Page 49 of Falling for the Unexpected

As my sister exited my office I realized how much her acceptance had meant to me.

*****

Two days had never moved so slowly, but it was finally Wednesday, which meant date night. I was able to leave the office at five, which was early for me. I went home to get ready, having told Simone I would pick her up at six-thirty. We had decided we would go out for dinner and then go to her apartment to watch a movie so she could put Stella to bed at eight.

It sounded like a perfect night, comfortable and relaxed. We were going to a family restaurant near her place since we had Stella with us. I dressed in a pair of dark-wash jeans and a black, long sleeve, button-down shirt. I rolled the sleeves up a little just to look a bit more casual. I grabbed the keys to my BMW and headed to Simone’s apartment.

I knocked on the door and waited for a couple minutes before a flustered Simone answered the door.

“I’m so sorry, but we’re running late. Stella took a late nap, I just got her dressed and I haven’t finished getting myself ready,” she said without taking a breath. She ushered me in and closed the door behind me.

I looked her up and down as she ran her hands through her long, damp hair. She was in tight-fitting jeans and loose-fitted top. She looked damn good. “Why don’t I watch Stella while you finish getting ready,” I offered. “I don’t mind.”

She stared at me and then smiled. “Are you sure?”

“I’ve been around Stella often enough, Simone. I can handle her just fine,” I returned, chuckling.

She grabbed my hand and dragged me into the living room. “Oh! I can put on a video for her,” she said.

“Hey, it’s all good,” I said, squeezing her hand. “Stella and I will find something to keep us occupied. You just go do what you need to.”

Stella was on the floor looking happy as she rolled around in her dress. Her dark hair was in a braid, which had a green bow at the end. When she looked up at me, she smiled big.

“Hi, baby girl,” I said softly. “Let’s go to find some toys while your mommy finishes getting dressed and then we can go get dinner. Does that sound good?”

Stella nodded her head affirmatively and grabbed ahold of my hand. I saw Simone just standing there, staring at us with a look of disbelief on her face. I smiled at her and she shook her head, coming out of whatever trance she was in, and headed toward her bedroom.

After about ten minutes, Simone came out in a simple, fitted cotton dress that showed off her curves. It was navy blue with a pattern of tiny, white anchors and she had a white sweater over it. Even though she was covered up, she was still sexy. She’d kept her hair down and her makeup was light so her features naturally came out. She caught me staring at her and I grinned when she started fidgeting by smoothing out her dress. “Do I… look okay?”

I took a minute to take her in, trying to remind myself to breathe in then out. Dinner at the Thompsons’ last Saturday had been a trial, trying to not to be obvious in front of everyone. Sitting next to her for an hour and feeling her presence had made it difficult to keep up with the conversation. I wasn’t even going to think about how she’d looked at the club and what followed afterwards. I did not want embarrass myself in front of both Simone and Stella.

“You look stunning, Simone,” I said. She blushed, clearly liking my appraisal.

I got up from my spot next to Stella. I’d been reading her a Dr. Seuss book that she’d mostly poked at while telling me her own version of the story. I picked her up and we were all ready to go to dinner. Simone led us out of the apartment and I started to walk toward my car when she stopped me with a hand on my arm.

“We should probably take my car since Stella’s car seat is already installed in it,” she said, reminding me of the additional things kids needed.

“Ok,” I responded. Having her drive wasn’t my idea of taking her on a date, but it made sense. Truth be told, most of the girls I dated were excited to ride in my BMW. Simone was very different from those women.

We veered from my car and back to her parking space. Simone was much shorter than me and I had to remind myself to not take such long strides or she’d have to jog next to me. I didn’t think she’d appreciate that in three-inch heels and carrying a diaper bag that was almost bigger than her. Meanwhile, Stella squirmed in my arms, her big brown eyes taking in the world around her. I think she liked seeing things from this vantage point.

We all piled into her late model Honda Civic and made our way to the restaurant. In the back, behind me, Stella chatted to both of us on the way. She seemed just as excited about this date as I was.

We were seated right away in a booth in the back of the dining room. Simone and I sat across from each other while Stella was in a high chair at the end of the table. After we ordered, and Stella was distracted by the crayons the hostess had given her, I asked Simone about work. I didn’t know how she managed to work such late nights waitressing, keep up with classes, and still take care of Stella during the day. I knew Jim and Marla helped out a lot, along with her friend Kayla, but Simone did as much as humanly possible on her own. I knew being able to do for herself and Stella was really important to her. It made me respect her even more.

I think some of it was a pride thing for her. I also think she was worried she was inconveniencing those who helped her. I wish she could see herself the way I did. She was an incredible woman who was dealt a shit hand in life. That being said, she was making the best of what she had. And she was doing a damn good job, from everything I could see.

“Work is going okay, but balancing it with my school work is proving to be difficult,” she shared with me.

“Have you thought about cutting back on your hours to focus on school?” I asked, knowing such a heavy workload had to be difficult.

She took a sip of her water. “I’m barely making ends meet as it is, and that’s with help from Jim and Marla. I can’t afford to lose any more hours.”

It pissed me off knowing that if Brad would actually pay his child support he would be able to lessen her burden.

“So how’s work going for you?” she asked, effectively changing topics.

I wanted her to feel relaxed and enjoy herself, so for tonight, I moved along to safer topics. “I’ve been pretty busy lately with lots of late nights at the office. But I enjoy my work so it’s not too bad.”