Because this is where Kyla lived, and he couldn’t stop thinking about her.
A week had passed since he’d left her alone in her parent’s home, looking so lost and broken. Should he have stayed? Yes, he felt like a heel for not waiting on the front steps. She’d asked him to go, but maybe she’d just wanted time alone inside the house.
What if she’d needed him once she’d stepped outside that mausoleum of a home?
He’d just left. Called a cab and rushed back to his old life. He hadn’t even bothered going back to the apartment building. There was nothing there he’d needed or wanted.
Nothing but Kyla.
He was just going to check on Kyla now. Nothing more. He’d slept with her, after all; it was the responsible thing to do to make sure she was doing well. That he wanted to check on her didn’t mean he cared, or that he wanted to have an actual relationship.
He didn’t do relationships. For the past several years, he’d found women who were interested in mutually beneficial sex. That was great — no one got feelings hurt when it was over, usually after one night in bed, maybe two.
Still, he found himself striding down the hallway of the building. It was considerably warmer than the last time he’d been there, since he’d had a new heating system installed. Of course, it hadn’t been finished while he was still there — the contractors had just completed the work order the day before.
As he wandered through the building, he was beginning to see the place differently. Maybe there really were some possibilities here.
He’d have to meet with his architect.
Tanner found himself in front of Kyla’s door, and his hand went on autopilot. Hell, it wasn’t the first time that had happened. Footsteps on the other side told him she was home.
With the chain in place, she cracked the door open. He would have to tell her that wasn’t a surefire method of keeping people out. Once they had an opening, they could force their way in.
“Hello, Kyla.” That was a bit lame.
“What are you doing here, Tanner?” She left the door chained.
“I missed you.” Tanner didn’t know which of them was more surprised by his words.
“You disappeared,” she said. Her look was clear: Don’t think you have a chance at a repeat of our night together, Tanner.
“I was only ever going to be living here for two weeks. It was an…experience,” he said, pasting on his most charming smile. “Why don’t you invite me in?”
“I don’t understand. Who moves into a place for only two weeks?” The door shut as she unlatched the chain and opened it wider, but she blocked the opening, letting him know that he wasn’t invited inside.
“It’s a long story and I don’t want to get into it,” he told her.
“Everything seems to be a long story to you. You seem to love keeping your secrets. That’s fine with me because I don’t see that we really have anything to talk about. You moved in, we had sex, you moved on. It’s pretty much the end of our story.”
Though she was trying to be flippant, he could see the hurt behind her eyes and in her voice. Kyla wasn’t the type of woman a man slept with and then just left without a word. He’d known that all along, and yet he’d still done it.
He was the type of man mothers warned their daughters about.
The thought didn’t sit well with him.
“I would like to take you out on a real date. If you come with me, I’ll tell you more of my story,” he said.
“I don’t think so, Tanner. I just…I don’t think we have anything in common.”
“We sure had a lot in common on Christmas Eve,” he said, leaning toward her, taking in her sweet scent and instantly flooded with desire for her. Even without makeup and wearing sweats, she turned him on far more than his last supermodel one-night stand had.
“That’s sex, Tanner. There’s a difference between having good sex and having a relationship. We both knew when we slept together that it wasn’t going to lead into anything more. I expected not to sleep with you again. I didn’t expect you to completely disappear.”
“You said you wanted to be alone,” he defended.
“I did. Thank you for respecting that.”
“Have you made any decisions?”
“Not yet. I spoke to my parents’ attorney. I think I’m going to sell the house. I just can’t stay there. It would hurt too badly, and the home needs to have people in it who will create their own happy memories. I want to wait until I’m sure, though, not do anything rash.”
“I think that’s wise. It’s time for you to start living again.”
“Yes, I agree, which is why I spoke to my old college this week. I’m hoping to get back in for spring term, though I’m cutting it close. I’ll have to see if it works out.”
“That’s wonderful, Kyla.” Shockingly, he actually meant it.
“I think you should go now, Tanner. It’s been nice seeing you, though,” she said as she tried to shut the door. He blocked it with his hand.
“Please. I just want to talk.” What the hell? Tanner didn’t beg a woman for attention.
Before she could respond, there were footsteps in the hallway, and as Tanner began turning to see who it was, he heard his name being called.
“Mr. Storm, I’m so glad to find you here. The demolition crew is going back through the building for a new plan to turn into the city, and they need your signature on some papers.”
As Tanner watched Kyla’s eyes widen when reality hit, he knew his chances of her speaking to him had just flown out the window. His team had said they were getting new bids on various costs for what to do with the building, but he hadn’t realized they’d be working on New Year’s Eve.
For a man who normally had the Midas touch, a man whose luck was nearly perfect, today was turning out not to be his day.
“You own this building?” she gasped.
Unless he was prepared to make up a story and lie outright, Tanner was caught. “My father handed it over to me six months ago.”
