Dan rubbed his jaw. “You make a very interesting bitch, Mariah.”
“Thank you. My once loving husband’s betrayal did this to me. You can consider dealing with my vindictive side to be the first consequence you need to face,” Mariah said sharply, wincing when Dan slammed the door on his way out.
Mariah glanced up at the blinking light on the security camera, hoping someone really had been recording it all.
Chapter Sixteen
“Did I shock you speechless, Della? I know it was a lot to hear. I don’t even know if anything I said will do any good or not, but I’m guessing it will because Dan’s boss is now involved. I’m pretty sure they recorded our entire conversation.”
Della nodded from the chair. “I’ve always admired you, Mariah. It was mostly for the matter-of-fact way you would advise your radio callers to take action. Your sympathy was laced with insisting they take ownership for their decisions and choices. That’s the kind of helpful doctor I want to be.”
“Dr. Livingston, you will be exactly the kind of doctor you choose to be,” Mariah assured her. “I just hope you don’t think I’ve turned into some awful woman.”
Della laughed at that coming from the most polite, warmest woman she’d ever met. “No. You’re as nice as ever. I’m guessing some tall, silver-haired man helped you get over your evil ex. Detective Monroe looked quite capable of making a woman forget everything but him.”
Mariah laughed. “You know I’m too honest to deny it, but I’m not certain our chemistry will last either. John’s another cop in my life. It’s not like I have any ignorance cushioning the reality this time. I’m like those women who end up dating only military men. Being attracted to cops is obviously a defect in my character that I can’t find the source of.”
Della smiled. “Can I just say then that Detective Monroe is better looking than your ex?”
“You may. He’s better in bed too—way better—like a whole different kind of better,” Mariah teased.
“Lucky, lucky you,” Della said happily. “Having watched your relationship with John Monroe blossom has made me hopeful. Think my perfect match will show up in time for my baby sister’s wedding this summer?”
“If not, I’ll get you a date for that,” Mariah promised.
“Great. I want Elliston McElroy—if he’s still single then,” Della said, giggling. “I’ll put him in jeans and make sure his tats show. My family will be stunned by the way he looks and they’ll stop shoving stuff-shirts in front of me. They still buy into the oldest child needing to marry first. Since I’m now going to be the last to marry, I’ve been a complete disappointment to them.”
“Twenty-seven is still very young. My son is your age and not married.”
Della lifted her hands. “I know. Right? Cerise is the youngest of us. She’s nineteen. That’s practically still a baby.”
“Nineteen?” Mariah exclaimed. “Wait… Amanda was twenty when she married. Never mind. Love is all that matters. Georgia Bates taught me that.”
Della’s face brightened. “Right. Your mom. Speaking of her… are we fixing up her with the dreamy Dr. Colombo?”
Mariah shook her head. “No. I’m thinking about Ann Lynx. She’s a better fit for him. They’d look quite elegant next to each other.”
Della snorted.
“What? What was that sound about?” Mariah asked, laughing. “Are you actually disagreeing with me?”
Mariah watched her assistant grin while she pretended to think.
“Yes, Dr. Bates. Sadly, I believe I am. Chemistry like theirs is too strong to be denied. I think you should talk your mother into dating Dr. Colombo.”
“Can’t. My mother’s still mad about him dating younger women.”
“Just proves I’m right about the chemistry. If she didn’t care, she would have forgotten all about him by now,” Della insisted.
Mariah rolled her eyes, but then shrugged. “Let’s try Ann first. If I’m wrong… I’ll work on my mother next.”
“You’re never wrong about potentialities, Dr. Bates,” Della said as she stood. “Seeing your mother and Dr. Colombo as a perfect match is as difficult as seeing you and John Monroe as one. I’m very proud of myself for seeing it before you did. I think you’re just in a strange mental place about love because of all you’ve been through the last couple of years. But you’ve got me. I’ll be optimistic enough for both of us and keep my eye on the clients.”
Mariah leaned her elbows on her desk. “I don’t know how I’m ever going to run my business without you.”
Della’s smile was wide. “How about I work as your partner one day? Then you never have to.”
Mariah blinked and straightened. “That has possibilities, especially if we keep growing. We’d need to hire another assistant.”
Della shrugged, grinning over the enormous ground she’d gained. “I’ll find us one. You can trust me to pick someone good.”
“I do trust you,” Mariah quickly agreed. “Let’s talk about this again after you finish your book and get tenure. You can intern with me before your licensing just as well as at any clinic in town. I may have to list us in some database to make that happen. I need to think about this—get it worked out. Glad you brought it up now.”
Della smiled and nodded. Consideration was enough for the present. She had learned the hard way to be patient. She hoped for Detective John Monroe’s sake that he was too.
Chapter Seventeen
“Mariah? I hate to bother you, but we have a visitor.”
Mariah lifted her head from her computer screen and glanced at Della standing in her doorway. “I wonder how long it’s going to take for me to quit reacting so badly when you say my name that way.” Della’s instant grin eased her mind. “Let’s try this again… who is it, Della?”
“Detective Monroe is here to see you. He’s not wearing a suit so I took that as a good sign. Can I send him to see you?”
