Love For Hire: The Helena's Grove Series Book 2 (6 page)

At six o’ clock everyone was seated around the table. Aunt Gabby had forgone inviting any of Zack or Annie’s old school friends this time so it was just the six of them, and Annie couldn’t be happier. She sat next to Marcus who was all ease and comfort, and was again amazed at how easily he could converse as though he was having dinner with his own family, rather than one he’d never met before. She watched in silence as a conversation between Roger, Marcus and Zack ensued. Roger seemed to be a highly impassioned individual. Annie could see the resemblance between him and Jen, and even Aunt Gabby. All three had the same intense blue eyes and a ‘never back down’ attitude. Roger, more than the other two was all business and didn’t seem to enjoy small talk. Annie had only ever heard about him from Jen, who, after having a slight falling out with her father, had quit the firm where she had worked with him. They had since made up somewhat, even though Roger was open about the fact that he hated her living in Boston. He clearly felt she could do better as an attorney in New York, though Annie couldn’t fathom why.

“If you think politicians are the most corrupt people in our society you’ve clearly never been entangled with a pharmaceutical company, or an oil company. They are all so damn crooked they can’t walk straight!” Roger was saying emphatically. “At least politicians have something to loose, like the love of the people. Those other companies don’t care about anyone or anything, and the worst part is, they’re open about it! They don’t care who knows, as long as they get theirs.”

“Would you like some more ham?” Aunt Gabby asked him.

“No thank you Gabby,” Roger said putting a hand up, “I’ve had my fill.”

“Anyone else?” she asked.

The rest of the table shook their heads except Zack who said with a shrug, “Don’t mind if I do.”

Jen clearly wanted to change the subject and turned to Marcus. “So Marcus, Annie says you’ll tell me how you two met? I’ve been dying to hear it!”

Marcus smiled. “She likes me to tell it for some reason.”

“You do such a better job than I do,” Annie remarked and smiled nervously.

“Ok, well,” Marcus began, “it all started at this little coffee shop that’s pretty popular with the students from Penn State. I go there all the time – it’s a great place. Anyway, I stopped by one morning to get my usual coffee, and got up to the counter to order. The girl was new – I had never seen her before. She took my order and when I went to pay for it she informed me that their card reader was down and they were only accepting cash. Now you can imagine my surprise, in this day and age when everyone has a card and hardly anyone carries cash, especially on a busy campus. I don’t usually carry cash. So I searched my pockets, searched my wallet and nothing.”

Annie glanced at Jen, who was riveted to every word coming from Marcus’ mouth, her eyes dancing with the impending romance to come.

Marcus continued, “I was about to just cancel my order and head straight to class when I heard this beautiful voice from behind me.”

Jen smiled at Annie.

“Annie was in line behind me and saw that I was in danger of not getting my morning coffee. So she stepped forward and told the lady we were together. She took Annie’s order and she paid for both our coffees.”

“That sounds just like you!” Jen remarked.

“That’s my sister, always the do-gooder,” Zack chimed in.

“It
does
sound like me, doesn’t it…” Annie said quietly, marveling at how Marcus had made the story so convincing after knowing her for such a short time.

“Anyway, so I thanked her and she told me it was no big deal and that she hoped I had a fantastic day. Then she walked out into the sunlight and I remember thinking…” He stopped and reached for Annie’s hand, looking deep into her eyes. “I remember thinking, if you don’t go after her, if you don’t take action right now, the moment will slip through your fingers and every day for the rest of your life, you’ll wonder, what if?”

Jen and Aunt Gabby sighed collectively. “That’s so cute!” Jen said with a dreamy look in her eye and Annie couldn’t help but think that love had made her go soft. She was very different from the Jen she’d met at the beginning of the summer.

“So I ran after her,” Marcus went on. “I caught up to her and thanked her again for buying my coffee. I’m sure she thought I was crazy.”

Annie laughed a little; she was enjoying this story very much. She could picture the whole thing, as though it had actually happened.