Her eyes narrowed dangerously. “So, you’re the bastard who has been trying to evict us since you got your greedy hands on the place. What were you doing here, Tanner, or should I say, Mr. Storm? We’re you scoping out the place, hoping to find proof that it needed to be condemned so you could rip the building down and then come in and build some fancy high-rise?”
At his guilty look, her eyes narrowed even more, if that were possible.
“That’s what I thought. I am such a fool. I knew you were out of my league. I could practically smell it on you, but I had no idea how far out you really were. Did you have fun slumming it with a poor girl down on her luck? You must have really wanted to close the deal to subject yourself to serving food at a homeless shelter.”
“It wasn’t like that,” he said, running his fingers through his hair in frustration.
“I know exactly how it was, Tanner. You were stuck here doing your underhanded snooping, and I just happened to be in front of you. With nothing better to do, you decided to get an easy lay. I’m sorry it took so long. Hell, if I had turned over sooner, you could have gotten a couple of nights of cheap sex.” Tears filled her eyes, but she refused to let them fall.
“I was forced to be here by a judge! I wasn’t spying,” he snapped, pacing in front of her.
Residents who’d been approaching heard danger and wisely backed away, though not so far that they didn’t overhear all of this juicy information.
“Oh, I see. That makes it so much better. You’re some rich guy who committed a crime and got community service instead of jail time. That’s why you were Santa, isn’t it?”
He nodded, though before he could defend himself, she continued.
“You need to keep away from me. I don’t ever want to see you again.” Before he could stop her, she slammed the door shut and he was left standing there wondering what the hell had just happened.
When pounding on her door didn’t get a response, he turned away. She wasn’t g
oing to speak to him again. It was no use.
Turning, he saw some men standing at the end of the hall. As he walked past them, his thunderous expression dared them to say a word. Luckily for them, they kept silent.
Tanner’s car peeled out, tires squealing, as he left the building, furious with Kyla, furious with the whole situation. By the time he got home, he’d calmed down, but he felt unbelievable frustration as he walked through his rooms.
How could he make this better? What would make this ache go away?
No answers there. So he went to bed, hoping that by the time he woke up, he’d have some idea.
He was Tanner Storm. He would figure this out.
Chapter Thirteen
Tanner signed the last documents and sat back with a genuine smile on his face. He knew he was doing the right thing because he felt good about himself. The last time he could remember feeling like this was when…hell, he couldn’t remember having this feeling before.
“Sir, it’s time to head out to the news conference.”
“I’ll be leaving in a moment,” he told his secretary. He handed her the documents and stood up.
He whistled as he made his way to the elevators and rode downstairs. With luck, he would be seeing Kyla today. He in no way expected her to give in easily, but wasn’t that part of the fun in all of this?
For the first time in his life, he was enjoying the chase, enjoying that there was a woman out there who wasn’t afraid to tell him what she really thought. And he wanted to be with this woman, not just for a night of passion, or ten nights of passion for that matter, but for the kind of time that ended after forever.
He slipped into the backseat of the waiting car and thought of only one thing as the driver wove through the heavy Seattle traffic — seeing her again. If all went well, he’d soon have her in his arms. He couldn’t expect it too quickly, of course. It certainly wouldn’t happen that night. But he’d stick with his pursuit of her for as long as it took.
A crowd was waiting in front of the apartment building as he emerged from the car. Reporters were asking questions; cameras flashed. He smiled, waved and continued forward, stepping up on the podium that had been set up for this event.
Tanner waited for the crowd to quiet down, and then he spoke. “When I received this building from my father, I didn’t look at it — really look at it. I just saw dollar signs, with an old building standing in my way. I didn’t look at the architecture, at the historic value. A woman who lives here helped me to see it through new eyes. That is why I have decided to renovate this beautiful piece of history in a city that I love. The project will take two years to complete, but when we are finished, this apartment building will stand proud, retaining all her former glory. The residents who live here will have a home as long as they want, and we will keep the costs down for those who move in when we are finished. I want to thank my father, a very wise man, for showing me that the bottom line isn’t always what counts, but that having justifiable pride in oneself is just as important — in fact, more important. He knew that the restoration of this building would remind me of who I am. He was right.”
Reporters peppered him with questions; many of them wanted to know who the woman was who had made him change his mind. Tanner just smiled as he looked out into the crowd and locked eyes with her.
She was giving him an assessing look. He could see that she didn’t trust him, was leery of his motives. He was here to show her that his intentions were pure.
After the reporters had what they needed, he stepped down and shook hands, searching for any sign of Kyla. She was apparently long gone, but that was all right with him. He would be here a lot over the next several months. Tanner had decided to don his construction hat and work on the building himself, along with the prestigious firm he’d hired for the project. If Crew could do it, he most certainly could, too.
*****
Two weeks passed, and though Tanner spotted Kyla often, she walked past him without a word. A few times, he’d seen the way some of the crew checked her out; after a stern look from him, they’d soon backed off.
