When she opened her eyes again, she stared into his blue eyes – blue like the lake he loved so much. His pupils were dark with desire, reminding of how the lake changed color as the depth increased. Just like Dean’s personality and character. It was deep and complex. Unlike those immature, superficial boys her age!
What are you doing? You don’t do “boyfriends.” Remember? Melissa turned her inner voice off and let herself sink into his arms. She continued to stare into his eyes and felt like she was looking into her own soul. Somewhere deep down there was the truth. Would she like it once found?
Deep thoughts like that were fleeting as the kiss changed once again, becoming more intense and requiring all of her attention. Wow! I didn’t know a kiss could be like this. Now I understand what the term mind-blowing means! The importance of that thought caused her to pull back. After several attempts, Dean finally released her and she stepped away from him, putting a little free space between their bodies.
His eyes showed worry. Love and worry. “Are you ok? I’m sorry if…”
“Dean, there’s no reason to be sorry.”
He frowned, and she quickly continued “I feel so good when I’m with you, but I’m not sure if I can trust you. I won’t let myself get hurt again, and I have to think about Happy as well.”
“Melissa, I want to get to know more about you. And your daughter. I’m not in a hurry. If you need more time, I completely understand.”
Melissa was so relieved, “Thank you. Thank you for dinner and the conversation.”
“Back to you, gorgeous. Can I call you?”
“I count on it.”
Dean smiled his breathtaking smile, “You can count on it. Have a good night.”
He climbed back into his vehicle and drove away into the night. As Melissa entered the house, she mentally patted herself on the back. You did good, Mellie girl! Way to take a step back and think about the consequences before diving headlong into a relationship.
Chapter 7
The next day, Dean was sitting at his desk. When he rented the house, he’d done so primarily because of its proximity to the lake. The large picture window that looked out over the surface of the water had been the icing on the cake.
Today, however, he wasn’t able to tap into the peace and tranquility he normally found in this place. Usually this was the perfect place for him to sit and write. He needed to complete the outline for his book about dragonflies. Today. Organized and self-disciplined as he was, he’d set very specific deadlines for himself, and that deadline was today.
But as he sat gazing out the window at the lake, the words just wouldn’t come. The blank piece of paper on his desk stared at him, wanting to be filled with ink. Even holding his favorite pen between his fingers, didn’t help. He hadn’t written a single word! Melissa! His mind kept wandering back to her, again and again.
Dean finally tossed the pen down on the desk and leaned back in the leather chair. He loved women. Always had. Even back in high school, and then college, he’d always been lucky with the ladies. He was a cheerful guy and seemed to draw all sorts of women around him.
Two years ago, he’d hooked up with Jaqueline. His family had never approved of her, but he’d pushed their concerns aside. He hadn’t liked to disappoint them, but he’d had little time to dwell on their feelings. Jaqueline had kept his attention focused solely on her!
Now that he was on this side of their breakup, he could see that they’d been right all along. She hadn’t been loyal to him! She hadn’t cared about making him happy; the only thing she’d cared about was that he made her happy! In the end, she had betrayed him in the most humiliating way he could have ever imagined!
In contrast, there was Melissa. Sweet. Empathic. Just a tad shy. And though she was young in age, she was mature beyond her years in common sense and the nastier side of life. When he thought of Melissa, he had a strange urge to protect her. She was so petite and sweet, an angel sent to earth; he wanted to wrap her in his arms and hold her tight so that nothing could ever hurt her again.
And her smile. It warmed him like no other. Holding her in his arms the night before had been as much pleasure as torture. He’d barely been able to breathe when she’d willingly gone into his arms, and when their lips had touched for the first time, he wanted to devour her!
When he had first seen Happy, he’d been taken aback that such a young woman like Melissa could have a baby. But as he’d gotten to know her more last night, he realized her child was the same reason she was so mature. She’d been forced to grow up quickly, choosing to put the welfare of her child before herself. Something women of twenty-five and thirty often struggled with.
He closed his eyes and brought the image of her daughter to his mind. She was adorable, and he was slightly stunned to realize he felt emotion for the little girl. Love? He pondered that for a moment and then smiled. Yes! I love Happy! From the first moment I saw her! I’d love to be her father! Dean continued to smile at how nice this new emotion was. Was that the feeling his parents had enjoyed for so many years with their seven kids?
The more he thought about it, he realized he had a similar emotion towards Melissa. How can that be? I’ve only known her for a few days?
Not spending more energy thinking about it, he picked up the phone and called her. I’m going to win her trust and make her and her daughter mine!
“Melissa? It’s Dean.”
“Dean. Hi!”
“Hi! I’m not disturbing you, am I?”
“No. I just got home from the diner, actually. I worked the early shift today.”
“Do you have to work tomorrow morning?”
“I start at 10 a.m. Why?”
“Well, I wondering if you want to accompany me on an excursion tomorrow morning?”
“At the lake? I’d love to see what you do.”
“Great! Uhm…We’ll need to leave rather early to get where I want to go before the sun comes up. Will that be a problem?”
Before the sun comes up? How early does he want to go? “Uhm…well, I guess not. What time should I be ready?”
