Page 45 of Forever Mine
Chapter 16
Angel ran into the office ahead of me and raced past the reception desk. “Hi, Shanelle.”
“Hey, Angel.”
I doubt Angel heard Shanelle’s greeting. She headed straight for my office, but I stopped in with Primrose to let her know I had returned. We kept each other informed of our movements so that one of us was always at the studio. I tapped her door and poked my head inside her office. As always, the characters created by Charstat drew my eyes. They were a source of pride for us and hung in massive frames on the pale-blue accent wall behind Prim’s desk. “I’m back.”
She took off her glasses and let it dangle from the string. “Where’s Angel?”
“Most likely in my office. I’ll keep her away from the guys.”
Primrose waved away my comment. “You know she’s no trouble and the guys love her.”
“Yes, but still ... I’ll let her come and say hello. Did Scott come in?”
“Yeah, he’s in the studio helping Pete with that project I asked him to head.”
I turned away and Primrose called me back. “Thanks for making that link. I’ve been talking to Scott. He’s better than good.”
“No problem. After he did the first presentation, I was sure he knew his stuff.”
“Great, I think by the time he’s finished, our guys will be much better at what they do.”
“For sure.”
“You picked a good one.” Prim’s gaze was analytical, and I wondered if she’d just dropped a double entendre on me. Her eyes twinkled, but she didn’t add anything, so I used the opportunity to escape.
Since Scott was in the building, I wanted to see him. He’d texted me during lunch, saying he needed to talk to me. Instead of seeking him out, I went to my office. I preferred keeping things on a professional level, even though I suspected my two protégés knew we were an item. I now believed Primrose also knew.
I wasn’t comfortable with them being in my business. Before Scott, I’d never met anyone on the job who I considered interesting enough to date. From a professional standpoint, our relationship wasn’t ideal since we had to work together—although not directly.
What we were doing didn’t bother me on a personal level and frankly, at this point, I didn’t much care what anybody else thought. As long as he wasn’t acting inappropriately at the office, I was fine with seeing him outside of it.
Scott was a great guy who I cared about, and I was certain he cared about me. I didn’t want to think about where our relationship was heading. We’d agreed to keep things simple, but if I was honest with myself, my feelings for Scott ran much deeper than they should for a man who’d just come into my life. We were a long way past being casual acquaintances, but I wasn’t going to be the one to change our status or formalize our relationship.
“So much for keeping things simple,” I mumbled.
My experience with Nolan made me reluctant to jump in with both feet when it came to my dealings with men. He’d been confident and urbane until his bossy side slowly emerged.
Our relationship hit rock bottom when I became pregnant. He insisted I give up my job, and I did, to keep peace in our home. For months, I sat at home bored out of my mind. After I had Angel, he coerced me into not going back to work. At first, I didn’t mind because I wanted to be with her for all her milestones.
A year went by before I realized Nolan went from cajoling to demanding that I stay at home and take care of Angel, as well as his needs. He was a good provider and didn’t need me shaming him by taking a job when I didn’t have to work. That was his attitude.
By the time Angel was two, I’d had enough of being controlled and isolated in our home. No family. No friends. Nothing to do but care for Angel and our house and wallow in regret. After stewing in my situation and feeling I’d given up my life, I gave in and asked Mom for assistance. Then, one day when he was at work, I took Angelica and returned to Jamaica. We’d done fine so far, with my mother’s help.
Though Scott had a low-key, bad-boy vibe going on, he didn’t strike me as controlling. I didn’t know exactly how much time we’d have beyond his visit to the island, but I’d play things by ear. If anything developed, I’d let Scott take us there.
When I walked into my office, Angel wasn’t anywhere in sight. She’d piled her lunch bag and knapsack on one of the visitor’s chairs and wandered off somewhere. Although the people I worked with didn’t mind her company, Angel could be disruptive.
I continued down the corridor outside my door and heard Angel before I saw her.
“How d’you make that move? And how does it spin like that? Are you making cartoons?”
My heart lurched when I stood in the doorway. Then a smile graced my lips.
Angel stood next to Scott, pointing at the computer screen. Their heads were close together and when he spoke, I heard nothing but the melodious rumble of his voice. What I saw was a man with infinite patience, explaining his work to my little girl.
I blinked hard as a lump filled my throat. Taking the time to show her what he was doing might mean nothing to Scott, but to me it meant the world. Angel could be a bit much with the unending questions, but Scott was kind and patient with her. I wasn’t looking for a father for her, but his attitude impressed me more than anything he’d done so far.