2. Winter

CHAPTER 2

Winter

G arett Nichols was my father’s friend. They grew up together. I didn’t know about Garett until my father died in a car accident. My mother abandoned me when I was two, never to return, so I’ve been completely alone since. My dad was my only family, and suddenly, I had no one. That’s what I thought until Garett showed up at my family home when I was eighteen.

I was initially standoffish toward Garett, not understanding how a man I’d never met before was now my guardian. At eighteen, I was confident I could handle anything life threw my way. But the more time I spent with him, the more I learned about him and the more I cared deeply for him.

My feelings couldn’t be called innocent. Seeing Garett ignited a deep, uncontrollable longing within me, but no matter how hard I tried to bridge the gap, he remained distant. I didn’t know what the big deal was. I was an adult. He was an adult. Sure, there was a large age gap of twenty-plus years, but age is just a number, isn’t it? Everyone expected me to date boys my age, but they seemed immature next to Garett, who was a real man.

I tried kissing him when I was nineteen, but he pushed me away, saying he couldn’t do that to my father. I always thought that was the stupidest thing he could say when rejecting me. My father probably would’ve wanted me to be with Garett, a man he knew would treat me right. Isn’t that what all fathers want? For their little girls to be happy with a kind partner who’ll put them first?

Garett wants me. I can tell by the way his eyes linger a little too long on my legs or how he diverts his eyes quickly if he chances a glance at my chest. Most of all, it’s the way he looks at me with a shy smile that tilts the corners of his mouth slightly.

The heat in Garett’s car is on full blast as we pull up in front of my apartment. I desperately want him to lean over and touch me, kiss me, tell me how he can’t live without me and wants me right here, right now.

A grin spreads across Garett’s face as he leans back in his seat, creating a wide gap between us. I’m not sure when I’ll give up my stupid fantasies and realize that this man will never give me what I long for.

“How long did you say you’re in town for?” I ask, trying to prolong the night as much as possible. Am I pathetic? This is pathetic, isn’t it? I’ve got it so bad for this man that I’ll take crumbs just to be near him.

“Just for a few days. I need to make sure they set everything up with the guys before I fly out back to L.A.”

I lean forward, enjoying how he shifts in his seat uncomfortably. “Too bad. I was hoping you’d be here a little longer.”

Garrett’s breath hitches. His knuckles turn stark white as he grips the steering wheel so tightly that I think he might snap it in half. He glances at my breasts before he quickly diverts his eyes like he always does. Good. I’m glad I affect him. I hope he has a raging hard-on that he has to take care of with visions of my naked body.

This attraction isn’t in my head. He knows it, and I know it.

He’s never been with a woman since I’ve known him. No girlfriends, no photos of him with eye candy on his muscular arm. The only thing he does is work.

Garett works hard at his business. In four years, he’s skyrocketed from a small local security firm in Pasadena to become a major player in the national security industry. Work consumes Garett; it’s his entire focus, his sole purpose. There never seems to be time for anything else. At least I can rest assured that no other women are trying to win his affection and lure him away from me.

“Maybe we can grab another meal while I’m here?”

My heart beats so frantically at his suggestion that I fear he’ll hear it and know how badly I want him. “It would have to be a late meal. I’ve got a lot of studying to do.”

I don’t want him to think I have no life and would drop everything to be with him, but deep down, I want to crawl into his lap and have him make me purr like a cat.

He nods. “I can make that happen. Tomorrow?”

I smirk as his fingers twitch, and I see the bulge forming in his pants.

“Looking forward to it,” I say before getting out of the car and heading up the stairs to my brownstone.

“Was that Mr. Sexy who dropped you off?” Silver, my best friend and roommate, asks, standing at the window like a complete creeper.

“Yes, that was Garett.”

“You get him to use that big tool he must be packin’ on you yet?” she asks, abandoning the window and walking over to the fridge. She takes out a bottle of wine and pours it into two glasses. “I’m sure you need something a little stiffer than this, but that's all we’ve got.” She giggles, passing me a glass.

“Instead of worrying about my love life, maybe you should concentrate on your own, sister.”

“What can I say? I’m boring,” she says, drowning her glass in one gulp. “I need your stories to sustain me.”

“Well, there really isn’t anything on my end…”

“Maybe we need to spice up your outfit,” she says, glancing at my skirt.

“This outfit doesn’t exactly scream schoolmarm.”

“No… it’s super cute, but maybe you need to show a little more skin.” She shrugs. “All those age-gap, dirty movies have the girl in skimpy clothes.”

“I’m not wearing those types of outfits.”

“I think you should. I mean, it will get a reaction. He’ll either act like a father or a daddy. I’m betting it’ll be the daddy.”

I roll my eyes. “It’s been a long night. I’m going to bed. I have to hit the books tomorrow.”

I walk down the dimly lit corridor to my bedroom and shut the door. Lying on my bed, I stare at the stucco on the ceiling, wondering how to make Garett Nichols my daddy.