Free Unexpected Admirer by Bernadette Marie Page A

more than admiration for a man she’d only met. This wasn’t even a crush, like so many of the girls had on him.
    In only a few meetings and phone calls, she was having feelings for a younger man whom the whole world was watching. If she wasn’t careful she’d fall in love with him, but was that what she wanted?
    She drove down her street and looked at all the houses that lined it. Houses filled with families.
    Could Jesse Charles offer her that? William Scott could.
    She pulled into her driveway and put the car in park.
    She was falling in love with Jesse, but in reality, it was William who could give her the stability that Jonah needed.
    She covered her face with her hands and sat there. By the end of Sunday she would know. She’d know Jesse’s intentions. She’d better understand her options and how she felt about them.
    There was no denying she’d rather have her husband back. But Jesse Charles had been removing him from her mind. Was that a blessing or a curse?
    Deep down inside, she sure would like to find out.
     

Chapter Seven
     
    It hadn’t gone unnoticed that William hadn’t talked to Melissa almost all week. There had been a few work related necessities, but that was it.
    Before Jesse Charles, she’d have been devastated, but as she wiped down the kitchen at nearly eleven o’clock on Saturday night, she knew it was a good thing. She was nervous enough knowing Jesse was going to be there in a few hours. How bad would she have been if William had more time to make her crazy?
    But it was getting late, and she needed to get to bed and stop worrying about either one of them.
    She turned off the kitchen light just as her cell phone buzzed in her pocket.
    It was a text from Jesse.
    Will be there sooner than thought. Taking off now. Will be in town about 1am. Is that ok?
    Was that okay? Dear Lord, she’d been nervous enough, but now he was going to come by at one in the morning? This was crazy, absolutely absurd. What was she doing? It wasn’t worth what everyone in town would say—or think. No, it wasn’t okay. He needed to wait. Oh, heck, he needed not to come.
    But as she placed her thumbs on the keyboard of her iPhone she typed Yes. I can’t wait. And, without thinking, she knew that was the truth.
    Who cared what the world thought. Jesse Charles liked her and wanted to be with her—enough so that he was buying trucks and flying private planes to get to her.
    A fluttering in her stomach had her sitting down at the kitchen table. It was real, wasn’t it? A man once voted the sexiest man of the year was on his way, in the middle of the night, to spend a few extra hours with her.
    She swallowed hard and then dashed off down the hall to her room to get ready.
    The realization that she wasn’t even going to get any sleep hit her about the time she began to freshen up her makeup and fix her hair. It was going on midnight. What was she doing?
    But she didn’t stop. She changed her clothes, spritzed on some perfume, and headed back to the kitchen to make a pot of coffee.
    When she finally sat down on the couch with a mug of coffee in hand, she looked around. She’d been cleaning for a week. There was nothing left to do. Besides, he’d been to her house before, unexpectedly, so really she needn’t worry about it.
    As twelve-thirty approached and her coffee grew cold, she felt the heaviness of her eyelids. A moment of sleep wouldn’t hurt anything.
    A moment was nearly an hour when she sat up as soon as she’d heard a car door shut out front.
    She jumped to her feet, set the mug on the coffee table, and hurried to the door.
    She peered through the window at the door. He’d come. He’d really made the trip in the middle of the night, down the mountain, just to see her. It was then she noticed he was completely alone.
    Trust. He trusted her. He hadn’t brought a bodyguard or his manager or his assistant. This was just going to be her and Jesse.
    The thought of this man wanting to be with her took