Chapter Seventy

The days went by, Chloe and Timothy approached the whole “getting to know each other more” agreement a trifle self-consciously. At least, that was how she felt about their initial dates, dates to dinner or the movies or a quiet evening at the beach house.

Granted, once they were together for a short time, the awkwardness vanished. In its place passion exploded, a passion they struggled to contain. She wished she could say nothing more than sheer lust existed between them, but that would be a lie, Chloe conceded. The truth was, she liked Timothy…. A lot.

She enjoyed his intellect, and his observations about life. She found his work fascinating, and she admired the way he loved and put family first. Timothy also possessed a calmness she appreciated and a way of taking control of a situation by smoothing over any rough edges.

As much as she would have loved to make love to him, Timothy had insisted that they put that on hold. He didn't want her to think that what they had was just physical. For him, it was more than lust and he wanted to prove it to her. That didn't stop him from stealing a kiss or two from her… and one time, they almost couldn't stop.

"Tell me about Bryce Collins" Timothy's voice broke into her thoughts, bringing her back to reality. Chloe stared at him. They were taking a walk on the beach. Timothy wore black shorts and a shirt which he left unbuttoned. Chloe wore a simple light gown which she had to keep holding down whenever the breeze tried to blow it up, making Timothy chuckle every time it happened. Barefooted, Chloe felt free… and happy.

"Bryce? Why?" she asked.

"Yeah" Timothy replied. "You know, at a point, I thought that you guys were a couple."

Chloe stopped walking so she could face him. "Really? And why did you think that? Was I giving any kind of… couple vibe with him? Because Bryce and I have have never been or even talked about being together in that way"

"Well, you seemed close"

"That's because we are"

Timothy shrugged. "Well I know that now… but it didn't seem that way at first. I was just curious about how you got to know him… and his entire family… but if you don't want to talk about him, that's alright too. I just wanted to know, that's all"

Chloe folded her arms around herself. "We met years ago at a … Matt… I mean, someone introduced me to him. At first it was just work stuff, but then we grew to really like each other… I met his brothers first, before his father… His mother died a long time ago"

Timothy nodded, "I see" he said simply. "So why didn't you guys ever… I dont know… get together. I mean, I'm glad that guys didn't, but I spent some time with him and I can admit that he's a great guy… and you on the other hand… are stunning in every way."

Chloe smiled at hint. "Is that a compliment?" she asked playfully.

He smiled back at her, but he was serious when he said. "It's the truth. You are stunning"

Damn the man, Chloe thought. How did he always manage to say the right thing every fucking time. He was too good at it. He knew when and how to make her even more confident in herself. She felt… beautiful and wanted. He knew how and where to touch her to drive her crazy and he was so damn straight forward. Always telling her how he felt about her and what he wanted without mincing words, and she truly appreciated it.

"I guess Bryce and I never really saw each other that way" she replied, "He's like a big brother to me and I think that was one of the reasons why he agreed to talk to you, although when he saw what you had to offer, there was no way he'd have said no"

"I'm glad" Timothy said as they started walking again.

"That what?"

"That you're not with him… I'm guessing that if you were, you wouldn't be here with me right now, and for that I'm glad."

"What about you?" Chloe said, finally taking the opportunity to ask him one of the questions that had been on her mind since they reconnected.

"What about me?"

"What's your relationship life like? I mean, how are you not in one. You are… handsome… rich… successful… basically everything women want. I'm sure a lot of women flock around you and would probably say yes to dating you the minute you asked. So why aren't you seeing anyone"

"Who says I'm not?" came his reply.

Chloe stopped walking and glared at him. "You mean you're in a relationship and you brought me here?" she asked her eyes widening.

Timothy laughed out, and she found the deep masculine sound so wonderful… which just showed how screwed up she was when it came to this man.

"Relax. I was just teasing you" Timothy said and grabbed one of her hands. It looked so small in his and her fingers immediately curled around his. "I tried having relationships but they never worked out. After we separated, I dated some girls in college… and after college. And you were right, it's easy to get someone to date, but not so easy to find someone to stick with… you know, have a long lasting relationship with… have a future with….get married… have kids."

He stopped talking when he realized how quiet she was. "I'm scaring you with all that talk about the future, aren't I?"

"No… no, you are not. I just didn't think…"

"That I'm the kind of guy who would want something like that?" he completed for her.

"Maybe… I don't know" Chloe replied. "sometimes I feel like I don't know you….and then the next minute, I feel like I have you all figured out."

They arrived at the front of his beach house, but they didn't go inside. They faced each other, and once again the awareness and awkwardness was back.

"You know, my mom and dad thought it would be great if we got together again… " he said.

Chloe stared wide eyed at him. "They did?"

"Yup. They do. That's why he insisted on giving you the account. Of course, your pitch was amazing, but he also thought it would be great and hilarious too I assume"