Straight To You: A Novella (Taking Chances Series Book 1) (7 page)

“Hi there, nice to meet you.” Nicole gave Ashlynn a surly once-over and set her heavily lined eyes back on Jeremy.

“Nice to meet you, too.” Ashlynn couldn’t stop watching Nicole’s fingers and how they were latched onto Jeremy like a black widow spider ready to devour her mate.

“I was on my way out and saw you come in. It’s been a while, but I’d recognize your broad shoulders anywhere.”

“Yeah, we’re here for lunch.” Jeremy directed Nicole’s attention to the menu in his hands. “Is there something you could recommend?”

Nicole bent over to point at an item and the plunging neckline of her red blouse shifted, leaving little to the imagination. “Try the steak panini. It’s hot and delicious.” She winked at Jeremy, her voice thick with suggestion. “Gotta run now. Catch you later.” She wiggled her fingers at them as she walked away.

Jeremy rubbed the back of his neck, chagrin written over his face. “I bet you’re wondering who that was?”

“You read my mind,” Ashlynn answered with raised eyebrows. Who was this woman who looked like she had walked off the pages of a
Victoria’s Secret
catalogue?

“Well, this is timely considering you were just asking me about my past relationships. Nicole and I dated briefly about a year ago.”

“Oh, I see.” Quite literally, too. She had been hoping to hear about his past, not meet it face-to-face. “How did you guys meet?”

“A mutual friend introduced us. We hung out a couple of times, but I realized pretty soon though that we didn’t have much in common.”

Ashlynn nodded and shifted her gaze to the menu. She didn’t like the feelings of jealousy and insecurity washing over her. She had been relieved when Jeremy hadn’t responded to Nicole’s advances, but that relief had been quickly replaced by alarm. Was this the type of woman he was used to being with? If so, she was certainly out of his league.

Jeremy reached over and took her hand in his. “You okay, Ash?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.” She didn’t doubt his commitment to her, but it certainly helped that he hadn’t responded to Nicole’s advances. His eyes hadn’t even wandered. A lion, as Zoe had called him would never be this restrained, would it? The tension in her shoulders eased and she found herself breathing a little easier. She looked up with a glint in her eye. “I was worried for a second there that you might need a restraining order. It’s good to know my powers of persuasion are more effective on you than hers were.”

Jeremy laughed as he gazed fondly at Ashlynn. She had managed not to take this awkward situation seriously, which meant she trusted him. He was falling for this woman more and more. “I’ll be the first one to admit defeat,” he answered with both hands raised in a sign of surrender. “No one’s got me wrapped around her finger like you do.”

Ashlynn smiled. “Good. Let’s keep it that way.”

The server interrupted them to take their order. When they returned to their conversation, Ashlynn considered delving further into the previous topic. She had to admit she was now even more curious about his past. She decided to bring up her history first. “So, in case you were wondering, I haven’t really had much luck at persuading guys before you.”

“I’m happy to hear that. Just how many guys have you tried to persuade?”

Ashlynn held up her hands and pretended to keep count on her fingers. “I’m kidding. I’ve only had one long relationship and that was during senior year of college. His name was Craig and he shared an apartment with my roommate’s boyfriend. I think we only got together cause we were hanging out with the same crowd all the time.”

“How long did that last?”

“Close to ten months. To be honest, there was no spark. He was a really nice guy though. After graduation we both decided we were better off as friends.” Ashlynn gave a nonchalant shrug. “How about you? Besides Nicole, of course.”

Jeremy took a deep breath. This topic had him backed into a corner, unsure of how to respond. If he revealed nothing, he would be lying; if he revealed too much, God help him. “Well, there was a girl I met during college. Her name is Sara. We dated for about two years. After graduation, I got wrapped up with work and haven’t gone out much. Except for some set-ups by my colleagues, which didn’t go over too well as you just witnessed.”

The way Jeremy rushed his words clued her in that there might be more to his story than he was letting on. “Sounds like things were pretty serious with Sara?”

He understood how answering Ashlynn’s question could cause a tremor in their relationship’s foundation, but he hesitated to keep anything from her.
Please help her understand, God.
“Yeah, it did get serious. We moved in together after a year.”