Mariah smiled. “Yes, Della. You can definitely send Detective Monroe to my office.”
With a quick grin, her assistant disappeared, and moments later a large bouquet of red roses entered the room. Attached to the large handful of roses was a handsome, smiling man wearing his black wire-framed glasses, dark jeans, and a red Henley that showed off some of the best parts of his great body.
Mariah stood and walked around her desk. “Hello, Detective.”
“Now don’t start that again,” John ordered, handing over the flowers.
Laughing at their private joke, Mariah stuck her face in the flowers and inhaled. “They’re beautiful.”
“So are you,” John said, reaching out to touch her face. “Can I kiss you hello?”
Mariah smiled. “Best offer I’ve had in days.”
His lips moving over hers was just as thrilling as it had been the first time.
John broke their kiss to speak. “I thought I’d come see if you wanted to have some dinner.”
“Can we do that out in the open now?” Mariah asked. John raised an eyebrow at the question. His action made her laugh. “You know it’s a legitimate question.”
John shrugged. “Not after what you did to your ex-husband. He’s been given an unofficial warning which I have on good authority scared him enough to take what you said very seriously.”
“And just how do you know what I said?” She rolled her eyes when John looked sheepish. “Let me guess—the camera in the conference room was recording us the whole time.”
“Yes, and I was in the room where the video feed was going. I can’t believe you managed to call him an ass without using the word. I’m not counting ‘douchebag’ against you because that’s merely an accurate description. Want a copy of it? Your mother would probably enjoy watching it. Maybe even your attorney friend.”
Mariah groaned and hung her head. “No, thank you. I just want to forget about it. Did I blow your cover story?”
“No, but they didn’t believe me. I took a two week suspension though, which shut them right up.”
>
Mariah felt her mouth drop open. “Two weeks without pay for collecting a tape of me and Dan illegally?”
John shook his head. “No… and no one did anything illegal. The suspension was for telling my supervisor that I was involved with you. When I refused to back down from dating you, he threatened me with a two week suspension. It seemed a small price to pay—pun intended—for a chance to sleep with you again.”
“But two weeks, John? That’s half your salary for the month.”
“Yep. Worth every penny,” John declared. “So how about dinner? I feel like celebrating.”
Stunned, Mariah nodded. “Okay. Sure. I’m buying until you go back to work. Let me get my jacket.”
John drove a large Mercedes, larger than hers. It was silver and sleek, and seemed to oddly suit him in a way she couldn’t identify. He was very much at home in it.
“Nice car,” she observed.
“It is. Doesn’t look fifteen years old, does it?” he asked.
Mariah shook her head and smiled. “No. It looks great—well loved and cared for.”
“I take great care of everything in my life. Probably just another aspect of that loyalty thing you seem to like so much.”
Dimple showing because of his wide grin, John glanced at her to see if she’d gotten his obvious innuendo. The wickedness lightning his eyes made her want to pinch herself to see if this happy moment was really happening.
He drove into a gated neighborhood she’d never visited before, pausing only long enough to key in a code which he did from memory.
“Is there a restaurant in here?” Mariah asked, knowing there wasn’t.
“Something like that,” John said mysteriously.
Mariah snorted and rolled her eyes. “Let me guess. You’re one of those men who think women should squeal over every little surprise, aren’t you? I am not a squealer, John.”
“Squealing is mostly overrated,” John said, grinning still. “And I have to disagree with your assessment. You do sometimes squeal.”
“Ha. Ha,” Mariah said dryly, but a feminine smile as wicked as his masculine grin plastered itself to her mouth.
They pulled up in front of a sleek brick ranch on one of the older streets. John parked and pointed at the house. “It doesn’t look like much on the outside, but the inside is very nice. There’s a great deck off the back too.”
Mariah wrinkled her forehead. “Whose house is this?”
His shrug revealed nothing which is why his statement stunned her.
“This is the house where I was raised. I wanted to show it to you.”
Mariah raised an eyebrow. “Are you planning to introduce me to your parents already? Moving a bit fast for me there, John.”
His laughter rang out in the car. “They’re in Florida, Dr. Presumptuous.”
Mariah laughed. “What would you have thought if our roles were reversed?”
“Same damn thing,” John admitted, opening his car door.
Mariah climbed out and followed John up the walkway. He used a key from the same fob as his car and opened the door. She walked into a mission styled home that Frank Lloyd Wright might have designed. The effect of the light on the polished wood was wonderful. Her nose lifted in the air. What she smelled was wonderful too. It reminded her that she was starving.
“Someone making us dinner?” Mariah asked.
John hung his head. “Sort of. I don’t cook. But there’s this guy I know who does takeout meals. All you have to do is pop them into the oven. It’s healthy and good.”
“Smells fantastic,” Mariah admitted.
“Not as good as you do, but I’m trying to control myself.”
John walked off after dropping that little bombshell, leaving her with the choice to follow his cute jean-covered butt to the kitchen or not. Rolling her eyes again, even though it made her feel like her mother, she tagged behind him like a puppy.
