Fallen for Her: Book 2 (7 page)

Ray could not wipe the smile from his face.  He had taken several photos of the Cadillac at Pops, in fact a really great one with Pops standing right next to it.  He walked the short distance to his tiny apartment and unlocked three steel doors before he got inside to his inner sanctum.  It was late, 11:00 PM, and he wondered if Ella was on Facebook.  He flipped the iPad up and noticed her light was on.  He put the photo of the Cadillac on Ella’s Facebook page and messaged her: 
My new set of wheels, courtesy of my grandfather.

Ella messaged him back: 
That is a beautiful vintage car.  Can’t wait to see you Friday night.

Ray continued: 
I can’t wait to see you Friday night.  I’ll be there early.

Ella wrote back: 
One other girl coming besides Cassie.  Paige is tagging along.  That’s good because it will give me more time to spend with you and they can shop together Friday night.

Ray liked the sound of that, and he said goodbye and logged off.  He would have Ella all to himself Friday night, if he got his way.  He planned to meet her for dinner to go over the paperwork.  Her girlfriend could sign as witness, then leave to go shopping.  After dinner he had to have a plan.  He got into bed and turned out the light.  Maybe if he slept on it he could come up with a unique idea to get Ella to spend the night with him.  It wasn’t that he wanted to sleep with her, although if that happened he’d be the happiest man on earth.  But, he wanted to spend more time with her, talk more.  She had become the medicine, the remedy for his loneliness.  He didn’t want to come on too strong, but then how else would she know how he felt about her?  Actions spoke louder than words and he was a man of action.  As he closed his eyes he felt he might die if he never kissed her again. 
No, he knew he would.
  Damn it, he had to find a way to pry her away from Bob, the magnificent. 

He had no way to compete with Bob.  He was already at the zenith of his career and Ray was just a small player compared to him.  Financially, Ray was a 32-year old with a lingering college debt and an antique car to his name.  He made just enough as an associate attorney to get by in New York City.  It was his hope to someday work as an assistant district attorney, then a D.A., but he knew that was a long shot in New York where the playing field was filled with stronger, better connected candidates than him.  Connections; that was what it was all about in his chosen profession.  He decided he needed to hobnob more with the big attorneys in his firm, although it was a disdainful thought.  They bored him to tears. He began to make a mental list of all of his inadequacies, then dismissed the horrid little thought.  But that’s how he felt: 
inadequate
.  He wasn’t worthy of someone like Ella.  She was above his station in life. 

He decided to set his expectations so they had a better chance of matching reality.  If he could maintain a solid friendship with Ella based on trust and common interests, he’d take that.  At least it was something.  Even if she married Bob, he could still be her friend.  He cringed at the thought.  He didn’t want to be the number two guy in her life; he much preferred to be number one.  But life didn’t always give him what he wanted.  He’d gotten used to switching up the game when necessary and this was no different.  He’d roll with it.  Whatever crumb of affection he could obtain from Ella would be better than nothing.  He had to rein his ego in.  It wasn’t easy sometimes.

If he ever got a chance with Ella, he’d take it.  He somehow knew there’d never be another one like her.  He heard his friends talk about
the one that got away
plenty of times.  The special girl they missed out on because they did something stupid or didn’t act quickly enough. 
He didn’t want his life to be lived with regrets for things he wished he’d done
.  Thus far, he had some bumps along the way but felt resilient.  With the right woman, he could do great things.  With Ella, he’d be living with someone he worshipped and adored.  He liked imagining a life like that.  He didn’t care if they lived in a two room shack or a fishing camp; he would love her, pamper her, make meals for her, and give her gifts every day.  Not expensive things like Bob would give her.  The gifts Ray would give would be from his heart.  And, if she loved him back, his life would be complete.  It was all he really wanted. 