“I asked if I could return the favor and asked her out to dinner, and after a slight hesitation…” He looked at Annie and smiled. “She said yes.” He put his arm around her shoulders as he continued, “We went to dinner the next night, and I think it was lunch the day after that. She came to a party with me that weekend and we had dinner again on Sunday. We pretty much saw each other almost every day for two weeks. And at the end of those two weeks, I knew I didn’t want to see anyone else. But I kept that to myself for a little while longer,” he laughed. “I didn’t want her to feel like I was moving too fast. So we continued to see each other through October and then I couldn’t take it anymore.” He looked into Annie’s eyes. “She’s the nicest, most caring, truly genuine person I’ve ever met. I didn’t want to be with anyone but her. Luckily, she felt the same way.” He smiled and kissed her cheek. Annie resisted the urge to touch where his lips had brushed her face and blushed slightly as the tingly feeling lingered. Marcus went on with their story, “And the rest is history.” He smiled and the rest of the table smiled and awed.

“You do tell that very well,” Aunt Gabby complimented him.

“I’ve had lots of practice.”

“Well I’m glad, Annie, that you have found someone who loves you for you and all your wonderful qualities. That’s very important in a relationship; it helps you get through the hard times,” Jen told her.

“What hard times?” Zack looked confused. “We haven’t had any hard times.”

“It helps you get through everything,” Jen corrected herself, playfully nudging Zack. “It’s just nice to know they love you for what matters.”

“Yeah, like your good looks and great career,” Zack teased.

“Oh stop it!” Jen slapped him playfully.

Everyone laughed and the conversation turned away from Annie and Marcus to Zack and Jen and their plans for Boston and the future. Annie tried to stay engaged but her main focus was on Marcus’ hand, which had come away from her shoulders to rest comfortably on her knee. Annie had put her hand over his instinctively but now she wasn’t sure how to pull away. Maybe she would just wait for him to make the first move. But he never did. It was only when Aunt Gabby passed him a cup of coffee that he removed his hand from her leg. Although Annie was much more comfortable with him keeping his hands to himself, the absence of his warmth was more acute that she thought it would be.

The night wore on and they cleared some dishes to make room for dessert. Aunt Gabby passed around the pie and whipped cream. Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves immensely; even Roger had relaxed and was now chatting comfortably with Aunt Gabby at their end of the table. Soon Aunt Gabby announced it was time for presents. Everyone gathered in the living room around the glowing Christmas tree with presents neatly placed beneath it, and one by one they were retrieved and given. Oohs and awes filled the small living room as each person opened their gifts. Zack gave Jen a beautiful necklace and she gave him a new cowboy hat, along with a pair of custom scrubs with Zack’s initials on them. Roger gave everyone a gift card, claiming that sentimental gifts weren’t his thing. Aunt Gabby gave Annie and Jen each a beautifully crocheted blanket. She got Zack a new shot gun which caused Jen role her eyes and Roger to give a disapproving look; however, Zack seemed to be thrilled. Annie presented Marcus with a new scarf and gloves, and he gave her a new jacket that she actually quite loved. After all the presents were opened and distributed the group sat lazily on the couches when Aunt Gabby sat up.

“I almost forgot pictures!” she announced and made her way out of the room. She returned quickly with a camera. “All right everyone, let’s get some good shots.” She took some random pictures of gifts and people around the room. Then she directed Jen and Zack to stand under the mistletoe which hung in the doorway. They did as they were told, first posing together, smiling at the camera, and then indulging in a sweet kiss as Aunt Gabby’s camera flashed a couple more times.

Annie glanced nervously at Marcus who just smiled at her. Somehow that eased her anxiety, but only slightly.

“Ok now you two,” Aunt Gabby gestured toward Annie and Marcus.

“Oh Aunt Gabby,” Annie protested, “you don’t want…”

“Don’t argue with me child. I want a picture now do as I say, come on.” She waved her hand toward herself as if trying to pull them toward her. Reluctantly, Annie stood and made her way to where the mistletoe hung; Marcus was right behind her. They wrapped their arms around each other and smiled brightly as Aunt Gabby took the pictures.

“Ok now, a little kiss, go ahead.” Her eyes disappeared behind the lens as she waited.

Annie looked up at Marcus, wondering if he could feel her heart beating. She laughed nervously as she stood on her tip toes and kissed him quickly. The light flashed and she took a step back.

“That was terrible!” Aunt Gabby whined before Annie could return to her seat. “Annie, I know you’re shy but, I want a good picture. Come on; give him one with a little feeling.”

