Terms of Service (5 page)

***

When Gavin opened the door, he discovered she was part way up the stairs.  He began to go to her, but he had to admire her first.  She was so strong, mentally and apparently physically.  She had been working diligently all afternoon without disturbing him.  He had set one foot on the stairs and looked up, gauging the distance between them when he noticed the top box begin to slide.  Fear clenched his throat.  He wanted to call out and warn her but there wasn’t time.  Without thinking, he rushed up the stairs.

Just before he reached her, the boxes tumbled and so did she, while making a last ditch effort to right them, and clearly injuring her back.  By the time she landed in Gavin’s arms, there were tears in her eyes and she was biting back the pain, her lip white and shaking.

“It’s okay,” Gavin murmured, pulling her tightly against him.  “I’ve got you,” he said while he stared intently into her eyes.  
I thought they were brown,
he marveled.  Up close, it was obvious her eyes were this incredible shade of hazel, more than a hint of green and flecked with gold, whose color would best be dictated by whatever she was wearing that day.  As the first tears spilled out of them, he couldn’t help himself.  Pressing his lips against her temple, he scooped her into his arms and carried her to the girls’ room.

Once inside he paused for a moment to note how much she had accomplished in such a short period of time then carefully deposited her on the nearest bed.  Kneeling beside her he asked, “Are you okay?”

***

Hannah closed her eyes for a moment.  It was too much.  He had held her close like she was so fragile, so precious to him.  He had planted the most delicate kiss on her right temple, a kiss that still warmed her skin.  In turn, she had responded by crying.  Her back truly hurt, but the tears were because she was so ashamed of her clumsiness, she had needed his rescue. Even more, she was moved by his kiss.  She swallowed.  “I’m fine.”

Brushing the hair back from her face, Gavin paused a moment before he stood.  “Well, I’ll leave you to it then.”  He stopped at the doorway.  “Where should I leave those boxes?”

“They go in my room,” she said weakly.

He seemed to pale.  “I’ll just leave them outside that door for you.”  Then he turned on his heels and walked away.

Ever so gingerly, Hannah began to move from the bed.  She swung first one leg, then the other over the edge and braced herself for the pain as she rolled off and attempted to stand.  
Great,
she thought,
and I still have to drive to get the girls and make it back.

She laid her hands on her lower back as she straightened and followed it with stretching her arms, one at a time in front of her to stretch the area between her shoulder blades.  Her back still hurt, but it would.  There wasn’t much else she could do about it now.  She had work to do.

***

As Gavin passed by the doorway, he noticed how she worked to maneuver herself from the bed, and then on his way back down the hall, she was attempting to stretch out her back.  He sighed and shook his head, knowing full well it would never work.  What she needed was a massage, a nice deep tissue one, or better yet, a hot stone one.  It would soothe her muscles and work out the tension.  He knew just who to call.  Reaching for the phone permanently affixed to his belt, he scrolled through his contacts and dialed.

“Mr. Meyers!”  The woman on the other end of the phone exclaimed.  “What a pleasant surprise!  I didn’t expect to hear from you again.”

In truth, Gavin never expected to have to call her again.  They had become acquainted during his rather extreme last-ditch effort to save his marriage.  When he finally realized all was not well in his world, a world he took much pride in creating and maintaining, he had decided to examine the marriage as he had every merger and business transaction in his life.  He merely needed to provide a little service and surely India would be happy.  He had sought to uncover her need and then merely fulfill it.