Chapter 8
Melissa hung up the phone, excited, but also wondering if she’d lost her mind. He wants to go so early!
Annie found her a few minutes later sitting in the kitchen with a perplexed look upon her face. “Mellie, who was that on the phone?”
“That was Dean. He asked me to go on one of his scientific excursions to the lake tomorrow morning.”
“That’s nice. Is he coming to pick you up?”
Melissa nodded her head, “Yes…at 4 a.m.!”
“That is quite early,” Annie agreed. “You still seem excited though.”
“I am.”
Annie smiled and started some water heating in the kettle. She was a very wise old woman, and she’d known there was something different about Dean from the way Melissa first spoke about him. She’d seen him when he picked Melissa up yesterday, and she’d also seen the glow on Mellie’s face when she had come home.
Mellie’s eyes had been shining brightly, but not with unshed tears. They’d sparkled with the light that only came with a new romance. Annie saw that same sparkle in Mellie’s eyes now and she only prayed and hoped that Dean wouldn’t take advantage of her innocence.
Dean was a professor at Princeton. He was so much older than Mellie, and he only planned on being in the Lake Perry area for six months. What were his plans after that? Would he leave and break Mellie’s heart? Annie hoped that would not be the case!
“So, you like Dean?” Grandma Annie asked.
Melissa smiled, “I do. I’ve never met someone like him before. He loves what he does, and he was so supportive when I told him I wanted to go to college and maybe open a florists shop.”
“What else do you like about him?”
“What don’t I like? He comes from a big family that is really close, and when I watched him with Happy yesterday, he was good with her. Like he actually enjoyed playing with a three-year old!�
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“What’s not to like? I play with her every day and those are some of the highlights of my life.”
Melissa smiled, “Mine too.”
“Mellie, do you know how to tell when you truly love a man?”
Melissa had spent several hours thinking about that last night. “Hm. No. I mean, I thought I loved Happy’s father and look how that turned out.”
Annie smiled and then patted her on the shoulder, pouring a cup of hot water and dropping in one of her favorite herbal tea bags. “Let me share some advice with you my grandmother gave me many years ago. When you meet a man, and can’t imagine spending the rest of your life without him in your life – then you’ll know it’s true love.
But it’s more than just being attracted to someone physically. True love comes from the heart. I would caution you to examine your emotions carefully so you don’t get fooled. There are a lot of men out there that could make you feel good temporarily, but true love remains long after the attraction fades. When you can face even the worst circumstances with someone, and you still love them, you’ll know it’s true and right.”
“But isn’t the attraction important too? I mean, isn’t that what draws people together?” Melissa asked.
“Most of the time. But how many times does that last beyond a few weeks, or maybe months? Problems arise, the couple gets to know more about each other, and then they realize they don’t actually like what they learn. Time to move on!”
“Like changing your clothes,” Melissa added, starting to get where Annie was headed.
“True love isn’t like that. Take Happy, for instance. Usually she’s a bright, happy little girl. But then there are her cranky days when every turn of the clock results in a new temper tantrum and crying spell. She’s fretful, unhappy, and her only goal is to make everyone else feel her discomfort! But even then, you still love her.
It’s that same thing with a man. Look at me and Hugh. He’s barely able to walk nowadays and he’s often grumpy and says harsh words to me because he’s so much in pain. But do I love him even then? Of course I do and I couldn’t imagine how I’d live without him.” Annie paused as her eyes filled with tears. She’d been watching her beloved husband decline in health for the last several years, and she knew that the day was coming when she had to learn how to live without him!
Patting Melissa’s hand, she picked up her teacup and headed for the hallway. At the doorway, she turned and met Melissa’s eyes, “Don’t be in a hurry, honey. Wait for that one person in the world you can’t live without. I promise you’ll never regret it.”
Melissa found herself alone in the kitchen with her thoughts. Annie had given her plenty to think upon. Was Dean someone she couldn’t live without? They’d only shared a single kiss! She remembered how good she felt when she was with him. And Happy apparently loves him!
Shaking her head, she mentally chided herself. There’s that love word again. Love at first sight is for romance novels. It doesn’t happen in real life. Look what happened with your first boyfriend!
Melissa had thought she was in love with him and given him everything he’d asked for. But when the going had gotten tough, and she’d found out she was pregnant, he’d bailed on her! He had pretended it was all her fault!
Ric had talked her into having sex with him and had refused to use protection. He’d promised her he would “pay attention”. And she had believed him. She’d been so naïve about these things back then. She’d been seventeen, not quite eighteen, and totally innocent! Without anyone to confide in. Definitely not her parents.
Thinking about her first time, it wasn’t that she hadn’t liked sleeping with him. It had been nice, but she wished they’d waited. Ric never made her feel special. Not like Dean does! And somehow she couldn’t see Dean pushing her for more than she was willing to give.
He’d even backed away yesterday when she’d voiced her concerns. Rather than trying to take advantage of their high emotions, he’d acted the gentleman and given her some space. And she would have been easy enough to convince last night! He’d made her feel so good!
