The Men of CCD: Help Wanted Page 11

  “I’m not going to allow you to act like I’m not standing here next to you,” Jim snapped moving from her side to stand directly in front of her getting all up in her personal space.

  “How can I forget you’re here? You are big as a house.”

  “Good. Now let me apologize again and again until you believe that I’m truly sorry for the way I acted inside with Kathy.” Jim ran the back of his knuckles down the side of her cheek. “Please go somewhere else with me. I would hate for this night to end because I let a situation get out of hand. You look too breathtaking to go back home and be mad at me for the rest of the night. Let’s make the best of this and not let it get utterly ruined.”

  “I need to get home.” Keira wasn’t going to let Jim sweet talk her into changing her mind.

  “Please, baby.” His lips brushed over hers as he spoke. “I asked you out on another date to get to know you better.”

  “No.” The words were firm and final.

  Jim’s mouth recaptured hers, more demanding this time. His kiss was urgent and exploratory. She had a burning desire, an aching need to agree to his demands because he was making one hell of a case with this kiss.

  Slowly, Jim separated their lips until they were not quite touching. “Have I changed your mind?”

  Damn him! He knew he had after a lip lock like that!

  “You better be glad you’re one hell of a kisser or your ass would be taking me home instead of to another restaurant.”

  “I guarantee the new place is much better than this one and there won’t be an ex-wife around bothering us.”

  “I hope you’re right because you already have one strike against you,” Keira said poking her finger in his chest.

  “What will take place if I get three?”

  “How about you never find out?” Keira replied, but she secretly wondered if Jim would be able to keep his promises to her.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Antonia’s was so beautiful that Keira had a hard time believing Jim even knew of a place like this. It used to be a large loft but the owner of the property turned it into an intimate restaurant. The entire place consisted of about ten tables that were spread throughout the building along with two booths that were tucked over in the far left corner. Jazz music played in the background just loud enough for you to hear it, but not so distracting that it would drown out your conversation.

  The waiter came and took their order within ten minutes of being seated. Honestly, Keira was positive it might have been quicker than she first thought. Everything from the dimmed lights, white and black tablecloths, to the framed photos on the wall screamed romantic. Antonia’s was the kind of a place a man took a woman he wanted to romance and make feel like she was the only woman in his life.

  Jim surprised her having this place in his arsenal of seduction. He already had her with his charm and wit. One thing was for sure, any place Jim wanted to take her was never boring. Something always took her breath away about each. He was definitely delivering novelty to her life that had been missing for a very long time.

  “This place is stunning,” Keira said, staring at everything around her. “I could look at the beauty of it forever.”

  “You’re right. The view is quite captivating.” Jim said looking at her and not his surroundings.

  “You aren’t looking around you, but at me.”

  “I know what my eyes were on and I meant every word.”

  An unexpected thrill hit her body at the flirty compliment Jim gave her. He was full of admissions tonight, but she wasn’t going to let them go to her head. She and Jim were still on shaky ground when it came to each other. Yes, the sex between them was off the charts, but bed shaking, screaming at the top of your lungs intercourse wasn’t a reason to start a relationship. He might have another agenda going on that she wasn’t even aware of.

  “Keira, I want to apologize for the way I acted back at the other restaurant. I really had no clue Kathy would be there. If I had the slightest warning I would have brought you here first and avoided her altogether.”

  “She’s a very spiteful and unhappy woman,” Jim said. “She doesn’t care who she drags down into the pit of gloom that she permanently resides in. I used to think I did something to make her that way, but now I see it’s all her. She thrives on being a vicious person.”

  The sincerity in Jim’s voice caught Keira off guard. She wasn’t expecting him to bring Kathy up again. She had placed that nutcase in the back of her head, because if she ever saw her again she wouldn’t be responsible for her actions. Jim was an ever-changing mystery and against her better judgment she was beginning to really like this new side of him.

  Slow down, girl! Don’t read more into what is happening than there is.

  “I’ve had the displeasure of meeting women like Kathy before. I’ve learned the best thing to do is to move away from them. Let’s push her out of our minds. I thought you were curious about me. This is your chance to find out more about me unless you’ve changed your mind.”

  “I do want to find out everything I can, but I want you to be honest. One thing I can’t stand is being lied to,” Jim told her.

  “Now, I’m not promising to answer every question you might ask, but the ones I do will be with the truth. Fair enough?”

  Hazel eyes pierced the short distance between them. His gaze searched her face like he was trying to read her most private thoughts. “Fair enough,” he agreed. “Did you think I was an asshole when we first met each other?”

  Whoa! Jim didn’t even give her a chance to be prepared before throwing the first hard ball question out there.

  “Yes, I thought you were a world class asshole. I couldn’t believe you were telling me to butt out of my best friend’s relationship. Charisma is like a sister to me. I wasn’t going to let Dave break her heart. I was going to make him see what a jerk he was being towards her. Charisma is such a wonderful woman and I wanted her to be with a man who respected her.”