~ Ella ~

Leaving the real estate office early on Friday, Ella was filled with excitement.  She had nearly caught up on all of her real estate business and had an associate broker who would work the weekend to cover for her.  Exhaling, Ella contemplated the shopping trip and knew it was serving several purposes.  It was a way to alleviate the loneliness she felt when she thought about her father.  With the holidays approaching, it seemed she thought about him even more.  But, the trip would serve to give her space from Bob.  She needed to talk with the girls and with Ray about his marriage proposal, and her feelings. 

Boomer was safe and sound for the night with Molly.  Bob told her to have a good time while reading the Wall Street Journal on his computer at breakfast but left in a rush to get to his office.  There was some sort of business transaction taking place and he needed to be there for a conference call.  He didn’t even give her a hug when he left.  This was her life.  She knew there was supposed to be more to a relationship than just co-habitation at the same address.  And, whatever was missing, she had felt it stir within her when she kissed Ray Adriano.  She wished Bob had his attributes of warmth and caring, but he just didn’t.  That was the cold hard fact.

Why was she feeling the pull toward Ray?  She felt compelled to see him again.  If she didn’t, she would never know how she felt.  The vibe she was getting from him was that he was very interested in her.  She enjoyed his attention, in fact, all week she had been reliving how wonderful it felt to have a man gaze into her eyes making her blush as Ray did.  Whenever she had a private moment, her thoughts drifted back to him.

Stopping in front of Cassie’s apartment, Ella tapped the horn, hoping to rouse her.  She didn’t want to get stuck in rush-hour traffic.  Within two minutes Cassie was tossing her bag into the back of the Honda.

“Hey, this is gonna be fun!” Cassie giggled as she got into the passenger seat. 

Ella smiled, “Yes, I’ve really been looking forward to it.”

“So, what’s new?” Cassie inquired.  “With Bob, I mean.  He’s home, right?”

“There have been some new developments.”  Ella replied. 

At that moment she pulled up to Paige’s apartment.  Always prepared, Paige was waiting on the front porch with her canvas bag and bounced to the car tossing her sack into the backseat. 

“Hi ladies.  Ready for some fun?” Paige laughed.  Paige was always laughing and full of mischief.  Tall, blonde, shapely and downright beautiful, she had few problems with men.  In fact, her biggest problem was sorting them all out and deciding which ones to torture.  Ella turned around and smiled at her.  “Hey Paige.”

“Yes, we are ready for some fun – and shopping – and one other thing.” Ella stated seriously.  “I’m meeting my attorney at the motel tonight.  He’s got paperwork that needs my signature, regarding my father’s estate.  I’ll need one of you to sign as witness.” 

“Ah, the attorney!” Cassie exclaimed, “The one you spent
last
weekend with.  He’s joining us?” 

“Well, not exactly
joining us
.  He’s meeting me tonight.  He will be staying at the same hotel.” Ella explained.  “It’s strictly business.  It’s easier for him to drive up to Kittery from New York.  He didn’t want to take the train again.  It’s a long ride.”

“How convenient,” Cassie was now curious and Ella knew she’d start probing. 

“So, this guy who you spent the weekend with is coming back for more…hmmm…I think he’s interested in more than just your signature, Ella.” 

Ella felt herself blush and turned down the heater in the car.  “He’s a nice guy, a perfect gentleman.  You know,
accommodating
.” 

“I’ll say!” Cassie exclaimed.  “When should we expect Mr. Accommodating to knock on our door?” 

“Probably around 6:00 PM, he wants to have dinner.” Ella said trying to sound like this was routine, but she knew she wasn’t pulling it off.

Cassie and Paige were now giggling and teasing her.  They peppered her with questions about the weekend at the fishing camp. 

“Aw, come on, Ella, we know he must have made some sort of move on you.” Cassie was getting brazen.  “He kissed you, didn’t he?”

Ella’s momentary silence betrayed her.  It said all the girls needed to know.  But she tried to ignore the question and focus on driving.  “Damn, this rush hour traffic.” Ella moved into the passing lane.  As she continued driving south the traffic became thick and she felt her face turning red.  She realized she was totally embarrassed and could not tell her two best friends about the kiss.