Annie swallowed hard and returned to where Marcus was still standing. He looked down at her and his eyes darted briefly to her lips. Annie was sure he could hear her heart as his left hand wrapped around the base of her neck and his right around her waist. He leaned in and Annie closed her eyes. The kiss was soft, sweet and sent tingles all the way to Annie’s toes. She heard the click and a light flashed. Her eyes opened, looking directly into his; then the moment was gone. She took a step back and smiled at Aunt Gabby. “That one ok?”

“That one was great.” Aunt Gabby told her and the three of them made their way back to the couches. Marcus didn’t touch Annie again for the rest of the night.

Zack, Annie and Roger didn’t leave until almost two o’ clock in the morning. Finally, with everyone gone Annie and Marcus made their way up to their room. Aunt Gabby had long since gone to bed.  They closed the door quietly and Annie quickly got into her pajamas, too tired to even wash her face. She brushed her teeth and made her way to the bed, sighing deeply as she lay on the soft white pillows, the fluffy down comforter warming her. She felt the bed move as Marcus lay down beside her. There was a silence as the two of them started to relax.

“I like our story,” Annie said quietly. “When you said earlier that we met at a coffee shop I didn’t expect all the little details you would put into it.”

“A story is only as good as its details,” Marcus said through a yawn.

“Well I think everyone bought it…” She paused. “I almost believed it.”

It was quiet for a moment. “You have a great family,” he said finally.

“Thank you,” was all she could think to say. 

“I’m glad I was able to spend Christmas with them. It was one of the better Christmases I’ve had in a while.”

His voice seemed sad and for some reason Annie’s heart ached at his sadness. “I’m glad too,” she admitted. “Merry Christmas Marcus.”

“Merry Christmas Annie.”

Annie awoke with a start. She quickly looked around, not sure of where she was or what had awakened her. She turned to look at the man sleeping soundly next to her and shook her head as memories of the last two days came back and the fog began to clear. She swung her feet over the edge of the bed and rubbed her face. The coolness of the floor made her shiver as she stood and stretched. Looking at the digital clock sitting on the dresser, she winced; almost seven a.m. Annie was as much an early riser as anyone but after going to bed so late the night before, she decided she deserved to sleep in. Silently, she crawled back into bed and lay on her side facing Marcus. She watched him sleep for a moment; his chest slowly rose and fell with each breath and his curly hair was unruly from the night of slumber. Annie unconsciously reached a hand to brush a piece of hair from his forehead. He stirred slightly but didn’t wake. He really was a very good looking man, and much better at his job than Annie could have ever dreamed. He had been the perfect boyfriend last night; sweet and caring, attentive but not controlling, interested in those around him while still being able to talk about himself without coming across as arrogant. He had even studied up on mechanical engineering since he had talked to Roger for almost half an hour about solar energy and the future of the sun for power. Annie smiled as she remembered his reading material when they had gotten on the plane. He clearly took his job very seriously, which made that kiss all the more confusing. She tried not to read into it, tried not to remember the way his hands had wrapped around her, and his lips pressed against hers. He was acting, this was his job, and she was paying him. She said these words over and over to herself. But she couldn’t help but wonder if he had felt the same spark she had when their lips touched.

There was a knock at the front door. Annie instinctively looked up at the window but didn’t want to move. Another knock, Annie groaned and pulled a blanket up to her face. Just then, her phone began to ring. “You have got to be kidding me,” she whined as she got out of bed and looked at the phone. It was Zack. “Hello?” she said sleepily.

“Annie, where the crap are you? I’ve been knocking for like ten minutes. Get downstairs and unlock the door, will ya? It’s cold out here!”

Annie didn’t respond but hung up the phone as she grabbed her new jacket and put it on. It was chilly downstairs and she wrapped it tight as she unlocked the front door and opened it. The blast of cold air made her shiver and Zack and Jen quickly made their way into the house.

“Hey sleepy head,” Zack teased her.

“Zack, it’s only seven o’clock, why are you guys up so early?”

“Check your clock again sleeping beauty; it’s nine in the morning.”

“It is not, the clock upstairs says seven.”

“Well it’s wrong.” He showed her his phone. “Nine o’ clock,” he said matter-of-factly.

“Wow I can’t believe I slept that long,” Annie said, rubbing her eyes.

“Must have had a long night.” Jen winked at her and Zack made a face.

Annie opened her mouth to tell Jen she was mistaken but Zack cut her off, “We don’t care, we don’t wanna know. But we were thinking of taking Aunt Gabby out to breakfast and then maybe hitting a movie before the thing tonight.”

