Chapter 6

© Copyright 2006 by Kimberly Jones

The time seemed to pass by before Sharon could even catch a breath. Thanksgiving came and went and she and Constance had a great time with the family. They had even received wonderful news that Sondra and James were expecting a new addition into there family. Everyone was ecstatic for them knowing that they have been trying to get pregnant for a while now. James was very attentive with his wife; watching her every move and making sure that she didn’t over do it. The meal was like no other with two different types of turkey, one fried and the other smoked. All kinds of side dishes that had made Sharon’s mouth water. She was very thankful that day, but couldn’t help but think about Michael off and on. Everything between them was back to normal, and after their Thanksgiving holiday, they were back to laughing and having a good time together as if nothing had ever happened. Sharon knew that she should be grateful because of the fact they were able to tell each other almost anything again, but she found herself wishing for more. Because she knew that he didn’t love her made working with him more difficult. Watching him come in day in and day out was very distracting for her. He looked so handsome to her that she was sure that he caught her staring a few times. However, that never stopped Sharon from looking. When they would go out to lunch, she caught plenty of women stare or smile at him, and she couldn’t blame them because Michael was very attractive.

Sharon stood at her desk that morning, very thankful that she now had an assistant. During the few weeks that passed, Michael had done quite a bit of hiring. He finally found himself a crew, and a very good one. They all were very talented. Some had different taste in decorating than others, but they all worked very well together. The business seemed to be growing with new clients calling in almost everyday. Michael was even more busy than usual. Some nights he didn’t make it to his home until one or two o’clock in the morning, but Sharon knew that he was content in knowing that his business was a success.

When he walked in that morning, however, Sharon became tongue tied. He had on his black and red pin strip suite with a red button down shirt and a black tie. His hair was perfectly groomed and he was smiling and showing off his pearly white teeth, and all Sharon was able to do was stare. Everyone else had said hello to him except for her, and she didn’t even notice because she was too busy wondering if there really was a crime for a man to look that good.

She didn’t realize that she was looking with her mouth open until he stood in front of her grinning from ear to ear, so deep in her thoughts she was.

“Good morning,” his soft baritone voice broke into her thoughts.

“G-good morning,” she said as she bent her head to hide her embarrassment. She felt her face heat up the moment she realized that she was looking at him as if he was the answer to her prayers.

“Do I have any messages?”

“Um…yes, one moment,” she said as she began to search her desk. During her search, she managed to cut her hand with paper and she even almost closed her hand in a drawer. For some reason her body was trembling and she seemed to act as if she had all thumbs. Dropping things here and there, she finally found the messages. When she handed them to him, she silently prayed that he didn’t notice her shaking hand. “There you are,” she breathlessly said.

“Thank you,” he said standing there for a moment reading each one. Sharon found herself wondering if he was doing this on purpose. This had seemed to be the way their mornings started for at least a week now. He would come in looking just as attractive as he looked now, and she would find herself staring and trembling and even dropping things around her. “Great, I’ll get on these now,” he said before he went into his office.

With a deep sigh, Sharon flopped down onto her seat, and looked over at her assistant who was trying her best to hide her smile. It seemed that almost the entire staff knew how she felt about her boss, and she was hoping that he didn’t realize it too. It would be too embarrassing for him to find out her feelings especially after knowing that he wasn’t in love with her anymore. Just thinking about it made her eyes fill with tears. If she had known that she would feel this way one day, she would have left Darnell alone, but now she found herself in a situation, where she is in love alone.

~*~*~*~

Once inside his office, Michael threw his messages on his desk and sat in his chair with his head in his hands. He didn’t understand what was wrong with Sharon these days. One minute she’s easy to talk too, and the next, she was clumsier than anyone he ever known. He didn’t recall her ever being clumsy, but there she was dropping everything in sight.

Standing, Michael went before his window with his hand in his pockets, wondering what was going to be his next move. He had decided that it was best for things to return normal for them, so he kept his distance from her, only approaching when the time was right, and even then, he found himself struggling against the urge to hold her of kiss her. He knew that those things were going to have to wait, if he wanted to win her heart. Not being able to even hold her hand, made him think of how it was during high school, the only difference was that there wasn’t anyone standing in his way. The weeks that had passed by, had allowed them to get closer than before, but now, it’s almost as if they were starting all over again. She was always watchful about what she did. Almost as if she was hiding something from him. Knowing that fact, didn’t sit to well with him. How was he going to win her heart if she didn’t trust him enough to talk to him about anything? They were supposed to be friends, and he knew that she was hiding something from him. That much hurt him like nothing else. Her clumsiness and the way she try to avoid looking into his eyes said it all.

It’s been a little over a month already and there was still no progress. Knowing that with the Lord, all things are possible, he bent his head and prayed out loud, asking the Lord for guidance, and once he was finished, he felt at peace with the whole situation, he began to get back to work. Making all the necessary phone calls and working with the crew on the next project, and before he knew it, it was lunch time, and from there, everyone had left for the evening. It wasn’t until he was getting ready to leave at around 7 that night, he realized that he wasn’t the only one left in the building. When he went out into the lobby, there she was bending her head of some papers. Her hand coming up to her mouth to cover a yawn, and when she looked up, there eyes met, but she immediately returned them to her work.

“Working late?”

“Yep,” she said with her eyes focus on the task before her.

“Your mom must be watching Connie.”

“Well, since it’s Friday, Connie wanted to stay with her. I thought that it would be a good idea, and I could get a lot more work done around the house or sleep late if I wa—“

“Come to the movies with me?”

“What? I mean isn’t it too late,” she said looking up with a puzzled look.

