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“I hope so.” I sigh. “Anyway, things are getting back to normal now. There hasn’t been any trouble here or at home.”
“That snazzy alarm system might be helping with that, girl.”
She’s probably right.
I have Jared to thank for keeping me safe.
“Anyway, tell me more about your guy.”
“I’m closing the store on Saturday, so we can take his three-year-old boy, Cooper, to the zoo.”
Sim tilts her head at me. “You more than like him, don’t you?”
I do, but I don’t answer her. My feelings for him scare me a little. Opening up, letting another man in is a big step, but it’s happening whether I’m on board or not. If I was being honest, I’d admit I’m starting to fall in love with the man. I don’t know when the change happened, but somewhere between the drama, I found I need him and Cooper in a way I never imagined I would need anyone again. I didn’t think I was capable of that kind of love anymore—not after Thomas. But my heart wants what it wants, and what it wants is my two guys.
“I think I love him.”
“You think? Girl, there’s no thinking. You either do or you don’t. Which is it?”
I smile. “I love him.”
She grins, clapping her hands together and shrieking. “I knew it! I knew you and Mr. Tall, Dark and Handsome were perfect for each other. Have you told him you love him yet?”
“Not yet. He’s still a little hurt by his past. I need to take things carefully with him.”
Sim nods in understanding. “He’s been through a lot, but you’re the right person to get him back on the love track.”
I roll my eyes. “Get out of here before you kill me with cringe.”
She pushes up from the wall where she was leaning and waves a hand. “Okay, okay, I’m going, but girl, take my advice… hang on to this one. He’s one of the good ones.”
She’s not wrong. Jared is a good man. I knew that the moment I met him. He’s good with his son too, and his friends seem to go out of their way to help him, which tells me he’s good to them too.
He’s pretty much my perfect guy—kind, caring, takes charge, but not overbearing. I can’t wait to visit the zoo with him and Coop. I’m starting to love that kid too. He’s a character and although I know I can’t replace his mama, I hope there’s room for me to play a similar role in our little dynamic.
I lock the front door after Sim then head to the back, moving the money out of the register and into the safe. Closing down the store has started to become a routine I do without thinking about now. I have my own set pattern of things I do and the order I do them in to make sure everything gets done. The store has been fantastic for me, in fact. I feel like I finally have a sense of myself back. I’m no longer Thomas’s ex, or the domestic violence victim. I’m a survivor and I can do anything I put my mind to.
My phone trills on the counter and I head over to it. Seeing Harry’s name on the screen I slide my finger over the answer button.
“Hey, Harry.”
“Nee, that portrait you have… I did a lot of digging around and the expert I called in thinks it could be a Mark Lloyd image.”
“Mark who?”
“He’s an eighteenth-century artist. If it’s a Lloyd, it’s worth in excess of a million dollars.”
My jaw nearly hits the floor.
“What?” I whisper, unable to find my voice.
“You need to get it insured immediately.”
“Oh my God. You’re sure?”
“Pretty sure. We have a few more tests to do, but looking through the documents relating to provenance of the piece, I think it is a lost portrait. How did you come by it again?”
“A storage unit buy-out.” My head is reeling with this new information. How can that ugly old portrait be worth that much?
