The Future of Love (Bachelor Billionaire #6) (15 page)

“
Yes,”
she said. “I'm not sure what they wanted. He just said to tell
you they were here.”

As
soon as Gavin was set for the day, Jenny sat at her desk and her mind
wondered on everything that had to do with Kyle. Hours had gone by
and she hadn't heard from him. She didn't realize how much that
vacation and the two days that followed had changed things for her.
He was a great guy, and she found herself missing him. She couldn't
help it. She had to text him.

Jenny:
Busy day?

He
never answered. She went home after work, ate dinner, and sat in her
room reading. Becky had asked her questions when they were alone but
let it drop when Jenny didn't say much. Just as Jenny felt her eyes
closing, she heard the buzz of her phone and jumped.

Kyle:
I had a few meetings. How was yours?

Jenny:
Are you mad at me?

Kyle:
Why would you ask that?

Jenny:
You seemed like it when you were at the office today.

Kyle:
I just have a lot of my mind. I'm sorry about that.

Jenny:
Like what? Maybe I can help.

Kyle:
I doubt it. Did you miss me tonight? Nobody to keep you out late?

Jenny:
I did actually. I'm already in bed. The last two days were really
nice. Thank you for letting me see your house and for showing me just
a tiny bit of what you do. I really had a great time. It made me
realize that I need to get out more.

Kyle:
You can come over anytime you want. Who knows, maybe you can learn
what we do, and we can steal you away from the competition. Can I ask
you something? It's not really any of my business. I was just
curious.

Jenny:
Be careful what you offer. I'm not sure you'd want me at your house
every day playing your games. What did you want to ask?

Kyle:
Have you and Ethan ever dated or anything?

Jenny:
No way. Why would you ask that?

Kyle:
Nevermind.

Jenny:
I know why you're asking. Years ago, before you even moved here,
Becky and Julie came to the office to see Gavin. He was in the
conference room with Ethan. I joked with Becky and said something
about Ethan being cute. I didn't know he was with Julie. She was
pissed. It became a joke between the three of us. He knows about it.
Julie jokes about giving him to me when she's mad at him. There was
never anything between us. I love watching him and Julie together.
They're so happy.

Kyle:
I shouldn't have asked. I just thought it was strange that she was
saying stuff in Hawaii and you were laughing about it.

Jenny:
You can ask anything you want. I have nothing to hide. My life is
pretty quiet and boring. I made a stupid mistake once, and now I'm
trying to get it back on track. Other than that, I work, run, read,
and relax. I have to run triple tomorrow morning. Do you have plans?

Kyle:
Before work?

Jenny:
Yes.

Kyle:
You sure you want to run with me again?

Jenny:
Of course.

Kyle:
Since you've driven here twice, I'll meet you where you run over
there.

They
went on to make plans to meet in the morning at a park not too far
away from Gavin and Becky's and the subject of Ethan was dropped.
Jenny couldn't wait to go to sleep so she could see him.

She
was up and ready early the next morning. Kyle was already at the park
waiting when she pulled up. They talked and walked for a bit before
setting off on their run. She liked having someone next to her, even
if they both had their music on. It was nice not being there alone.

By
the time they finished, they were both sweating and in need of
showers. She could not stop checking him out and hoped he hadn't
noticed. There was no way she wanted to chase him away. It was the
best run she'd had in a long time.

Jenny
went to work with the biggest smile. She could feel it stretch across
her face. Gavin was already there when she got there. She knew he was
gone when she'd gone home to shower after her run. They went over his
schedule for the day, and he gave her a list of things he needed her
to do. She was on her way out of his office when he called her back
in.

“
Yes,”
she said.

“
You
seem different. I don't remember ever seeing you this happy. What's
with the change?” he asked.

“
I'm
just happy,” she said. “I'm ready to move on am looking
forward to the future. I want to make some new friends and have fun
for a bit.”

“
Tell
me if you ever need anything,” he said.

“
I
will,” she answered.

“
It's
nice to see you happy.”

She
walked out to her desk and sat down. Kyle was the reason she was so
happy. She looked down at her phone and smiled seeing a new text from
him.

Kyle

The
next three weeks were busy for Kyle. He was working on getting his
sister's birthday gift situated in time. He'd also had some meetings
with new clients. He was taking on more and more each week and was
happy Ethan was finally pulling back.

Jenny
had met him every morning, and they had gotten into a running
routine. Some days they met closer to his house and others closer to
hers. He really liked that he had someone to run with. There were
still times he wanted to run alone, but they were happening less and
less.

She'd
come over to his house on the weekends to hang out. They spent a lot
of time in the basement playing the games, and she'd asked several
times if he'd show her more. He was surprised that she was still
picking things up quickly and had actually finished a very small,
simple game. She sat in front of the laptop for hours without
mentioning getting up. He never pressured her and even suggested
taking breaks. She seemed to really like what he was showing her.

