Non-Refundable Groom. Patty Salier
he’d been waiting for. Renting a place in the singles-only complex in Palms had been his goal ever since his divorce.
Garrett had been willing to do everything he could to keep the idea of getting married again permanently out of his brain.
He remembered when he’d met his ex-wife, Claire, a few short years ago. He’d just moved to Los Angeles from Seattle. He had no friends in L.A., just his elderly Aunt Rosie and a good job opportunity at Grant Property Management.
He’d met Claire at a jazz club where she was waitressing. She’d instantly connected with him and became his friend, cohort and lover. After a few months of constantly seeing each other, he’d fallen in love. When she excitedly mentioned marriage, he didn’t hesitate.
To Garrett, marriage was forever, a commitment to stay together for always. He believed that Claire felt the same way, too.
However, after six months as husband and wife, when he mentioned starting a family, she seemed preoccupied. She said her mother in Colorado was very ill and didn’t have ample medical insurance to cover the bills. Responding to her need, he agreed that she should withdraw a huge chunk of savings from their account.
Before he realized it, she’d cleaned out their bank cash, maxed out their credit cards and borrowed a bundle of money from the bank.
The night he planned to talk to her about what was going on, he got home from work and found all of her belongings gone from their apartment. Distraught, he called a waitress friend of hers at the club. He was devastated to discover that she’d bought herself a brand-new red Camaro, packed all of her things and run off with a guy she’d met at the jazz club.
With a stack of creditors’ letters in hand, Garrett went through the emotional trauma of the divorce. He realized that their marriage had meant nothing to her. He had meant nothing to her. She’d let him down, and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t sustain a happy, satisfying marriage.
He remained at the apartment he’d shared with her, but every time he bumped into married neighbors, he was constantly reminded of how his marriage had failed.
He’d lucked out when he was given the singles-only building to manage by Stanley and learned that the tenants signed a two-year lease agreeing to live a singles life while at the complex.
The moment he had heard that an apartment might become available in a few months, he had quickly signed the two-year lease and paid Sam McGrath a fistful of money ahead of time to guarantee his spot.
He needed to be alone. He couldn’t imagine sharing his life again.
Garrett saw the plumber coming out of an apartment. He started down the hall toward him. As Garrett talked with the plumber, he realized how conflicted he now felt about moving into the singles-only building. Meeting beautiful, sexy, bold Elena Martin had totally jolted his world.
And, as he listened to the plumber, he kept glancing at his watch, wanting seven o’clock to roll around so he could be with Elena again.
At the office Elena nervously looked at the office wall clock. It was six forty-five. In fifteen minutes, Garrett would arrive to pick up his tie. She anxiously glanced at the extension phones on her desk and noted that Stanley’s line was still lit. Everyone in the office had left, except him.
She held Garrett’s tie in her hand, thinking of an excuse to leave before he arrived. She couldn’t risk Stanley’s seeing them together. Maybe she could set his tie on her desktop where he could find it. Why wasn’t she doing it? She knew why. Because she couldn’t wait to see him.
“Are you working late tonight, Elena?” Stanley called out, walking toward her partition.
She frantically jammed Garrett’s tie into her top drawer. “I have some paperwork to finish,” she replied, quickly shifting folders on her desk to look busy.
“One of these days I’ve got to cut down my late hours,” her boss said. “I go home almost every night with a headache and sometimes chest pain. I feel so tense sometimes.”
As he continued talking, her stomach churned. Garrett would be there in a few minutes. Stanley would immediately be suspicious. She wished she’d insisted that Garrett not come. But her attraction to him had taken over, and now she might pay for it.
“Don’t work too late, Elena,” Stanley went on. “You’ll wind up with ulcers like me.”
“I plan to leave in a few minutes,” she pushed out. Her eyes darted to the wall clock. Six fifty-five!
“Maybe I’ll wait and ride down in the elevator with you,” her employer said.
“Don’t do that,” she blurted. “I mean, you better go without me.” She grabbed a stack of files. “I forgot that I’ve got tons of filing to do, too.”
“Well, have a great evening,” he added.
The moment Stanley was gone, she grabbed Garrett’s tie out of the drawer and put it on top of her desk where he could easily find it. She was not going to take a chance like that with her boss again.
She waited a few minutes for Stanley to get into the elevator. Then she grabbed her bag, opened the front door and slammed straight into Garrett’s arms.
Her heart pounded wildly in her chest at the feel of his warm hands on her shoulders. “Did Stanley see you come up in the elevator?” she anxiously asked.
“No,” he replied. “And if he had, I planned to tell him that I came to see him. I wouldn’t do anything to mess up your opportunity for the promotion, Elena.”
His eyes held hers with a warmth and trust that made her melt inside. “I’ll get your tie,” she stammered.
At her desk, she was ultraconscious of his body so near hers. Her hand trembled a little as she handed him the tie.
“Are you sorry I came, Elena?” he asked as he took the tie.
“It was tense waiting for you,” she told him. She couldn’t tell him that she felt exhilarated being with him. Wouldn’t that bind her closer to him before she knew what he was looking for in a relationship?
He gently slipped the tie around her neck and drew her close to him. “I had to see you,” he admitted.
“I’m glad you’re here,” she heard herself say.
His gaze drifted to her lips, and she wanted him to kiss her more than anything. Then his mouth covered hers. When she felt his tongue touch hers, every vein in her body felt electrified. She lightly bit his bottom lip, and he moaned. Responding to his passion, she circled her arms around his neck and pressed her body tightly against his.
The ringing of the telephone suddenly brought her back to the office. She slipped free of his arms, handed him the tie and picked up the receiver. Her sister’s voice filled her ear.
“El, why are you still at the office?” Jan asked. “You always let me know when you’re working late.”
“Sorry, I forgot to call,” she told her, aware of Garrett’s fingers lightly touching her hair. “I had some things to finish up.”
“I received a card from the Marriage Connection,” her sister went on. “It’s got the name of the restaurant for your Saturday night date.”
She saw Garrett walk over to the window. She felt guilty talking to her sister about a date with another man when she wanted to be with him. How could she go out on a date with someone else when her heart ached to be with Garrett?
“Jan, I’ll talk to you later.” Then she hung up and picked up her bag. “I’ve got to go,” she said, avoiding his eyes because of the content of her sister’s call.
In the hallway she was relieved when the elevator immediately came, and there were a few people inside as she got in with him. She blindly stared at the floor numbers lighting up on the metal wall.
The