Ashlynn swallowed the mouthful of ice water she had drunk in one hasty gulp. The chilled liquid forced its way down her throat, leaving a burning sensation behind. The burn however was nothing compared to the shock coursing through the rest of her body. Moved in together? In her book, living together equaled being married. That level of commitment meant sharing everything from the TV remote to toothpaste to … a bed. She heard her heart beating in her ears as the reality of Jeremy’s words sank in. “I-I see.”

“I know this is not what you wanted to hear.” Jeremy swallowed hard as he watched the color fade from Ashlynn’s face. “I wish I had a different story to tell you. I know you’re saving yourself for marriage. I’m sorry I can’t say I’ve done the same.”

So much for finding a guy with self-control. She took a deep breath while attempting to rationalize the questions crowding her mind.
Had he kissed Sara’s neck the way he kissed mine last night? Had he told her how happy she made him?

“Talk to me, please. What are you thinking?” His voice faltered as he thought about how wide a chasm existed between his past and what hope she had held out for their possible future.

Ashlynn knew she needed to stop her train of thought. The questions bombarding her mind were leading her nowhere good. She saw Jeremy waiting for her to speak. “I would be lying if I didn’t say I wish things were different. I guess I always thought I’d find someone who was saving himself, too.”

“I’m sorry, Ash. I’m sorry to disappoint you.”

The emotions tugging at Ashlynn’s heart did waver between disappointment... and something else she couldn’t pinpoint. Could it be indifference? Over the past few months, she had come to respect and trust Jeremy. Naturally she expected more from him. She believed God had brought him to be her knight in shining armor. But if he didn’t meet her expectations, maybe she had set the bar too high in the first place? She gave a half-hearted shrug. “Sometimes I wonder if I’m making it a bigger deal than it should be. I mean, does anyone wait for their wedding night anymore?”

“Ashlynn, don’t buy into those lies. It is a big deal. I learned the hard way why God says physical intimacy should be reserved for a husband and wife. When you take sex out of the context of marriage, a lot of things go wrong. The relationship I had with Sara was unhealthy on many levels. I lost sight of God and my priorities got turned upside down. I ended up caring about getting what I wanted more than anything else. That’s not what loving someone is about.”

She felt a twinge of empathy at seeing his eyes darken in remorse. “What happened? Why didn’t things work out with her?”

“We went our separate ways after graduation-she moved out here to California for grad school and I got an internship back home. The truth is we had been growing apart for a while. We tried the long distance thing for a few months, but then Sara met someone from her program. That’s when we called it quits.”

“Wait, she moved to California? Is she still here?”

“Yeah, she is,” Jeremy replied with an uneasy expression. “We work at the same company. That’s how I found out about my job.”

Ashlynn sat up straight and felt her shoulders stiffen again. “What? You work together? You didn’t tell me you work with your ex-girlfriend!”

“Well, the topic never came up until now. It’s not something I could casually bring up over dinner.” He gave a cursory glance around the restaurant. “Well, not that lunch is much different.” He locked eyes with her and spoke firmly. “You don’t need to worry, Ashlynn. We work on different contracts and only see each other during meetings.”

“She’s a negotiator, too?”

“Yes, which is likely why it didn’t work out between us. She’s a nice person, but we were always debating with each other and seeing who could get the upper hand.”

“But, you guys are okay being friends now? I don’t think I could do that with a guy I had been
intimate
with
.” The last words tumbled out of her mouth with a sense of sadness. She couldn’t imagine letting go of memories like that very easily. Or the emotions that went along with them.

Jeremy nodded. He knew Ashlynn was especially soft-hearted. “Well, we did have a period of time where we didn’t talk after the break up. We reconnected online a few years ago and there were no hard feelings. It took some time to move on from the past, but time does heal. We’re both in new stages of our lives and we’re happy for each other.”

Ashlynn stared down at her club sandwich, which the server had just delivered to their table. So Zoe was right about Jeremy. He was experienced with a capital E. She pushed her plate away and set her napkin beside it. “I’ll box this up for later. I’m not really hungry right now.”

