Silent Love(9)

After she'd watched him until he was out of sight, she spun back to her  work but eyed the small box. She'd never been a patient girl when it  came to gifts. Many Christmases her parents spent coming up with new  hiding places for her presents.

Beth pulled her scissors out of the desk drawer and snipped off the  string. She unfolded the lid and gasped. A tiny chocolate cake with  fudge icing sat picture perfect inside the white box. Tears formed in  her eyes. That simple pastry was the most thoughtful gift she'd ever  received from a man.







At five minutes before noon, Sean appeared at Beth's cubicle.

"Ready?" he asked.

She nodded.

Holding out his hand, he helped her to stand, then protectively placed  that same palm on the small of her back. They silently took the elevator  to the front entrance.

"I thought we were going to the cafeteria," she said.

Shaking his head, he said, "Hell, no. We're going to have a real lunch."

They ended up across the street at a small Italian restaurant that was  consistently overcrowded for lunch. It was far from romantic that time  of day, but it definitely beat out the hospital mush.

Once they were seated and placed their orders, Sean watched Beth unroll  her silverware, fastidiously place her napkin on her lap, then adjust  the silver in its proper place. He recognized the mannerisms but  wondered how far they went. With her hearing loss, it would make perfect  sense if she was obsessed with life needing to be orderly. Was she that  way before she lost her hearing?

When she finished, she looked up at him and blushed bright red.

"Sorry," she said softly.

His smile was warm. "Don't be."

"How's work today?" she asked.

A simple question, but it meant so much more to him. Not one woman he'd  gone out with in years asked him about his day. They only wanted a  certain piece of him. The piece that gave them an earth shattering  orgasm.

"Busy," he said. "I have to be in surgery in an hour. How's your day?"

"When you came up this morning, I just opened an audit that needs gone over before we send out the records," she answered.

"You must be detailed oriented in order to do that job," he observed.

She shrugged. "I tend to see things others might miss."

The next question was on the tip of his tongue. Should he ask? Would she  become upset? Would it end their lunch? He let out a long breath and  went for broke. "Why don't you work for the president any longer?"

She blinked. Then blinked again. Shit, he pushed it. Holding up his hand, he apologized, "Sorry."

"No, that's okay," she said softly. "When I lost my hearing, I was laid  up for six months. He needed a secretary. When I was able to return, he  didn't want to replace the woman they'd hired. She has three kids and  was going through a divorce. I understood. I mean, the man's really  nice, and he felt terrible when I returned. He's the one who secured my  job for me. I think he actually made up the position, but it turns out  I've saved a load of money for the hospital. Luckily he made sure my  salary stayed the same." She smiled. "He always takes me out to lunch  for Administrative Assistant day and remembers me at Christmas and my  birthday."

Sean wasn't too pleased with that information. Not the fact the  president kept her on staff, but the fact the man still catered to Beth.  Entirely familiar with the head of the hospital from many golf outings,  dinners, and conferences they attended together, Sean knew the man's  game all too well. Mr. President often brought his mistresses along with  him while his wife stayed home with their two children. The man always  looked for a new, young woman to bring into his bed. Sean would bet  money that he tried to get innocent Beth between his nasty sheets.

Instead of giving her the bad news, he decided to keep that tidbit to  himself. "That's really standup of him to make sure you had a job."         

     



 

She concurred. "It is."

The waitress brought their salads which ended the questioning. They  finished a pleasant luncheon in a half an hour, and afterwards, Sean  escorted Beth back up to her cubicle.

"Dinner tonight?" he asked.

"All right," she said.

"Seven?"

She nodded.

"Great," he said, leaned down and kissed her chastely on the lips. "I'll see you tonight."





7



Over the next six weeks, Sean relentlessly courted Beth. He'd never put  that much effort into dating, but she was unlike every other woman he'd  gone out with. Each time he took her to dinner, he learned more about  her, finally getting her to open up. Like how much she loved kittens and  puppies when they'd walked by the pet store last week. They'd spent an  hour in that place while she touched each and every animal. He offered  to buy her one, but she disheartenedly refused. She explained she feared  for the animal's safety because she couldn't hear if they would ever  need help. Sean tried to explain she would be fine, many people who  couldn't hear owned pets, but she still rejected the idea.

He learned her love for chocolate could be considered an obsession which  she happily indulged. And he loved to help her with it. Every date he  bought her some form of chocolate pastry or candy, and every single  time, she applauded in delight and did a charming bouncy thing on the  balls of her feet.

When he pressed further about her family, she explained that she was an  only child who was raised by two hard working middle class parents, her  father a retired Army sergeant and her mother, a part-time secretary for  the Turner Law Firm in Pittsburgh. Apparently she was a daddy's girl,  and her father still worried and catered to her. They hadn't introduced  each other to their parents, but that was on next week's agenda. They'd  seen each other every day during their courtship and didn't seem to be  growing tired of one another.

But with the good also came the disheartening. When he took her to The  Point a few times, she seemed to over relish her time outside.  Apparently she developed a fear of going out doors after she lost her  hearing. With him she felt safe enough to endure the outside world. The  subject of how she lost her hearing never came up, though his curiosity  to find out what happened that created her fear nagged him. But he  refused to push. Beth should be the one to feel she could tell him  anything. She also admitted how much she missed music. Years ago she  frequented concerts and musicals but no longer attended.

Which was how they ended up in his living room, swaying to the sound of  music. It was Friday date night, but this time Sean decided to bring her  to his house and cook for her. Lights dimmed and candles shimmered  throughout the bottom floor. They'd already eaten their meal that  consisted of a salad, lasagna, garlic bread, and of course chocolate  cake.

After their appetites were filled, Sean led Beth to the center of the  living room floor, picked up the remote and turned on the stereo system  with the base turned up at full volume. If it blew his speakers, but  he'd buy new ones. He wanted to give this to her.

At the start of the soft music, he wrapped his right arm around her tiny  waist, then took her left hand into his and held it against his chest.

"Follow me," he said and gave her his best sultry smile.

Those beautiful blues glassed over.

Swaying to the music, it only took a few moments before the bass could  be felt vibrating the floorboards. The smile that crossed her gorgeous  features was worth it. She released his hand and tossed her arms around  his neck, then buried her face into his chest. With his other arm, he  wrapped her up, pulled her close, and held her tight. The feel of her in  his arms was perfect. He didn't want her anywhere else. She belonged  with him, they belonged with each other. Everyday he felt himself  falling harder and harder for her. Somehow, in a short period of time,  she managed to wrap herself around his heart. He found he couldn't stop  thinking about her‒What was she doing? Was she sleeping? Did she miss  him? Did she want to see him?

He'd transformed back into a high school kid, needing to be near her at  all times and wanting her to need him. When they were together, all was  right with the world. When they were apart, he was cranky, short  tempered, and antsy. But because he had no idea how she felt, since they  hadn't expressed their feelings to each other, he kept all that pent up  emotional stuff to himself.

Circling the living room, they became lost in one another. Always a  decent dancer, Sean breezily led her in a smooth glide. He swore he felt  his chest swell when she allowed him to take charge.

When the song changed to a more upbeat tune, Sean led her from the  living room to the kitchen, through the dining room, and back to the  living room. The sound of her laughter sent him flying. Eyes  illuminating warmth and a joyous smile that spread from ear to ear  confirmed his attempt to see her happy a success. Swinging her around,  when she brushed against him, his body began to stir. Nothing like an  extremely attractive woman in a man's arms to get him riled up.