Day after day she would be hunched over a pottery wheel or in odd positions soldering stained glass pieces, or welding.  The list of her mediums grew.  Night after night he had seen her stretching much like Hannah had earlier in an effort to ease her discomfort.  In his first approach, he had a pool company and landscapers come in and install a hot tub to accompany the pool.  He imagined opening a bottle of wine and cuddling up there with her, but India had argued about the dangers of all those chemicals against her skin.  At last, he realized he was going to need a more hands on approach, literally.  After hiring a masseuse to come to the house and work out her muscles, Gavin was drawn to the doorway when he heard the sounds India was emitting.  He had never heard her moan in pleasure so enthusiastically before and blushed.  Immediately he knew he wanted to be the one to elicit this response from her.  It wasn’t about passion; it was a matter of pride.  He took classes in the evenings until he was a certified masseur.  Then he went a step further.  Because he understood her desire for natural elements touching her skin, he had flown to Arizona to take La Stone therapy seminars.  He sighed.  He had never even had the chance to show her all he learned.  While he was more than qualified to work out Hannah’s pain, they weren’t there yet.

“So, to what do I owe this pleasure?”  Sierra continued to gush.

“It appears I need your services this evening,” he began slowly.  “Do you still make house calls?”  He could feel his gut clench as he asked.

“For you?  Of course,” she cooed.

“Well, it wouldn’t be for me exactly, but I would be paying you.”  He waited expectantly for an answer.  “I would need you here, say…eight tonight?”  He could hear the sound of pages turning rapidly.

“Hmm.  I think it could be arranged,” she said slowly, writing the appointment on her date book.  “One hour?”

Gavin, thinking of the pain he had seen in Hannah’s face as she lay in his arms, shook his head.  “Better make it an hour and a half.”

***

Gingerly making her way down each step, Hannah finally reached the foyer.  She walked over to the side table to grab her purse, retrieve her keys, and head out to pick up the girls when Gavin stuck his head out of the study.  She stiffened a moment, having nearly forgotten he was here somewhere.  “I want to thank you for catching me,” she said slowly.  “I probably could’ve been hurt very badly very hurt.”  She shrugged off her embarrassment.  “So, I’m off to go get the girls now.”

“When will you return?”  He studied her.  

Hannah glanced at her watch.  It was four now, allowing just enough time for traffic she should make it to the girls on time.  “I don’t know.  Maybe six?  And I’ll still need to feed the girls.”  She thought a moment.  She was exhausted.  No way was she going to suddenly turn into Betty Crocker and whip up a meal when she hadn’t even had a chance to study the contents of the kitchen.  “And I guess we’ll have to eat out or pick something up…”

Walking across the foyer, Gavin opened the closet door even as Hannah watched confused, and grabbed his coat.  “Let’s take my car.  I’ll drive; we’ll grab some food, and then be back here in time for the girls to check out the place before they go to bed.”

She cocked her head to one side.  “That’s a really nice offer, but I hate to pull you away from all your work.”  She gestured to the study.  “I saw all the files piled in there.”

He frowned.  “Is there a reason you don’t want me to come along?  I have to meet the girls some time.”

She bit her lip.  “It isn’t the girls,” she mumbled.

“Part of our deal was I cover room and board.  Dinner comes under the ‘board’ part, you know?”  His eyes were twinkling right now.  She wondered if it was his teasing look.

“It isn’t entirely dinner,” Hannah said slowly.  Part of it was.  She wasn’t sure she was ready to sit down with the man and her kids.  It was so personal.  She should be glad he wanted to contribute financially, keep up his end of the bargain.  So far he was more involved in her life than Brett had been all five years of their marriage.  Even more than how personal this drive was, she couldn’t help but think of where they were going, and who would be there when they arrived.

Feeling too tired and unable to explain, Hannah sighed.  “Okay.  Let’s go.”

Once in the vehicle, she could feel Gavin watching her out of the corner of his eye.  It was her own fault.  Every few moments Hannah would unconsciously emit a sad little sigh. “Hannah,” he began slowly, as though carefully selecting his words, “would you like to tell me what’s bothering you or should I guess?”

Her legs hurt from balancing on her tiptoes so they wouldn’t flatten out on the seat and make her feel any larger than she actually was.  Gavin struck her as a man used to traveling with arm candy, gorgeous, waif thin model types.  As far as she could tell, she didn’t even come close to fitting that bill.  To make matters worse, Krystal would be there when they arrived, probably wearing something skimpy to make her feel all the more self-conscious.  What if he was attracted to her?  She had just settled in.  He hadn’t even had a chance to get to know her.  She had seen that hussy in action.  It was, after all, how she lost her husband.  She sighed.