Chapter 9
Melissa nervously walked along the path around the lake at 4:30 a.m. the next morning. After thinking about Dean’s early pick-up call, she’d called him back and offered to meet him somewhere so he wouldn’t have to come get here so early.
He’d insisted to pick her up because he hated for her to be out on her own at that hour. How sweet and caring of him! But Melissa had been insistent herself and finally convinced him to meet her at the lake. Now she was pleased to see him already waiting for her.
“Good morning,” she offered softly as she stopped next to him.
“Good morning, angel. Thanks again for the offer to meet me here. It saved me a lot of time this morning.”
“No problem. So what are you looking for today?” she queried.
“That dragonfly I showed you in the diner the other day. I brought my telescoping lens and would love to get some close-up shots for my study. This could be the missing link I’ve been looking for.”
“How long have you been searching for something like this?” she asked, falling into step with him.
“A few years. I’ve felt for a while now that there was at least one species I was missing, and this could be it!” he told her excitedly.
Melissa smiled at how happy he sounded. He did love his work. And she loved to observe his enthusiasm. They walked along the riverside, passing beyond the guard rail that instructed normal tourists to stay out. Lake Perry was home to a natural preserve and only scientists with special permits were allowed to enter the protected area. Since Dean didn’t even pause at the warning sign, she assumed he had one of the coveted permits.
She was so absorbed in watching him and his every move, that she didn’t pay close attention to the trail. Suddenly her feet slipped out from underneath her and she saw herself in slow motion as she fell to the soggy ground. She sat on the ground for a moment, staring up at Dean, who’d quickly come towards her, a worried expression on his face.
“Melissa! Are you okay?”
Melissa blushed, grateful it wasn’t very bright outside. “I’m fine.” She laughed a bit, “I don’t know what happened.”
“Here, let me help you up.” Dean reached down and pulled her to her feet.
Once she was back on her feet, she realized the ground had not only been wet, but muddy as well. She was wearing shorts, awaiting another hot summer day, and now her bare legs and the backside of her shorts were covered in mud!
Looking down at herself, she said, “I’m a mess!”
Dean looked at her and for a moment she spotted disappointment in his face. It quickly faded into worry. “You sure you’re ok? We can leave. You have to be horribly uncomfortable.”
“Don’t be silly! So I’m a little wet and dirty. Haven’t you been waiting for years to find that missing link?”
Deans face lit up; “Well yes, but if you want to get changed, I can go some other day.”
She shook her head; “And take the risk of not spotting that elusive dragonfly? No way. Or do you think I’ll scare it away looking like that?”
He laughed at her in surprise, “You look gorgeous, Mel. Even covered in mud. It’s just, that any other woman I know would be making a scene and demanding to go back.”
“I’m used to playing in the sand and mud with Happy, remember?” The fall had broken the ice and Melissa was excited about the rest of the morning and suddenly wanted to talk.
“Where are we going?”
Dean looked at her in that loving way again that turned her stomach upside down. “Mel, please don’t be offended, but we need to remain silent throughout the walk. Otherwise we do scare the insects away.”
She nodded her head without saying another word.
He smiled at her and continued walking. They trod on in silence, keeping pace beside each other, until he softly grabbed her arm and gestured over to the reeds. Melissa looked to where he was pointi
ng and barely stopped from gasping out loud. There, amongst the reeds, were half a dozen dragonflies!
She was taken aback by the sheer beauty of them. They look like fairies. Good fairies. Should she make a wish, just in case? What would she wish for? They dazzled in all the colors of the rainbow, reflecting the rising sun over the like. She listened closely and could hear a slight humming noise as their wings fluttered back and forth.
Dean took out his camera and patiently lied down. Melissa slowly lowered herself to sit beside him and watched. Click. Click. Click. He took dozens or even hundreds of pictures. He was enthralled with what he was doing, and as the time passed, Melissa had lots of time to think.
She looked around and marveled at the fantastic scenery. The sun coming up over the lake, being reflected in all its yellows, oranges, and reds. The dazzling insects she’d never before stopped to appreciate. And the man she loved lying next to her in the mud. Loves? Do I really love him? How can I know after just a few days?
When he’d finished snapping pictures, after what seemed like an eternity, he turned his head and looked at Melissa. She watched his eyes stare at her, unseeing for several minutes, before he blinked and the light of recognition lit his eyes.
He whispered, “Mel, I totally forgot about you. When I’m working I tend to shut down everything else.”
“It was a pleasure to watch you. You looked like a kid eager to learn something new. You have that enthusiasm all over your face.”
Dean smiled lovingly at her, “Nobody has ever said that to me. Most people think I’m weird. They don’t understand my emotional connection towards those animals. Their beauty and airiness. Usually people are just ‘Oh, insects?’ But not you. You are different.”
“I had that same attitude towards insects. But when you showed the dragonfly to me, it was so beautiful, and it reminded me of the fairy in Peter Pan. Tinkerbell. Beautiful, elusive, and magical. I wouldn’t have been surprised if it had a little magic wand and asked me to make three wishes.”
I Love You Twice (Falling For Him Contemporary Romance Series Book 7) Page 4
