oh, and there was also that whole thing about spending two nights in the apartment of a man she barely knew and one she couldn’t really control her emotions around.
Even from up this high, the hustle and bustle of the city was almost palpable from the streets below. She could see Central Park in the distance. The day was a clear and sunny one. Perfect for exploring one of the most dynamic cities in the world. Too bad she would have to do so alone.
“You made it. I thought I heard you.” She heard Jordan’s voice behind her.
He appeared to be business casual this afternoon. Black suit trousers and a smooth, crisp white button-down shirt with the collar undone. Though he appeared every bit the successful businessman back home on Martha’s Vineyard, it was blatantly obvious that here in the city he was truly in his element. How in the world would someone like Jordan be happy long-term on a small island? Even one as cosmopolitan as Martha’s Vineyard?
He looked so devilishly handsome she wanted to grab a sketch pad and draw his portrait.
“Yes, your housekeeping service let me in just as they were leaving. I hope that’s okay.”
“Of course.”
“This is quite the view. I’m impressed.”
He came to stand beside her and she got a hint of that subtle aftershave. His scent had somehow become both familiar and exotic to her senses.
“I’ve lived in this apartment for close to four years and that view still takes my breath away every time I see it.”
It was clear in his voice how much he missed this place. And he’d given it all up. To move to New England, of all places.
“You must miss it,” she ventured, to see if he would take the opening to discuss the motivation that made him move.
At his rather long pause of silence, she prodded further, her curiosity winning out. “You never mentioned what made you leave the city exactly.”
“I decided we needed a quieter, more peaceful setting after...”
“After what?”
Jordan closed his eyes, released a deep sigh. “Sonya was involved in a car accident. Shortly after she became my responsibility.”
Jess gasped at the revelation. “Oh, Jordan. I’m so sorry. She seems to have recovered well.”
“So the doctors tell me.”
He clearly didn’t believe them. Not completely. “Do you have some doubt that there might be lingering effects?”
“I don’t know,” he said simply, flatly. “But I did know I had to get her away from the crazy hustle and bustle of Manhattan. To someplace quieter. Like the vineyard.”
Every etch of anguish on his face made it clear that Jordan blamed himself for what had happened to his little sister. Had he somehow caused the accident? As much as she wanted to press for details, she had to let him take the lead on this. But would he want to?
His next words answered her silent question and proved he wasn’t ready to do so. “What about you?” he asked, effectively changing the topic back to her. She would let him, if it meant distracting him from the clear pain she saw on his face.
“You said you studied in Boston,” he added.
“That’s right.”
“So how’d you end up settling down in Martha’s Vineyard? You originally followed your college roommate but ended up staying even though she’d left.”
The familiar feelings of hurt and anger washed over her though she tried hard to fight them. Even though five years had passed, the final argument with Gary still served as a cutting memory.
“There really was nowhere else to go.” Jess couldn’t help the hitch in her voice as she said the words. “Staying in Boston wasn’t an option.”
“Why’s that? It’s a great city.”
“My leaving wasn’t about the city.” It was about a boy, she added under her breath.
Jordan was astute enough to figure out the gist of things. “A man out there was foolish enough to let you go?”
Jess tried not to gasp out loud at his bold statement. She should tell him not to say such things. For she had no way to interpret them. For all she knew, Jordan was simply offering empty words to make her feel better.
“One could argue that I was the one who was foolish.” She continued to stare at the scenery bef
ore her, trying to gather her thoughts before continuing. “For not realizing sooner that it wasn’t me he wanted. Not really. It was a certain version of me, the one he was originally introduced to. The one I didn’t want to be anymore.”
Curse her artist’s mind for holding on to the most minute of details. She could clearly still see the utter disdain on Gary’s face when she’d made the announcement that she was leaving graduate school to pursue teaching art. He couldn’t grasp that she’d made the decision in order to avoid the slow death of her soul. After all, enrolling in business school had never actually been about her. Gary wasn’t interested in hearing about any of that. He wanted his future wife to be someone on the fast track, with a high-profile career in the business world. He had no use for a struggling artist still looking to find her way. He hadn’t even pretended otherwise for even the slightest moment when she’d told him.
“Like I said, he must have been a fool,” Jordan declared. Before Jess could come up with a response, he turned to her abruptly. “Let’s leave all that for now. Can I get you anything? Some coffee? Or I daresay you could use a glass of wine,” he asked, changing the subject altogether. Which was fine with her.
She shook her head. “Definite no to the wine. I’m not one to start imbibing this early.”
He gave her a smile that almost had her knees buckling. Oh, dear. Perhaps this hadn’t been such a great idea, after all. Her hotel would not have compared to the luxury of this apartment and had no chance of offering such a majestic view of the skyline. But it certainly would have been safer.
“Are you sure?” he asked. “It occurs to me that you should treat this as a mini holiday of sorts. You mentioned you hadn’t been off the island to travel since permanently moving there. And I think you could use a vacation after putting a performance of Mother Goose on with a group of elementary children.”
She chuckled softly. “It did take a bit of work.”
“And a wealth of patience, I’m sure. You’re a saint for not having lost it more than once.”
“Not that much of a saint. I did come close.”