“What’s the thing tonight?” Annie asked stifling a yawn.

“The Christmas Farm!” Zack said excitedly. “Jeez Annie, what’s with you this morning, did you drink too much last night?”

“No I’m fine, I just haven’t slept much the last few weeks because of finals. I guess it’s catching up with me.”

Zack made a face. “We all know how that is. Anyway, run get dressed and wake up your boy.”

Annie nodded and made her way up the stairs. She opened the door silently, Marcus was still sound asleep. She tiptoed to the side of the bed and reached out to wake him when a thought crossed her mind. She ran into the bathroom and sure enough, her makeup that she had been too lazy to wash off the night before was now smeared and smudged. She quickly washed her face and applied some moisturizer, brushed out her hair and brushed her teeth before creeping back to the bed to wake up Marcus.

He awoke with a smile as Annie explained the day that Zack and Jen had apparently planned for them. He nodded and stretched before heading to the shower. Annie got dressed and went back downstairs. “Marcus will be ready in a few minutes,” she told them.

Zack and Annie were sitting at the table with Aunt Gabby who also looked like she’d just woken up. “Aunt Gabby, did you sleep in?” Annie asked in disbelief.

Aunt Gabby shook her head. “I can’t believe it myself. I honestly cannot remember the last time I slept past seven and here I am sleeping well over that. Must have been all that good food and company last night… plum wore me out.”

“You of all people deserve a good night’s sleep every now and again,” Annie said kindly.

Marcus came down a few minutes later dressed in jeans and a dark green button up shirt. It was much more casual than anything else Annie had seen him in up to that point. She liked it.

“Sorry to keep you all waiting,” he apologized as he made his way to Annie’s side. He kissed her on the side of the head like he’d been doing it for months. “I actually woke up a couple hours ago but that clock up there must be wrong.”

“It is,” Annie and Zack both said at the same time. Soon the five of them were ready to head out.

“Where is Roger this morning?” Aunt Gabby asked, as they made their way to the car. Jen made a disappointed face. “He said he had to get back to New York this morning. He booked his flight; it leaves in a couple hours. I tried to convince him to come to breakfast with us and then head out but he said he’d rather go earlier before the post holiday traffic really picks up.”

“That is just like him to head out without so much as a goodbye.” Aunt Gabby shook her head disapprovingly.

They all piled in the car and made their way to a classic diner that served the best breakfast in town. Marcus held the car door open as Annie got out. Closing it he held out his hand and she took it, feeling for a moment like they were a real couple. Breakfast was nice as the five of them conversed and enjoyed each other’s company. As the meal came to a close, Aunt Gabby announced she had other things to do that day so it was decided that Zack would drive her to where she needed to go while, Jen, Marcus and Annie walked the two blocks to the movie theater. They started down the street, pulling their scarves around their necks as the coolness surrounded them. Marcus held Annie’s hand, fingers entwined loosely as they walked, and she realized she loved the feel of his hand around hers.

They reached the theater and bought their tickets. Zack arrived shortly after and they headed in. The movie was a holiday romantic comedy. It was entertaining and fun but Annie noticed when the lights went out, Marcus’ hands returned to himself. The realization that he only touched her when there was someone there to see it stung Annie.
You’re such an idiot,
she chided herself silently;
you can’t be hurt by the lack of something that was never yours, or by the lack of feelings that never existed. Get a hold of yourself or tomorrow is going to be harder than you ever imagined!
Annie suddenly realized she didn’t want to think about going back to school or back to real life. She liked being here, with her family and friends. She never wanted it to end.

Later that afternoon, Zack and Jen dropped Marcus and Annie off at Aunt Gabby’s, telling them to be ready to head to the Christmas Farm Festival at seven that night. Aunt Gabby was already home and waved at them from the kitchen.

“How was your day?” she asked as Annie and Marcus took a seat at the table. Aunt Gabby was actively putting a one-thousand-piece puzzle together.

“It was fun,” Annie told her.

“I am so upset at Roger for just picking up and leaving this morning. The least he could have done was stopped in to say goodbye.”

“I’m sorry Aunt Gabby.” Annie squeezed her hand.

She looked up at her and shrugged her shoulders. “He’s always been a selfish boy. I was just really hoping to have him around for a couple more days.”

Annie took a deep breath, realizing she hadn’t told Aunt Gabby how long her stay was going to be. “Aunt Gabby, Marcus and I are leaving tomorrow morning.”