  “I think the slap at the back of the head you gave him taught him a lesson.” Jim chuckled. “I know you made his hangover worse.”

  Keira laughed at the memory. She had forgotten all about the slap. It was a good thing Dave hadn’t held it against her. She was good friends with him now. He was like a big brother to her.

  “He deserved it back then. I’m glad he and Charisma worked things out. They were meant to be together and Dave Jr. proves it. Charisma found her Prince Charming after dating a pond full of endless worthless frogs.”

  “Are you looking for your Prince Charming? Do you think your future husband is out there waiting for you? Everyone around you is married with children. Does that make the urge for you to get married even greater?”

  Keira was about to answer, but stopped when she noticed the waiter coming back with their orders. It only took a few minutes to set out the food. The delicious smell of steak and potatoes surrounded them. Instead of answering Jim’s question, she cut into her well-done t-bone steak and took a bite. She closed her eyes as the meat seduced her tastes buds.

  “I’m jealous. I thought I was the only thing that could put such a look of pleasure on your face,” said Jim.

  After Keira finished chewing , she wiped her mouth with a napkin, “Don’t be jealous. I haven’t had anything to eat, so I’m starving. This food is outstanding and to answer your first question. No. I don’t have a need to get married at the moment. When the time comes I’ll know it.”

  “Glad you like it. I love pleasing a woman. Are you ready for more questions?”

  “Go on. I’m ready for the next one,” Keira said.

  “Do you like being a flight attendant?” Jim had heard Charisma talk about Keira’s job off and on, but he never really heard her bring it up in conversation. “Are you ever planning on going back to work?”

  “I love it!” Keira gushed. “It’s as close to my dream job as I can get. I fell right into it without too much trouble. I’m able to deal with the heavy workload and roll w
ith the punches extremely well. A lot of it might have to do with my age. I wasn’t fresh out of school when I landed the job. I worked at a couple of other jobs first before deciding to apply for a flight attendant position.”

  “Did you have to return to college for any more training?” Jim asked.

  “No, I already had a bachelor degree in business administration. I could have applied with an associate’s degree or a high school diploma. I was told recruiters were impressed with applicants who finished what they started.

  “Now, some of my co-workers did go back to college and take extra classes like communications, nursing, police or fire science. Yet I didn’t see a need for me to do it. I think the two years I worked as an assistant manager at a shipping business sealed the deal for me.”

  Keira took another bite of her food while Jim did the same. It felt somewhat strange to be talking about her job and she hadn’t been near an airport or flown since the crash.

  “Why do you think that job helped you?” Jim asked, jumping right back into the conversation without missing a beat.

  “Having a background in customer service is also very important when airlines think about hiring you for a vacant position. They want to make sure you can handle any kind of situation when it comes to the public. I guess it shows you might be better seasoned to deal with a problem if it occurred in the air.

  “A majority of people most of the time are loud, abrasive, aloof and downright condescending if they choose to be.” Keira knew this from personal experience. “I guess the only downside to the job are two things.”

  “They are…?” Jim pushed, wanting her to continue.

  “Sometimes the airlines will ask you to relocate to another city where they have a flight attendant base. Of course, if you say yes to the move your options are greater and if you turn the move down your flights are more limited.”

  “I guess since you have the ability to speak your mind even without provocation, you wouldn’t have any nervousness about doing it in front of a packed plane of passengers.”

  “Keep it up and I’m not going to tell you the second downfall of my job.” Jim would stop teasing her because he would want to know.

  Jim picked up his water glass, took a long sip before waving his hand for her to finish. God, she was right. He would keep quiet, so he could finish hearing about her job.

  “With the airline industry, seniority rules within every position that is held, from the customer service agents, mechanics, flight attendants and pilots. All of us have pay rates, schedules and benefits based on the length of time we have been at our jobs.”

  “I didn’t know pay rates went that deeply with your job,” Jim said. “Are you up near the top when it comes to seniority?”

  She wished!

  “No, I’m still a reserve. I won’t be a line holder unless someone retires and I don’t see that happening anytime soon.”

  “Reserve…Line holder? What are those? What is the difference between the two?”

  “Sorry, I’m just used to talking about my job to other flight attendants. A line holder is the position every reserve dreams about getting in their future career. They get their flying schedule at least one month in advance. They even have knowledge of when and where they’re going to work plus what airplane.

  “A reserve is used to fill in an open flying time spot or take the place of a line holder when they are sick or on holiday. Since I’m still a reserve my day usually begins with a call from a crew scheduler. She usually asks me what flight I want for the following day.” Keira was growing tired of talking about her job. She was very curious about Jim and beyond ready to learn more about him.

  “I think I’ve talked about myself enough for one night. Why don’t you tell me more about you? What made you stop being a construction worker hottie to becoming a hunk who owns a motorcycle shop?”

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  A woman’s opinion about his looks never mattered much to him, but he liked that Keira found him attractive. He wanted her to be attracted to him as much as he was to her. He would have lost money if someone told him the woman he argued with at the airport a little over a year ago would be his dinner date tonight.