“No.  You’ve got it all wrong.  He’s not like that.  Honestly, Cassie, you have the wildest imagination!” Ella laughed, hoping that would put her off the subject.

“This guy must have incredible self-control.” Cassie joked.  “So, you just talked business?”

“Yes, it was necessary for him to see all of the properties.” Ella said in a serious tone.  “Ray has an appraisal license in all of the New England states, so he needed to actually see each property.  It was really no big deal.” 

“What about Bob?” Cassie asked solemnly.  “Does he know you took this guy to the fishing camp?”

“Not exactly.” Ella said, “But, Bob knows I was with the attorney all weekend getting the properties appraised.  He didn’t say much about it, actually.” 

“Well, Bob’s not exactly the jealous type anyhow, is he?” Cassie inquired.

Oh, if they only knew.  Bob was very possessive when it came to her relationships with other men.  There were many instances where he threatened men who weren’t even slightly romantically inclined toward her.  These were things her friends didn’t witness and Ella kept private.  But she decided to share Bob’s proposal at the club with them, hoping for their feedback.

“Here’s a news flash for you:  Bob asked me to marry him last night at the club.  He slipped a ring onto my finger that was almost the size of the Hope diamond!”

“Oh my God!  Where is it?” Cassie screamed.  Paige was now leaning into the front seat. “Why don’t you have it on?”  

Ella filled them in on the details during the rest of the drive and there wasn’t a sound out of Cassie or Paige.  It was as if they were watching a soap opera as Ella explained the scene at The Club with Bob.  “I didn’t want to hurt his feelings.  It was a beautiful ring, but just huge.  I don’t even think I could wear it on a daily basis.  I left it in the Tiffany’s box in the closet.  It’s just too big to wear every day.”

“Are you out of your ever-lovin’ mind?” Cassie blurted.  “Girl, you need to have your head examined.  I know you’re sad about your father, but think about how Bob feels.  You just left a huge diamond ring sitting in your closet.  He’s probably heartbroken.”

“No, he doesn’t even know it’s there. In fact, later on when we got home and settled in, he watched television and fell asleep.” Ella recounted.  “We’ll see what happens.  I’m just not ready to think about all of that right now. One big thing at a time, please.  I’m still dealing with my father’s death.”  She hated even saying that word. 

Ella pulled her vehicle in front of the office at the Low Tide Inn.  “I’ll get the key.  Be right back.”  She heard Cassie and Paige turn up the radio in the car.  They were singing some crazy song.  Ella put her credit card on the counter and a middle-aged woman with short gray hair gave her a key.  As Ella walked back towards her car she smiled for a moment.  Cassie and Paige were oblivious, uncensored, and up for a good time.  Ella decided to make a concerted effort to adjust her attitude.  She needed to paste a smile on her face and make the best of the shopping trip, even though she had thought about cancelling it.  But when Ray suggested meeting her, she decided to make the trip because she wanted to see him.  Even though she tried to convince herself it was going to be fun spending time with Cassie and Paige alone, deep down she knew it was the thought of seeing Ray again that really made the decision for her. 

She pulled the Honda around to the back of the building and entered unit #112.  It was a homey little place with a lighthouse atmosphere.  Everything inside was painted white, including the furniture, and the ceiling was a faint sky blue.  Little bath soaps shaped like sea shells were placed in a glass jar in the bathroom.  Cassie and Paige were chattering away as they tossed their items into the room.  Then the girls set up their curling irons, hair dryers, and make-up.  Ella laughed to herself.  Some things never changed, but it felt good to think that way for a moment. 

Ray had mentioned he’d be in the room next to theirs.  She wondered if it was #111 or #113…and took a little stroll out to her vehicle to peek at those units.  #113 was occupied.  It already had a vehicle parked in its space.  But #111 was still empty.  She imagined that was probably the one Ray reserved.