He had no trouble at all with letting them know she was off limits. Even if she didn’t know it yet, she was his and he wasn’t letting her go.
It hit him like a flash flood one afternoon when he was up on a ladder and she passed him in the hall. It was like a picture show in his mind of the two of them laughing in her kitchen, holding each other on the couch, her falling asleep in his arms… He’d tumbled headfirst into love with this woman, this beautiful, tragic, compelling woman.
Everything he was doing was because she’d changed forever the way he thought about his life. She’d changed his thinking for the better. What the… It’s a Wonderful Life was turning into his reality.
Now, he just had to convince her to give him another chance, to let him love her. He didn’t know how he was going to manage to do that. But with new determination, he set down his hammer, walked to her door, and pounded on it. This time she was going to let him in; she was going to let him have his say.
“Open up, Kyla. I have something to say and I refuse to leave until you hear me out,” he called through the door, not even noticing the noise in the hall stop as his workers unabashedly listened to their boss prepare to play the lovesick fool.
“Go away, Tanner. We have nothing to say to each other.”
“Damn it, if you don’t open this door, then I’m going to shout it all out for the neighbors to hear!”
“There are children here, Mr. Storm. You watch your language.”
Tanner turned to find one of the neighbors’ doors open and an older woman glaring daggers at him. But he didn’t care who listened in. He had something to say and he wasn’t leaving until he got it off his chest. Hell, he wasn’t leaving without carrying Kyla away in his arms.
Considering he’d lied to her and had wanted only to use her for her body, then walked away as if she meant nothing, he figured he had to perform some penance. Whatever it took, he would do it, even if that meant groveling.
“I didn’t tell you who I was. I lied by omission and I admit I wanted to get you into my bed more than anything else. I was selfish, shortsighted, and a complete idiot. It took spending two of the most meaningful weeks of my life with you to realize how foolishly I was behaving. I should have never left you on Christmas. I should have waited on your doorstep and then held you all night as you let out your grief. I’m begging you to give me another chance to do just that.”
“Tanner…you have to stop this,” she said, sounding choked up, sounding…hopeful.
Was he getting through to her?
“Please, just let me prove to you that I’m a new man. I know some men say they will change when they have zero intention of doing so, but I have changed. I’m a better man for knowing you and I want to prove to you every single day how much I care — how much I love you. I do, Kyla Ridgley. I love you so much, my heart is bursting.”
The door stayed shut although he stared at it, willing it to open.
“Please, just open the door, Kyla. Look into my eyes. You will see that I’m telling the truth!”
“You’re making a fool of yourself, young man,” said the woman down the hall. But the look she gave him was far less harsh, almost sympathetic to his plight.
He had to admit, that hurt. He knew things were bad when he was getting pitying looks from elderly women.
Finally, just when he thought he was going to have to pitch a tent outside her door, he heard her undoing the locks and sliding the chain away. Then she was standing before him, looking even more beautiful than ever, with her hair in a ponytail, and wearing a tight red sweater and a pair of fitted jeans showing the perfect flare of her hips.
Tears were shining in her eyes as she looked into his. He could see a myriad of emotions crossing her features, as if she were hoping he spoke the truth, but not trusting herself to be a good judge of his character.
“I’m such a fool, Kyla. But I am a man who will
only make a mistake once before I’ve learned my lesson. I know we haven’t had a lot of time together, I know it all seems like it moved too fast, but since I’ve been away from you, you’re all I think about. I can’t concentrate on work; I can hardly sleep, or eat. I’m just surviving, not living. I need you as a part of my life — a permanent part of my life. I won’t terrify you by asking you to be my wife…at least not today, but I am asking for a chance, a real chance for us to know each other. I love you, Kyla. I’ve never before said that to a woman.”
“Oh, Tanner, I…I don’t know. My first instinct is to throw my arms around you and say yes, but this is too fast. We don’t know each other. We spent a couple of weeks together, made love only once. I want to believe this is real, but things like this don’t happen to somebody like me. You’re a man who has the world in the palm of his hand. I’m just a lost girl, pretty much alone in this world, and I have nothing to bring to the relationship,” she said, hugging herself tightly.
“How can you say that? You are everything, Kyla. You’re strong and beautiful, funny and caring. You have a heart of gold and you’ve been dealt some difficult hands in life, but that doesn’t define who you are; it only shows how much strength you actually have. I fell in love with you because of your strength and your goodness and…everything about you. Please let me prove to you how much.” He reached out and gently pried her arms away from her body so he could take her hands into his.
“I…I stopped believing in love when I lost my family,” she said, pain so clear in her eyes that he felt it to his very soul.
“Then let me show you how to love again.”
She allowed him to take her into his arms, and she rested her head against his chest and sobbed. A flood of emotions she’d been holding in for so long broke free, and he was strong enough to carry her through.
“Please just let me love you, Kyla. I promise to cherish you, promise to help you carry the burden you’ve been carrying alone for too long.”
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