Chapter 10

Paige's mind was racing as she drove to Nathaniel Donovan's house. She felt like she was on fire and she was blasting the air conditioning in her car. Her mind kept wandering to the picture he texted her and his muscled torso. She shook her head and tried to focus on the road. Normally, she'd be furious about it, but she was trying to give him the benefit of the doubt. She chalked this up to him donating to the shelter and being willing to donate more.

She drove into a mountain area and there was a check in box with someone inside in front of a gate. There was a streetlight by this structure, but there were not a lot of lights on the road in front of her and it was dark. Paige hated driving in the dark, or being in the dark in general. She had half a mind to lecture Mr. Donovan on the benefits of a well lit road as a 'bonus' presentation.

She approached the box with her car and rolled down the window. The security officer in the box was waiting for her.

"Hi, I have a meeting with Mr. Donovan," Paige said.

"Name?" he asked.

"Paige Everett," she stated. She watched as he pulled up a picture of her and compared the her to it. He hit a buzzer and the gate opened.

"Mr. Donovan is expecting you. Please proceed to the main house by following the road. Do not make any turns off the road or you will be at another building," he stated with a smile.

"Thank you," Paige said with a smile. She rolled up her window and proceeded to drive up the road. It was paved and long. She came to the top of the hill and she saw the illuminated 'house'. 'Of course he lives in an enormous mansion' Paige thought. She drove down to the house and she saw two men in suits waiting in front of the door. She stopped her vehicle by the front door and they hurried over to her.

"Miss Everett, I will take your keys to park your vehicle," one man said, holding his hand out.

"Oh, thank you. Let me grab my things," Paige said, unlocking the glove compartment and grabbing her paperwork. She exited her vehicle and handed the man her keys. The other man in a suit took his placed by her side.

"Please follow me, Miss Everett. I will take you to the reception area where you will meet Mr. Donovan," he said, leafing her into the home.

There was a lot of rich walnut wood in the furniture and floors. The rugs and furniture looked quite expensive and there were several paintings adorning the walls. There were gold accents in the lights and some of the furniture and decorations. 'Was this Mr. Donovan's taste or someone else's?' she wondered. It was very lavish. The man led her to a parlor and told her that Mr. Donovan would be there momentarily. Paige sat down on one of the sofas and waited for his arrival.

Nathaniel was informed of Paige's arrival from the moment she was allowed on his property by his gate security guard. He felt his heart jump in his chest when his butler let him know she was waiting in the reception area. He smirked to himself, thinking about his antics via text message. 'I hope she liked that last photo,' he thought. He was wearing the outfit that she had chosen and everything would be according to her other choices.

Nathaniel had decided that he was infatuated with Paige. He didn't dare call it love, as he only met her today and he'd never felt that for anyone. But, he could see himself dating her, after careful consideration on his part, which was more than he could say if any woman in his adult life. He hadn't had a girlfriend since high school. All of these thoughts and symptoms could only be logically explained by infatuation. So, he had decided that he was going to pursue Paige. Anybody that made him feel anything was welcome. He was cold to all he other women he was 'with' (he didn't really know the term for going to events and sleeping with a girl once and never speaking to her again) because they sparked nothing in him except an erection. Paige made him feel warm. So, he would woo her. He could be romantic if he wanted to. He might have to search suggestions for romantic gestures on the internet but he could do it. He'd figure the rest out afterwards.

After Nathaniel's butler informed him that Paige was in his home, he hurried to the reception area. He opened the door and found her hair vas adding over her face as she studied the papers she brought. The way her little nose wiggled as she mumbled to herself was adorable to him. 'Everything she does is adorable or sexy. There is no in between,' he thought to himself before clearing his throat. She looked up and he melted under her gaze. 'I'm in trouble,' he thought, 'This gets worse the more I'm around her.'

"Paige, I'm so glad you made it. Let's eat and then we can move to my office to discuss the proposal," he said with a grin. He gestured that she should follow him and Paige got up. He waved his butler over and said, "Take her paperwork and place it on my desk."

"I wanted to say again that I appreciate you making time in your schedule to see me tonight," Paige stated, handing her papers to the butler and then walking behind him.

"I'm very interested to see your vision for Second Chances and how I can help, so I'm happy to make time," he said.

Paige studied Nathaniel as she walked behind him. She thought that choosing a more casual outfit would be better, but he looked even more handsome in this outfit. Paige was also having flashes of what was underneath that shirt going through her mind. She felt hot. They reached the dining area and the chandelier was illuminated, lighting the room well. 'The last thing I needed was a candlelit dinner with him,' she thought to herself.

Nathaniel held a chair out for her to the left of the head of the table. As she sat down, she took off her blazer and a butler that she didn't notice hurried over to her.

"Miss Everett, I can take that and hand it up for you," he said, arms outstretched and ready to receive it.

"Oh, thank you," she said with a small smile, handing over her jacket.

She sat down and unraveled the cloth napkin from its holder and placed it on her lap. Nathaniel had seated himself at the head of the table and did the same.

Nathaniel was watching her intently. Without the blazer, her turtleneck sweater showed off all of her curves. He wished that he could be that sweater and was the one clinging to her skin. 'How on Earth did no one realize that there's a goddess in this town?' he thought.