  Shit, he would have lost money about being on a date in general because he had sworn off getting involved with anyone, but there was just something about Keira that made him get rid of his no dating rule.

  “I’ve always had a vision of owning my own motorcycle shop. Motorcycles became a passion of mine when I was a little kid. Other kids in my neighborhood wanted to be the usual like a cop, lawyer or sports pro, but I was the odd ball by saying I wanted to take apart and rebuild motorcycles.

  “A man who lived next door to me had a vintage Harley Davidson and I would watch him any chance I got when he worked on it. As soon as I was old enough I got a job and bought one. I owned it for years, but something came up so I had to sell it.”

  Jim missed the hell out of that motorcycle. She heard it in his voice despite the fact he was trying his best to hide it from her. “Why did you have to get rid of it?” Yeah, she was being nosy, but who cared.

  “I got into some financial problems right after I got married to Kathy. I didn’t want to go into debt and have a bad credit rating in case I got lucky enough to buy a motorcycle shop. So, I sold my prized Harley Davidson to pay it off.”

  “Was it your debt or your ex-wife’s?”

  “How did you know that?” Jim asked, clearly surprised that she was able to figure it out so easily.

  “You don’t come across as the type to rake up a lot of debt. Also, after having the unfortunate pleasure of meeting Kathy, she was the picture of a woman who knew how to waste a lot of money and not give a damn about it.”

  Jim chuckled at Keira’s assessment. She had read his ex perfectly. Kathy loved money and especially if she didn’t have to work for it. He knew that she wasn’t about to find a job with the child support and alimony he was sending her every month.

  Why should he lie?

  “You’re right. Kathy blew through three of our credits cards in under three months. I was so busy working at CCD that I didn’t know the damage she had done until the credit card companies started to call.”

  “Is that another reason that pushed you to get a divorce?”

  He wondered when that question was going to come up. He hated telling people the real reason for his divorce. Kathy’s cheating still left a bad taste in his mouth. He knew that after Trevor was born their relationship started going down hill. Honestly, it was over before then, but he’d wanted to give it his best shot. He should have been smart enough to break ties then and move on.

  Now, there was this doubt in the back of his mind about why Kathy strayed from their marriage bed in the first place. Had he not been a good enough husband? Or had he truly married an untrustworthy bitch and not been aware of it beforehand? He remembered how Dave told him that Kathy had come on to him numerous times when he had come to their house looking for him.

  “No, I divorced Kathy for another reason entirely. We just weren’t compatible anymore and we parted ways.”

  “How was that on Trevor? He’s such a sweet little boy.”

  “Trevor is an amazing kid. He’s the only good thing that came from my horrible eight year marriage,” Jim said.

  “Do you think you will ever get married again?”

  “I would never get married again. I’m not dumb enough to make that mistake twice in my life.”

  “Hayward thought the same thing and now look, he’s married with four gorgeous children,” Keira pointed out.

  Yeah, Jim never thought Hayward would get over the death of his first wife and child, but he did with True. True was a special woman and the perfect match for Hayward.

  “I’m glad Hayward found love again; however, I’m firm in my decision. I’m not crazy enough to get caught up in another marriage with a money-hungry woman. My best friends lucked out with their wives, but they were willing to take that chance. I’m
not.”

  Keira watched him for a while like she was trying to determine if he was telling the truth and whether or not she could call him on it. He hoped that she spoke her mind because he found her never- mince-words attitude very refreshing. She wasn’t into playing games like some women he had come across.

  “You shouldn’t let Kathy have so much control over you. Yes, you had a bad marriage with her, but it doesn’t mean a second marriage will end up the same way.”

  “Thanks for the advice,” Jim retorted. He was nice enough to listen to what she had to say, but it wasn’t going to make him change his mind. Marriage was 100% out of his future!

  “I can take a hint,” Keira said. “I won’t bring up the horrible “m” word again. So, what else should we do?”

  Standing up, Jim held out his hand. “How about we get in one quick dance before I have to take you back home?”

  Keira took his hand and let him pull her out of her chair. “I’m surprised you know how to dance. I don’t see you showing off your moves on the dance floor.”

  “Baby, if you thought I could work your sexy little body in the bedroom, wait until I get you out on the dance floor.”

  Oh shit!

  She hadn’t forgotten about her night with Jim and if his dance moves were that good then she was in for one hell of a dance.

  Chapter Thirty

  “I’m too good to be doing this meaningless job. I deserve better than this and everyone knows it,” Dalton complained as he poked another piece of litter with the stick in his hand. He wasn’t going back to that shitty bus today. He’d come to that decision when he got up this morning and found his new cellmate standing over him with that ‘look’ in his eye. He had been alone in his cell until two days ago when the guard brought him his new addition, Bam Bam.

  Bam Bam stood six feet six inches with muscles in places men shouldn’t have them. He made it known the first night he was there that before the week was out the two of them were going to become very good friends. The hell he would be Bam Bam’s personal ass toy. He would get himself shot by a guard first before he’d allow that man anywhere near his ass.