Only The Beginning

Chapter Nine

A/N Fun Fact: ONLY THE BEGINNING is set in Halifax, Nova Scotia! 

When Melissa and Jared arrived at his apartment, he was buzzing with ideas and excitement. He breathlessly told Rovena about the meeting with Mr. Donaghy and what it could possibly mean for a change in their fortune.

"Success!" Rovena clasped her hands together, then hugged them both. "How did I get so lucky to find such a handsome and smart man?" Her low-cut t-shirt was paired with black cropped yoga pants, but on Rovena they reached the tops of her red polished toenails.

"This calls for food. You'll stay, Melissa, yes?" Her accent sounded like Mee-lee-sah. She then looked at Melissa's wrinkled skirt and ripped stockings. "You need to change. Get out of those tired looking work clothes and into something more stylishly comfortable."

Stylishly comfortable was Rovena's trademark philosophy.

Unable to refuse her hostess's infectious hospitality, Melissa changed out of her skirt and blouse and put on the velour track suit Rovena offered her. She wouldn't have minded much except for the fact that it was deep purple and had bedazzling gold lettering across the bum of the pants.

"It's couture," Rovena explained. "I can't believe I found it at Value Bin. I swear I have a fashion fairy godmother or something."

While Rovena whisked around the kitchen, Melissa and Jared took over the table and began to brainstorm. Soon sheets of paper were scattered over its surface.

Jared had his laptop open and squinted between images.

But even though she was concentrating on the perfume ad, it seemed any new idea or concept managed to find a link to Craig, and her mind went right back to the moment when he'd walked into Mr. Donaghy's office. It was a movie clip stuck on repeat that she couldn't stop, like a gif from hell or something.

All roads lead to Rome.

Delicious smelling curry filled the air, but Melissa had no interested in eating. Her stomach was in nervous knots. It wasn't so much the embarrassment of seeing him again unexpectedly or that he'd found her so compromised, but it was the look in his eyes when he'd said her name. His tone was flat, but with an accusatory edge that pulled on her heart.

When they were together in his bed, he'd called her Brooke with such sweet desperation it sent tingles all the way to her toes. Even now, as she sat in Jared's tiny apartment kitchen, a swell of heat began to pool deep inside Melissa, remembering how he'd kissed her eyelids, whispering the wrong name.

But that, of course, was her fault. Temptation had a price and hearing him call out Brooke instead of Melissa was a luxury she didn't deserve. She'd deceived him plain and simple. It was much too selfish to even consider she was justified in having the same feeling, the same rush of her pulse when he called her by her real name.

Not that I'll even find out.

He'd said goodbye, a definite message if there ever was one. She was in advertising; she knew all about messages and getting an idea across as simply as possible.

Yup, that's why they're called one-night stands.

One night. Period.

The finality was like a cold slap. How could he dismiss her so easily? They may have only had one afternoon together, but their connection had been amazing...at least it had been for her. A stone settled in her throat. She took another drink of water to swallow it down.

The baby monitor sounded. Jared jumped up grinning and left the kitchen. He returned with Nina and slipped her into her high chair, all gurgles and smiles for Melissa. Her hands reached for the dish of orange colored puree Rovena placed on the tray with a kiss to the top of her head.