Read Online Desire by Design by Paula Altenburg - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Paula Altenburg
Ads: Link
I.D. from where she was. Panic-stricken, she thought of who might be calling her and settled on the worst-case scenario.
“Let it ring. It’s probably my mother.” Unless, of course, it was Claude, calling to see if she’d gotten the message he’d left her. That would be the post-apocalyptic scenario.
Matt had already grabbed the phone, though. His apologetic smile as he passed her the receiver seemed to say, “ Isn’t that cute? She doesn’t want to talk to her mother when there’s a man in the house .”
Which was true enough. Eve didn’t want her mother getting any of her hopes up. Eve was through with men.
She hit the green Talk button. She’d feel stupid not answering it now.
Her mother’s voice came through loud and clear. “Hello, sweetheart. I was wondering…if it rains, we can’t have the party outdoors. Do you think we should rent one of those big tents, just in case?”
What Eve thought was that the whole family should have chipped in and sent her parents on a cruise for their fortieth anniversary. But what she said was, “Renting a tent sounds like a good idea.”
“And you’re sure you’re still coming?” her mother finished anxiously, reigniting Eve’s all-too-familiar pangs of guilt. She’d blown off too many family functions in the past, and this one was important. Her mother kept calling it a party, when in fact it was more of a family reunion.
“Of course, I’ll be there.”
“Good. Because there’s someone we’d like you to meet.”
Eve’s guilt gave way to an equally familiar irritation. Her mother couldn’t seem to understand that she wasn’t interested in meeting men. Her glance drifted to Matt, and she shifted around in her chair to face away from him.
After she said good-bye, she turned to find his clear blue eyes fixed on her. She lowered her own in confusion. It would be too much to hope that he hadn’t overheard that last bit of the conversation. Her mother’s voice carried, after all.
“My mother thinks marriage is the greatest accomplishment a woman can achieve,” Eve said, heat clawing her cheeks. “She’s always trying to fix me up with men.”
“If it helps matters any, my mother has a thing about marriage, too.” Matt laughed without a whole lot of humor. “She’s tried it five times. I think she holds the record for the shortest marriages in history.” He picked at a loose thread on the arm of the sofa. “People who can’t commit shouldn’t keep trying.”
While Eve found five excessive—one had been more than enough for her—she still felt the need to defend his mother. “Maybe she wants to commit but is having difficulty finding the right man.”
Matt’s expression conveyed his opinion of that theory. “Don’t get me wrong. I love her. But she’s done enough comparison shopping to at least be able to find one she can tolerate. I think a person should know what they want and go after it. None of this ‘Oops, I made a mistake.’ Do a little research beforehand. Whatever happened to ‘marriage is forever?’ Why else would anyone bother?”
Inside, Eve winced. He had some strong opinions on the matter, but she’d heard too many similar comments from her own family to let that statement pass. Nobody ever said marriage was supposed to be easy. Couldn’t you give it more time? Couldn’t you at least try and work things out ?
“Maybe she’s looking for that special someone she can respect and admire, and who respects and admires her in return,” Eve said.
Matt’s dark head tilted slightly sideways, and he stared at her for a long moment. “Is that what you look for in a relationship? Mutual respect and admiration?”
When she’d married Claude, she supposed she’d done so because he’d made her feel respected and admired. At first. And she’d certainly been impressed by him. At first.
She drained the last drops of her coffee and stifled a huge yawn. “I’m not looking for a relationship. I’m quite happy with
“Let it ring. It’s probably my mother.” Unless, of course, it was Claude, calling to see if she’d gotten the message he’d left her. That would be the post-apocalyptic scenario.
Matt had already grabbed the phone, though. His apologetic smile as he passed her the receiver seemed to say, “ Isn’t that cute? She doesn’t want to talk to her mother when there’s a man in the house .”
Which was true enough. Eve didn’t want her mother getting any of her hopes up. Eve was through with men.
She hit the green Talk button. She’d feel stupid not answering it now.
Her mother’s voice came through loud and clear. “Hello, sweetheart. I was wondering…if it rains, we can’t have the party outdoors. Do you think we should rent one of those big tents, just in case?”
What Eve thought was that the whole family should have chipped in and sent her parents on a cruise for their fortieth anniversary. But what she said was, “Renting a tent sounds like a good idea.”
“And you’re sure you’re still coming?” her mother finished anxiously, reigniting Eve’s all-too-familiar pangs of guilt. She’d blown off too many family functions in the past, and this one was important. Her mother kept calling it a party, when in fact it was more of a family reunion.
“Of course, I’ll be there.”
“Good. Because there’s someone we’d like you to meet.”
Eve’s guilt gave way to an equally familiar irritation. Her mother couldn’t seem to understand that she wasn’t interested in meeting men. Her glance drifted to Matt, and she shifted around in her chair to face away from him.
After she said good-bye, she turned to find his clear blue eyes fixed on her. She lowered her own in confusion. It would be too much to hope that he hadn’t overheard that last bit of the conversation. Her mother’s voice carried, after all.
“My mother thinks marriage is the greatest accomplishment a woman can achieve,” Eve said, heat clawing her cheeks. “She’s always trying to fix me up with men.”
“If it helps matters any, my mother has a thing about marriage, too.” Matt laughed without a whole lot of humor. “She’s tried it five times. I think she holds the record for the shortest marriages in history.” He picked at a loose thread on the arm of the sofa. “People who can’t commit shouldn’t keep trying.”
While Eve found five excessive—one had been more than enough for her—she still felt the need to defend his mother. “Maybe she wants to commit but is having difficulty finding the right man.”
Matt’s expression conveyed his opinion of that theory. “Don’t get me wrong. I love her. But she’s done enough comparison shopping to at least be able to find one she can tolerate. I think a person should know what they want and go after it. None of this ‘Oops, I made a mistake.’ Do a little research beforehand. Whatever happened to ‘marriage is forever?’ Why else would anyone bother?”
Inside, Eve winced. He had some strong opinions on the matter, but she’d heard too many similar comments from her own family to let that statement pass. Nobody ever said marriage was supposed to be easy. Couldn’t you give it more time? Couldn’t you at least try and work things out ?
“Maybe she’s looking for that special someone she can respect and admire, and who respects and admires her in return,” Eve said.
Matt’s dark head tilted slightly sideways, and he stared at her for a long moment. “Is that what you look for in a relationship? Mutual respect and admiration?”
When she’d married Claude, she supposed she’d done so because he’d made her feel respected and admired. At first. And she’d certainly been impressed by him. At first.
She drained the last drops of her coffee and stifled a huge yawn. “I’m not looking for a relationship. I’m quite happy with
Similar Books
