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“Yes,” I reply.
“Thank you for the action figure.” He looks at me with happy brown eyes that scrunch up in concern a moment later. “Should I call you Mr. Cunningham?”
“You can call me Pat, if you like. That’s what my closest friends call me.”
“Sure thing, Mr. Pat,” he says. “Do you like superheroes?”
“I do like superheroes.” Pausing in my cleaning, I crouch down beside him to get at his level. “Want to know a secret?”
He nods enthusiastically.
I lean forward conspiratorially. “I have that same action figure at home.”
“You do?” He looks surprised, like he didn’t think an old man like me would play with action figures.
“Yep, and a few more too.” I nod with all seriousness.
“That’s so cool.”
We’re interrupted when Amara claps her hands, getting our attention. “We’re all cleaned up. We’ve got everything loaded and ready to go. Josiah, go get in the car. I’ll be there in a minute.”
“Okay, Mom.” He sprints toward the car, the way kids do. Why walk when you can run?
Amara approaches me with a polite smile. I can already sense the distance she’s trying to put between us.
“Thank you so much for your help today, Mr. Cunningham. Josiah would have been devastated without a cake, and instead, he’s happier than I’ve ever seen him.” She looks over to her car with a true smile, her eyes glistening. Josiah sees us through the back window and waves excitedly. We both wave back. It’s impossible not to respond to such innocent joy.
Gathering herself, she turns back to me. “I appreciate everything you’ve done. Do I need to turn in some kind of receipt to the company or fill out a form—”
“Amara,” I interrupt. “You don’t have to do anything. I’m just glad I could be here for you and your son.” Taking a step to close the distance between us, I continue, “You deserve to be cared for.”
Her eyes widen and she takes a shuddering breath before stepping back. “Yes, well. You’re a very sweet young man, I mean…uh...” She frowns, her succulent lips pursing. “You’re a great boss. Thank you again. I’ll see you at the office next week.”
Oh, she’ll be seeing a lot more of me. After spending the afternoon and evening with her, I can definitely say that Amara is the woman for me. She is intelligent, dedicated to her son, and hardworking. Hell, she has to be, earning her degree as a single mom and then building a life she can be proud of.
Take all that and the sizzling chemistry between us, and you can bet it’s only a matter of time before she becomes mine.