Aunt Gabby looked at her with furrowed brows. “Why ever for?” she asked, clearly confused.

Annie looked at Marcus for help but he was leaning over some puzzle pieces, obviously not wanting to get involved.

“That’s just how long we had planned,” she explained.

“When do your classes start again?”

“Mine don’t actually start until the second of January,” Annie admitted.

“And yours?” Aunt Gabby motioned to Marcus.

“Mine begin January third,” he told her honestly.

“Well then why in the world are you leaving so early? It’s only the twenty-sixth. You might as well stay until New Years.”

Annie looked again at Marcus who didn’t say anything. She looked back at Aunt Gabby, trying desperately to think of a reason why they would have to leave. Aunt Gabby sat, waiting patiently. “You can’t think of any reason not to, can you?” she asked with a confident nod.

Annie conceded, “No, not necessarily, except Marcus has work…”

“My boss closed up shop to go on vacation. He’ll be back on the fifth,” Marcus interrupted.

Annie glared at him and he went back to the puzzle. “Um, we’ll have to talk about it, I guess.”

Aunt Gabby nodded and they spent a few minutes with her before going up to their room to change. “You don’t have anything to get back to Penn State for?” Annie asked once the door was closed.

“Not that I can think of. Unless Todd has another job for me but if that was the case he would have called me by now.”

“So you’d be okay with staying until the New Year?”

Marcus undid the buttons on his shirt and pulled it off. “You know my rates.”

“How much more would it cost if we stayed until New Years Day?” Annie asked, mentally counting in her head.
From the twenty-fourth to the first is nine days if I include both the twenty-fourth and the first. Two times nine would be eighteen hundred dollars! Way too much money, even if I wanted to stay…
Annie realized suddenly that she
did
want to stay.

Marcus looked up at her. “I’ll tell you what,” he said as he dropped his old shirt onto the bed and picked up another one that was black, “if you could find it in your heart to iron this shirt for me, I’ll give you a special Christmas Week price.” He held out the shirt.

Annie looked at him skeptically. “Why would you do that?”

“Two reasons. The first is I really don’t enjoy ironing my shirts. Don’t ask me why, it’s one of those things. I can do it; I’m perfectly capable, but I don’t if I can find someone to do it for me.”

“What’s the second reason?” She took the shirt and looked it over.

“The second reason is, this place is nice. I kind of like it here. And I’d rather spend my New Years here getting paid than at home sitting on my butt all by myself not getting paid.” He lifted his hands and made a see saw motion. “Getting paid,” he said as one hand went high. “Not getting paid.” The ‘not getting paid’ hand was much lower.

Annie laughed at him. “I see your point. So what’s a good deal?”

Marcus held his chin as if in deep thought. “How about thirteen hundred, for the entire trip from the twenty-fourth to the first.”

Annie shook her head at him. “That’s a very good offer,” she said in mock seriousness. “Still kinda steep though. Will you knock off another hundred if I iron all your shirts for the rest of the trip?”

Marcus made a face like he was in pain. “You drive a hard bargain Miss LaFaye.”

“That’s how we country girls roll.”

Marcus laughed out loud. “Okay, you have a deal. Twelve hundred it is.” He held out his hand and Annie shook it. “Nice doing business with you.”

“You too,” she said as he let go of her hand. “Would you like those shirts done now or as you need them?”

“As I need them would be perfect.”

Annie smiled at him as she giggled. He was so close she could smell his cologne. His eyes sparkled with humor as he told her how he specifically liked his shirts ironed. “They have to be perfect or I’ll want my hundred bucks,” he said jokingly.

“I think I’ll be able to iron them to your very specific qualifications,” she teased back.

There was a silence as he looked down at her. Annie self-consciously tucked a piece of hair behind her ear as she took a step back toward the door. “Well I’ll get this done so we can be ready.”

“Thank you very much, I appreciate it.” 

Annie nodded and almost walked into the door; she mentally kicked herself and then slipped out. Once out of the room she took a deep breath and put her hand on her heart, feeling the rapid motion beneath her fingertips. Something about that man made her pulse go wild. She walked down the stairs, unsure if spending another five days with Marcus was really the best thing to do, aside from the money she’d spend. She knew deep down she wanted to stay with him, but if history had taught her anything it was that usually what the heart wanted most was the one thing that could break it.