Page 32 of Finding Hope

“Did he fuss?”

She sat down on the other end of the sofa. “No, he went down easy.”

He was watching ESPN, but muted it and turned toward her. “I wanted to talk to you about something.”

Shannon watched as he nervously scrubbed his face with his hands. Oh God. He was kicking her out, and she felt like she was going to cry. Her heart would shatter into teeny, tiny pieces.

“Tomorrow night, I’d like to take you out on a date. Would you go on a date with me?”

“W-What?”

Jonathon grabbed her hands between his large ones. “I’d like to take you on a date. Tessa and Cash have offered to babysit for us. I may have been a bit presumptuous, but I made us a reservation at Surge.” Surge was the most famous steakhouse in town that had steaks so tender they melted in your mouth. She’d only been there once and that was for her parents’ anniversary.

“Y-Yes. I’d like that.” He smiled widely at her and she felt her body warm under his obvious joy. “What brought this on? Oh God, that sounds bad. That’s not what I meant, or at least how it sounded.”

Great, now she was babbling like an idiot.

He pulled her across the sofa until she was flush against him. His woodsy scent eased some of her nervous energy, which she shouldn’t have had because they’d slept together and had a kid, for goodness’ sake.

“I made the mistake of not taking you out for a whole year and I’ll always regret that,” he said.

She was speechless. Shannon didn’t want him to feel any regret because of her. With a trembling hand, she reached out and stroked his stubbled cheek. “Don’t say that. I went into our arrangement fully understanding what you wanted from me. It’s not your fault that I fell for you. You never gave me any false hope that it was something more.” Her nose began to burn, but she sucked it back. “You weren’t ready for a relationship. Again, that is not your fault, okay?”

“You are too good for me. You know that, right?”

She shook her head. “No, I’m not. I didn’t handle things well, either.” She’d demanded all of his love or nothing, and that had been wrong.

“Well, consider this our do-over.”

Not long after that, Shannon excused herself to get ready for bed. She even kissed his cheek before she made her way down the hall to his bedroom. After taking out her processor, she brushed out her strawberry blonde curls and then threw them up into a topknot. She finished the rest of her nighttime routine. While rubbing in her moisturizer, she went back into the bedroom and quickly changed into her nightgown. With her e-reader in her hand, she crawled into bed, sinking into her fictional world.

Chapter Sixteen

Jonathon

“Thanks again for watching the kids,” Jonathon said as he watched his sister pick up Henry out of his carrier. Cash and Josie were in the spare bedroom setting up Henry’s playpen, since that was where he’d sleep.

“It’s our pleasure. I love spending time with my nephew and niece. It makes me excited for when Cash and I try to start a family.” She kissed the top of her nephew’s head, and rested her cheek on top of his head. “I love his baby smell.”

Jonathon stared at his baby sister as she snuggled his son in her arms. He knew deep in his soul that Tessa was going to make an amazing mother someday. “Well, any child that you and Cash have together is going to be one lucky kid with you as their momma.” He called out for Josie and kissed his sister on the cheek while he waited for his daughter. She came running out a minute later. “Give your old man a hug and kiss goodbye. Be good for your aunt and uncle.” He wrapped his arms around her and gave her a kiss on the forehead.

“I’ll be good, Daddy. Uncle Cash and I are going to go get pizza and ice cream.”

“That’s great, baby. I’ll be back in the morning to get you, okay? Help with your brother too.” He slapped Cash on the back as he left. His sister followed him outside with Henry in her arms.

“I forgot to tell you how handsome you look. Shannon’s going to love it.” Jonathon was wearing slim cut trousers with a white dress shirt tucked into them and a royal blue tie. He had wanted to surprise Shannon, so his sister let him change at their place.

“Thanks. I feel ridiculous. You know me, I’m not a fan of dressing up.” He pulled at the collar because it felt like it was strangling him. T-shirt, jeans, and tennis shoes were his preferred clothing.

“Well, you look handsome. Have fun tonight and don’t worry about the kids. They’re in good hands.” She kissed his cheek, and then he kissed his son goodbye.

Nervous energy flowed through him the closer he got to his home. Earlier, when he had left, Shannon was in the shower. He told her that he was going to ring the doorbell and pick her up like they didn’t live in the same house. As soon as he pulled into his driveway, he cut the engine and picked up the dark pink roses that Josie had helped him pick out on the way to Tessa’s house. Pink was Shannon’s favorite color.

Once he reached the door, he took a deep breath and rang the doorbell. The sound of his foot nervously tapping the ground was all he could hear as he waited for her to answer the door. Through the frosted glass of the door, he saw her shadow. When the door opened, he froze because Shannon looked stunning. Her strawberry blonde locks hung in shiny, sleek strands. He couldn’t remember ever seeing her hair straight before, but he was going to encourage her to wear it like that more often.

Her makeup was light, but her lips had a pretty pink tint to them. Her outfit rendered him speechless and had his cock paying attention. It was emerald green, a long-sleeved sweater dress that hugged her gorgeous curves. He knew once she put on a little more weight those curves would be even more beautiful. The hem of the dress hit right above her knee. Brown high-heeled boots encased her feet, adding a little bit more height to her and making her legs look long and slender.

“Wow! You look amazing.” She opened the door and stepped back so he could walk in. “These are for you.” Her smile was breathtaking as she took them from him.

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