“Well…” Michael shrugged trying to come up with a good excuse. “I mean since Connie is away for the weekend I thought that it would be nice if you might want to go out,” he said the first thing that came to his mind, and after he said it, he wished someone would have pinched him. His excuse was lame even to his own ears.

“I don’t know. I mean I got a lot of work to do here, and—“

“I understand that, but when was the last time you had time for you? I believe we’ll have a great time together.”

“Yeah, we would,” Sharon let out a sigh. “Okay, I’ll go. Just give me a sec.”

If Sharon had of kept looking at Michael, she would have saw the relief that cross his face, and by the time she was finished, Michael had his emotions under control again, and he held the door for her as they walked out.

Going to the movies was a great idea, and they had a great time together, and even ran into Erin and a friend of hers. Both couples decided to go to The Breakfast House to eat, and as they sat at the table waiting on there meal, they began to talk about many things.

“So, girl, what have you been up to? We haven’t talk for weeks,” Erin said holding Sharon’s hand.

“I know. I was thinking the same thing when I saw you,” Sharon said as they hug for at least the fourth time. “So tell all, how are things going?”

“You first.”

“Everything is great. Connie is growing before my eyes, and my new job is a huge success, oh, Erin, there’s so much that I don’t think we could catch up in just a few minutes.”

“I know,” Erin said and as the ladies talked Michael and Erin’s date Brandon were talking amongst themselves. Smiling at the way the two women tried their best to catch up in the others life. Around the time the food arrived, the ladies finally included the men into the conversation as well. After a while, the ladies excused themselves to go to the powder room, once there they began to really talk.

“So, where did you meet him?” Sharon asked as she pulled out a comb and began to touch up her hair.

“Oh, Sharon, isn’t he fine. I met him at the grocery store.”

“The grocery store? Really?”

“Yes, I was in the produce aisle and there he was walking toward me looking like he stepped out of a magazine. When he said Hi, I said humph¬—“ they both burst out laughing over this. “and he was like excuse me. Girl, I had to clear my head because all I could think about was how fine he was. “

“That sounds like you,” Sharon said after she finally caught her breath. “But he does seem like a very nice guy, and he looks at you as if you’re a rare jewel.”

“He does, doesn’t he? You know Michael looks at you the same way too.”

“Who? Michael. He only sees me as a friend,” Sharon said ignoring her friend as she put on some lip gloss.

“I’m telling you, Sharon, when you’re not looking, his eyes tell all, and what I saw was a man who cares very deeply.”

“Of course, he does. We’re friends, and we’ve been through a lot together.”

“Okay, if that’s what you say, but I know what I saw.”

“Well, you saw wrong, because Michael told me himself that he only sees me as a friend.”

“He told you that?”

“Well…not exactly in those words, but that’s what he was saying,” Sharon said as she gave herself one last look in the mirror and then turned to look at her friend. “It’s a long story. I’ll have to call you later and tell you about it.”

“Listen to me, Sharon. What I saw tonight was a man who had deep feelings for a woman. Now, you can believe what you want, but that man in there is either in love with you or on his way to falling in love with you.”

“And who made you an expert?”

“I’m not an expert. I just know what I saw, and honey, sometimes these eyes don’t lie.”

“Well, I hate to tell you this Erin, but I think you need your eyes check, because your seeing things,” they both laughed as they walked out of the restroom and to the table where the men were waiting.

~*~*~*~

Laughing Michael walked Sharon to her door. “I like your friend. She’s funny,” he said with a smile.

“Yes, she’s a sweetheart. She always knows how to bring a smile to your face when you’re feeling down.”

“Yeah, I can tell,” Michael said gazing into her eyes.

Sharon’s heart seemed to skip a beat. She wasn’t sure of what she saw there, but the look in his eyes made her think of what Erin had told her. When he stepped a little closer to the point that she had to raise her head to look at him, Sharon found that it was getting harder for to breath, so fast was her heart beating. “I…Um…” Sharon seemed to be in a lost for words as she watched him closely, but the moment seemed to pass away when he backed away from her a little.

“We need to talk,” he said as he moved to stand beside her with his back leaning against the front door.

“What about?”

“Shar, I don’t…I don’t know how to say this, but—“

“Look, Michael, you don’t have to say anything,” Sharon said as she began to move around frantically. “I’m sorry for the way I’ve been acting. I don’t know what’s the matter with me,” she said throwing her hands in the air. “It’s like I can’t…I can’t think around you. I get so nervous that I might do the wrong thing, and I…I’m so,” all the emotions that were building within her decided to come out in the form of tears. She wiped at them with the back of her hand, but they seemed to continue to flow.

Michael took her into his arm as her body trembled with each sob. “Shhh, it’s okay,” he said brushing her hair back with his hand. “I understand.”

“I just don’t want our friendship to end. I like what we have, and I would rather have that then nothing at all,” she said into the front of his red shirt. If she had of looked up, she would have seen the disappointment and pain written into his eyes. When she did look up at him, he wasn’t prepared for how kissable she looked at that moment. Against his better judgment, his gently brushed his lips against hers, and then he raised his head only to see shock written all over her face.

“Why did you do that?”

“I…I’m sorry,” he said releasing his hold on her. “It won’t happen again,” he said with much regret. “I think you need to get into the house.”

Without further encouragement, Sharon unlocked her door and was safely into the comfort of her living room. With a sigh she leaned against the door with her hands clutching the keys against her chest. “Oh, Lord, what in the world just happened?”


HEY! and don't forget to e-mail Kimberly Jones if you have a comment! She would really like to hear from you.





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