Suddenly, Gavin reached over and grabbed her hand out of her lap, tucked it against his chest, and then slowly kissed her fingers before releasing it rather hastily.  Hannah was staring at him wide-eyed.  “I’m sorry,” he mumbled.  “I guess I just wanted to comfort you,” he said with a little more confidence.  “You seem nervous and a little sad?”  Hannah’s eyes were downcast.  “I know it isn’t that you don’t want to pick up the girls.  Is it having me along?”

“Not…exactly,” she replied vaguely.

“Is it that you dread seeing your ex?”  Clearly Gavin would continue to pry until he had a satisfactory answer.  

Twisting against the leather seat molded to her back, she turned to face him.  “I can handle Brett.”  She swallowed hard.  “If you must know, it’s Krystal that I’m dreading.”  Hannah was bracing herself for the next question.  “Aren’t you going to ask who Krystal is?”

Clearing his throat, Gavin replied, “I was.  Will you tell me?”

She bit her bottom lip for a moment, and then said, “She’s the stripper Brett left me for.”  Then she shut down and stared out the window for the rest of the trip.

It was the most humiliating experience of her life and he had nothing to say.  Maybe he didn’t know what to say.  She really should give him the benefit of the doubt.  Over the years, Hannah had learned the doubting part was easy; it was trust which challenged her good nature.  At worst, she would use this as an opportunity to get to know Gavin, see another side of him.  Watching him interact with Krystal would be revealing.

She scowled.  They had just pulled into the driveway and Krystal was sitting on the steps while the girls ran around in the front yard.  Revealing?  Definitely, since Krystal apparently didn’t see the need to wear undergarments under her tiny shirt or skirt.

“Great,” she muttered, as she released the seat belt and opened the door.  Before she could vacate the vehicle, Gavin grabbed her arm.

“I’m not sure what you’re used to,” he said seriously, “but I open the door for women in my company.”  Hannah’s eyes widened and she opened her mouth to speak, but he finished his thought.  “Now sit there patiently while I walk around and help you out of the vehicle.”

Numbly, she managed to nod as Gavin climbed out of the luxury sedan, shut his door, and without even so much as a glance at the half naked woman on the steps twenty feet away, walked directly to Hannah, grasped her hand, and gracefully helped her emerge from the vehicle with more than a shred of her dignity intact.

They hadn’t even walked three feet before the girls came squealing over to their mother.  “Mommy!”  They yelled in unison as they threw themselves into her arms.  Hannah winced and struggled to maintain her balance, but it was as though Gavin had anticipated this response.  He merely stood there silently, supporting her with his hands on her lower back while she greeted her children.

Looking at him with unmasked appreciation, Hannah beamed, “Thank you,” she whispered.  Or maybe it only seemed like a whisper because she was afraid of showing her emotions if she spoke any louder.

A sultry voice broke the moment.  “I’m Krystal,” she gushed, grasping Gavin’s arm and leaning against him provocatively.  She had his bicep in between her enormous breasts and was batting her eyelashes at him as alluringly as she could muster.

Hannah watched Gavin, a lump forming in her throat and her stomach clenching nervously.  Without so much as a word, Gavin glanced at how Krystal’s body was positioned and extricated his arm from her grasp, took one step further from her and closer to Hannah, then wrapped an arm around Hannah’s waist.

“Do the girls have bags or anything here that I should grab?”  He directed the question to Hannah.

She was so stunned from his reaction to Krystal she could merely nod, wide-eyed in response.

“In the house?”  He queried as he gestured to the front door.

Again she nodded.  As she glanced that way, she visibly winced.  Krystal, unused to being ignored and eager to soothe her wounded ego, was wrapped around Brett, who stood holding the girl’s backpacks on the stoop.