She walked into a kitchen that was warm and inviting. All the modern conveniences were there, but so was the lovely polished wood that made it seem substantial and like a home. It reminded her of Bill and Abby’s place.
She looked at John, who was checking the progress of their dinner and at the open bottle of red wine on the counter. It was the brand she’d ordered the night he’d invited himself along to dinner with her mother.
“You really do pay attention, don’t you?” Mariah asked softly.
John poured her a glass, turned, and carried it to her. “I think I’ve only been that way with you. I have a driving need to please you any way I can. I like you, Mariah Bates. And I’m falling in love with you—or have fallen. I haven’t figured out which yet.”
Mariah took the glass from his fingers and set it aside. She looked up into his earnest face. “I like you too. I’m afraid of the big L and I don’t know when I’m going to get there again.”
“I get that,” John answered, holding up a hand. “But I want to be optimistic, so I’m going to buy this house. My parents are practically giving it to me because they want to stay in Florida. They shouldn’t be home to visit often, but they’d stay here when they did. All the rest of the time, I’d be living alone. Only I don’t want to be alone. I want to live here with you.”
Mariah looked around at the well-used, well-loved, and well-preserved space. It was just happening so fast. She pushed a hand through her hair as John pushed out a breath.
“Look… I know this is ridiculously aggressive, but I was kind of hoping you would move out of your mother’s place and move in with me. I’m not as wealthy as you, but I’m pretty sure I could give you a nicer life than you’ve ever had. I can afford this house and to feed you without even trying hard, especially since you seem to eat mostly rabbit food. I also know I will be the most faithful man you could ever hope to find. What do you say, Dr. Bates? Do I sound like your perfect match?”
Mariah picked up her wine, walked to a leather barstool, and slid onto it. She stared at John as she sipped. “What kind of proposal is this exactly? I’m… confused.”
John shrugged. “Beyond being a desperate one, I’m not sure. You could probably call this anything you want. I just want to keep you in my life. My instincts are screaming ‘THIS ONE’ and I have no choice.”
Mariah laughed. “THIS ONE?”
John nodded. “Yes. Aren’t yours screaming too? I figured you’d have never slept with me otherwise.”
“But…”
John held up a hand. “I’ll even let you put a whole comforter ensemble on the bed—any color you want. Twelve pillows and all.”
Mariah laughed. She couldn’t help it. “Decorating the bed would normally be my first concern in taking a new man on, but surprisingly, I’m more concerned that you could lose your job over me.”
John nodded as he frowned. “Yeah, I knew that would bother you. There’s several security companies who would take me on if anything like that happens, but I doubt it ever will. I’m never going to be out of work for long. One day I might have to retire to body guard my famous wife…”
“Wife?” Mariah sputtered, throwing up her hands in disbelief. “I thought you weren’t sure what kind of proposal this was.”
“That was twenty minutes and a lifetime of frustrated relationships ago. I’ve been sure since you handed me my balls that day in your office. I just haven’t been able to figure out how to make it sound less insane that I feel that way. I’m not a complete idiot. I realize we barely know each other.”
“But…”
“Look, your office is twenty-five minutes away. How about a probationary period? You can even have a separate bedroom like a roommate would, but I’m probably not going to let you sleep alone very often—if ever. I need you. And I’ve never said that to any woman before you. If you’re around me, I’m going to be hitting on you—like all the time.”
Her sigh was loud and rippled the wine in her still nearly full glass. “You need me?”
John nodded as he walked toward her. “Yes. You make me feel alive.
You make me smile. You make me want to drag you off to bed every time I see you. At my age… well, that’s a freaking miracle. I haven’t wanted a woman like this since I was in my twenties. This is what a great relationship is supposed to feel like. Keeping you is worth whatever it takes.”
Mariah groaned and put her head down on the counter. “But I hate all men right now.”
“No you don’t,” John said tersely. “You hate yourself for being so wrong about your ex. Get over thinking you made a mistake, which you didn’t because you got conned by cop gone bad. When you accept that, you can let yourself fall in love with me. I promise—I truly am your perfect match.”
“My perfect match,” Mariah repeated.
John nodded. “You have no idea what that means yet and I can’t wait to show you. You’re like a complete do-over for me.”
Mariah blinked as she stared at him. Maybe John was her perfect match… but another cop? That was just asking for more trouble, wasn’t it?
“Look. I always put the toilet seat down, but I’ll shave and shower in the guest bathroom if that’s what it takes. That way you can spread your acres of girlie stuff out everywhere in the master bathroom.”
Mariah chuckled. “I do not have acres of girlie stuff. I have a few things.”
“Okay,” John said agreeably, pulling out his phone. “Let me just call your mother and validate how many things you have with her before I apologize for jumping to conclusions.”
“Cheeky smart-ass,” Mariah declared.
“Cheeky smart-ass who’s in love with you,” John said.
Mariah giggled. “Okay, already. I’m convinced. I’ll move in with you… eventually.”
“Good.”
“You have to settle for the little L until I can feel the big L though.”
“Fine. That gives me a goal. Does the little L come with bedroom benefits?” John asked.
Never Is A Very Long Time: A Romantic Comedy With Attitude (The Perfect Date Book 1) Page 11