His
kitchen was stocked with food, so they either ordered food or cooked.
She'd offered to cook for him, but he didn't let that happen. Kyle
liked when they cooked together. They took turns choosing what they
would make. Kyle knew they'd both learned a few new things. The food
was delicious every time. They sat and talked while they ate in the
dining room and would move into the living room to watch movies. They
took turns choosing those as well.

By
the third weekend, she was at his house the entire time. She'd go
home to sleep, but they'd meet up again in the morning for their run.
She'd even showered at his house a time or two. They were really
building a great friendship. He was happy to see her getting
comfortable enough around him to get a drink or grab food without
asking. She thought nothing of grabbing a blanket and pillow to relax
during a movie. He could tell she was relaxing more and more, and he
was the same way with her. Kyle enjoyed having someone around to
spend time with. He looked forward to seeing her and made sure to get
as much as he could done at work during the week so he could spend
time with her on the weekends. He'd even stopped thinking about the
fact that he liked her before. Any awkward feelings he had about the
past were gone. He was enjoying his time with her as friends.

It
was Friday night, and she'd just left his house. His sister's
birthday party was the next day, and he was hoping she'd be so happy
when she got his present. All he could think about was Hawaii and how
much he enjoyed being there. He'd worked hard to have everything in
order to give her his present on time. Kelly was an amazing sister,
and she deserved so much happiness. He was waiting for Jenny to text
him to let him know she was home and was a little concerned that it
was taking longer than normal. Kyle was worried he'd fall asleep
before hearing from her, so he picked up the phone and called her.

“
Hello,”
she answered.

“
Hey,”
he said. “You're usually home by now. I was worried, so I
thought I'd call. I hope you don't mind.”

“
Hold
on one second,” she said.

He
heard her talking away from the phone but wasn't sure what she was
saying.

“
Okay,”
she finally said. “Sorry about that. Guess where I've been
invited?”

“
Where?”
he asked.

“
To
your parents' house tomorrow,” she said. “I tried to say
no, but Becky and Gavin kept insisting that I go. I hope you don't
mind.”

“
Why
would I mind?” he asked. “It's my sister's birthday.”

“
Maybe
I can get out of it in the morning.”

“
Go,”
he said. “They all love you. You'll have fun. I'm sure my mom
and John will cook something good.”

“
You
sure you don't mind?” she asked.

“
No,”
he said. “Of course not.”

They
hung up the phone. Kyle wasn't going running in the morning. They'd
already talked about that. He was supposed to go over his mom and
John's to help her with whatever she needed for the party.

Kyle
had everything he needed as he headed out the following morning. He
helped his mom before sitting down with John to watch a game on
television.

“
So,”
John said. “You've been pretty busy lately.”

“
I
have,” was all Kyle said.

“
Anything
new?” John asked.

“
Nope,”
Kyle answered. “Just hanging out with friends.”

“
Your
mom said you had a girl over a few weeks ago.”

“
I
did,” Kyle said. “She's a friend of mine.”

Sandy
yelled out for Kyle to come and help her with something. He was happy
to get out of his conversation with John. He helped her until the
first family arrived. Sandy had it set up so that Kelly and her
family would arrive last. It was kind of a surprise, except they knew
she wouldn't miss all the cars in the driveway.

Ethan
and his crew were the first to arrive. Kyle went out to help bring
the kids in. He knew Julie was still feeling kind of rough. She
wrapped her arms around him and pulled him into a hug. Then he
grabbed their little girl and carried her into the house. Sandy had
toys all around the living room for the younger kids to play with and
a television with a game system in the other room for the older ones.
Josh and Lisa arrived with their kids at the same time as Heath and
Tara with theirs. Gavin and Becky showed up with their kids last.
Jenny was with them.

As
soon as she walked into the house, she looked over at Kyle and
smiled. He nodded to her before showing the kids where they could
play. There was definitely a slight tension in the air. It seemed
like each time he even looked in her direction, Gavin was watching
him.

Becky
quickly pulled Jenny with her to go talk to all of the ladies. Kyle
offered them all drinks and laughed when they joked about him being
their waiter. He let them know quickly that they could get their own
if they wanted.

Kelly
finally showed up with her husband and kids. She seemed genuinely
surprised and happy about the party. Dinner went perfectly. There was
so many people that they were eating everywhere. Kyle made sure to
check on Jenny a few times without anyone noticing. They had cake and
ice cream and sang to his sister. He loved seeing her happy. Her life
really had gotten so much better when the truth was revealed about
her dad. She'd finally gotten the life she'd deserved that his father
hadn't even attempted to give her. John brought her presents out and
her kids helped her open them. She'd gotten a ton of clothes and
jewelry and loved all of it.