Page 63 of The October Arrangement

I stood there and wondered why Simon never mentioned her.

“It’s nice to put a face to a name. You’re absolutely stunning.”

“Thank you.” I smiled.

“I’ll let you go. I’ll see you on Saturday evening. We can talk then.”

“Oh, you’ll be there?”

“Of course. Montclair Development Group is the one hosting it. Simon didn’t tell you that?”

“Uh, no. He didn’t.”

Chapter Twenty-Four

Simon

I stepped into the foyer at six forty-five, and a delicious smell smacked me in the face. I set my briefcase down and walked into the kitchen.

“You’re cooking?” I asked Bella.

“Welcome home.” She grinned. “Yes. I’m cooking dinner for you.”

“I didn’t know you could cook,” I smirked.

“I can. I figured I’d make you a home-cooked meal since you took me out to that fancy dinner last night.”

“I like the way you think.” I smiled. “It smells delicious. I’ll go change. Is dinner almost ready?”

“In like five minutes.”

“Got it.” I winked and walked out of the kitchen.

I loosened my tie as I walked into the bedroom and tossed my phone onto the dresser. Bella was cooking me dinner. I couldn’t believe it. I’d walked through the door less than fifteen minutes ago expecting to find her ready and waiting to go out to dinner. Instead, she wanted to cook. Who was I to argue with that? I’d rarely had a home-cooked meal.

I unbuttoned my shirt, took it off, and tossed it into the hamper in the closet. I grabbed a pair of khakis and a black T-shirt. I smiled as I got dressed. Fuck. A few months ago, if someone had told me I’d come home from work and get excited because a woman was making me dinner, I would have laughed in their face. Yet, the second I stepped off the elevator and smelled whatever Bella had cooking, something strange settled inside me. Something I couldn’t exactly identify. It almost felt like comfort, something I didn’t need.

I had a good life. A fucking great one. I ran Montclair Development Group. I had more money than I’d ever spend, properties around the world, friends when I wanted company, women when I wanted sex, and complete freedom to do whatever the hell I wanted. I’d built my life exactly how I wanted it. Then Bella moved in temporarily. I had to keep reminding myself of that word. And even though I’d only known her for a week, I started wondering what she was doing when I was at the office. I’d catch myself checking my phone to see if she’d sent a text. And today, I wondered which dress she bought for the charity event more times than I cared to admit. I stared at myself in the mirror in the closet.

“This is getting fucking ridiculous,” I said.

“What is?”

I spun around and saw Bella standing in the doorway of my closet.

“Jesus Christ,” I said.

“Did I scare you?” She smiled.

“No.”

“You jumped. I saw you.”

“What are you doing here, Bella?”

“I came to tell you dinner’s ready.”

I stared at her. Probably a little too long. Something about seeing her standing in the doorway of my closet, looking completely at home, did strange things to me.