He reached over and covered her hand with his. He wanted more than anything to erase the sadness and doubt in her eyes. “Ash, I can’t change the past, but I hope you know I view relationships very differently now. That’s why I wanted to take it slow when we met again. I planned to spend time getting to know you as a friend first. And now that we are dating, I’m even more committed to making sure we are headed in the right direction. Especially after what you shared last night, I want our relationship to be about so much more than the physical aspect. I hope you see that.”

“I-I do.” The concerned expression on his face softened her heart. She couldn’t deny how patient and sweet he had been towards her since they began spending time together. “I appreciate how patient you’ve been, even from the very beginning.”

“It was easy to take it slow because I really did enjoy our friendship phase. It was good hanging out together without any pressures, just talking and joking around like old times. I almost felt like we were teenagers again, without the glasses and braces though.”

Ashlynn smiled in spite of her sober mood. “Yeah, thankfully without the glasses and braces.”

He breathed an inward sigh of relief to hear the positive lilt in Ashlynn’s voice. “I wouldn’t have minded continuing that way for a while longer, you know. But it seems
someone
had a hard time waiting.” The playful tone of his words matched the glimmer in his eyes.

“You’re never going to let me live that down, are you?”

“Only because I’ll always be grateful to you that we got to kiss sooner than I expected.”

Ashlynn’s breath caught in her throat. Jeremy truly had a way with words. Memories of their first kiss flooded her senses, making her unable to resist the intense pull he had on her. Maybe he wasn’t exactly the Prince Charming she had imagined being with, but he still made her feel like a princess. That was worth something, wasn’t it? “Thanks for being honest about your past. I know it’s probably not easy to share personal information like that.”

“It helps to have someone as understanding as you to share it with.” Ashlynn’s gracious response warmed his heart. His revelation had gotten him treading on thin ice, but it seemed he was safe, at least for the moment. Maybe there was hope for someone with a track record like his. He said a quick prayer of thanks and felt his spirits lift even more when he saw that Ashlynn’s appetite had returned. “How’s your sandwich?”

She swallowed the bite she had taken and wiped her mouth with a napkin. “Pretty good. How’s yours?”

He lifted his French dip to her mouth and offered her some. “Here, give it a try.”

She bit into the sandwich, her eyes widening in pleasure. “Wow, the beef juice is really tasty. I’ll have to get that next time.”

“Here, why don’t we trade?” He switched his plate with hers before she could protest.

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah. It’s worth it to see you smile.”

One thing was sure, he did know how to make her happy. “Thank you. Feel free to eat the onion rings. I know how much you love them.” She picked one off her plate and fed it to him.

“Thanks. I think I love them even more when you feed them to me.”

Ashlynn couldn’t help but roll her eyes. “You’re too much.”

“I’m just speaking the truth.” He smiled as an idea popped into his head. He hoped Ashlynn would agree to his suggestion. “Hey, do you have any plans for Christmas break?”

“Not yet, why?”

“My family’s been asking me to visit. They’d like to see you, too.” He paused to gauge her reaction. “I was thinking we could fly out to Boston and spend a week there, enjoy a real white Christmas. I could take you to some of the places I used to go to when I was younger so you could see for yourself what my life was like back then.”

“You want to take me home to meet your folks?” she asked with a wide eyes. “That sounds kind of serious.”

“Hey, it’ll be nothing compared to the interrogation Ben put me through.” The corners of his eyes crinkled with humor. “It’s not like you haven’t met them before, aside from my step-dad who I’m sure will have nothing but good things to say about you. If you’re worried about my mom, you could easily win her over with another set of jewelry.” He ended his sentence with a wink.

“I remember your mom being very nice to me in junior high, but the circumstances were a
little
different back then. For one thing, I wasn’t kissing her son.”

“True, but it makes her son extremely happy when you do. And whatever makes me happy, makes my mom happy. In the negotiation world, that’s called a win-win situation. It doesn’t get better than that. You have nothing to worry about.”

“Just out of curiosity, have you brought anyone else home before?”

“Besides Sara, no. I don’t bring just anyone home.” He squeezed her hand. “It would mean a lot to me to show you off to my family.”