Ballerina

At 26, living at home was a kind of 'new normal' for people her age, and no one thought anything about her staying at her father's home, even while attending college. Her dad loved having her around, and doing so had allowed her to save a fair amount of money. So with a little help from her dad plus what she'd already put away teaching school, Kayla would soon have enough for a downpayment on a modest, new home.

She couldn't afford one like the model they would be representing, but there were smaller units being built, and she already had her eye on one them.

The Wheelers had done all of the prep work on the model home, as well as every other house under construction in the development, while Jeff's business partner, Charlie McKee, owned the company that built the houses. The partnership had been good for both men, and as much as Jake hated these kinds of events, he understood how important they could be to future business, one his father routinely reminded his son would one day be his.

So as he, Kayla, and Becca piled out of his truck, he put on his best happy face and headed inside.

A perky real estate agent met them just inside the door, offered them her business card, then asked if they had any questions before bending down and making a big fuss over the 'little princess'.

"I'm not a princess," Becca let her know immediately. "I'm a ballerina!"

Kayla rescued the woman from her own problem by letting her know she had a ton of questions. And that allowed Jake, who was holding Becca's hand, to go on a self-guided tour of the new house before it got busy.

He started in the kitchen and carefully looked at every detail as he, too, gave some thought to one day buying a house of his own. For now, living in his dad's spacious home was more than adequate. But as Becca got older, living there wouldn't do. And perhaps if he and his sister moved out, their father might even try and find someone to settle down with himself.

"Can I go look, Daddy?" Becca asked, already bored with watching her father looking at corners and seams and door jambs.

"Yes, but do NOT go out of this house, okay?"

"I won't!" she promised as she zipped off toward the other end of the five-bedroom, 3-1/2 bath, 2,850 square foot home.

Becca came running back by in less than a minute having already seen one end of the house in all the detail that mattered to her. Her dad barely noticed as she zoomed on by while he continued making his way around the kitchen looking under the sink at the plumbing then checking the faucet for leaks.

Jake lost track of time, and when it hit him that he hadn't seen his daughter since she went flying by, a feeling of panic welled up in him. He'd made his way to the first room on the end Becca had already seen, and when he realized he had no idea where she was, he quickly stepped into the hallway and started striding toward the other end.

He passed the kitchen then heard his daughter's voice and felt the tension drain as he zeroed in on her location.

"Oh, I see," another female voice said as he turned into the family room.

"Yes, so that's when I decided I want to be a ballerina," he heard Becca explaining.

He saw her a second later and smiled when the other female voice spoke again.

"Well, I think you're a very beautiful ballerina," the woman said as Jake walked up and stood next to his daughter.

The woman smiled at him, and as he smiled back, Becca grabbed his hand and said, "Daddy. Her name is Morgan and she's a ballerina, too!"

"Oh. I...see," he replied as he looked at the woman sitting a couple of feet in front of his daughter.

"Not hardly," the woman said with a polite laugh. "At least...not for many years."

"She used to be a ballet dancer," Becca informed her father.

The woman stood up, smiled again, then said, "I saw your daughter walking around and I told her I loved her costume, and we've been talking ever since."

"Sorry about that," Jake told her.

"No. Don't be. I loved every second of it. She's just so ...precious," the woman said with a laugh at his 'sorry' comment before introducing herself.

"My first name really is Morgan. And the last name is Anderson," she said, extending a hand.

"It's a pleasure meeting you. I'm Jake. Wheeler. And this is my daughter, Becca."

"Becca. What a pretty name," Morgan said to Becca with a smile.

When she turned back toward Jake, he actually looked at her for the first time. He'd noticed her before, but, like the model home, he hadn't really seen her yet. When he did, it caught him off guard because she was as attractive as anyone he'd seen in many years.

She was maybe 5' 7" tall and wearing what looked like three-inch black heels, a black skirt that fell to a couple of inches above her knee, and a long-sleeved, blue sweater that was ribbed and not too low cut. Her eyes matched the color of her top and it looked like she was a natural blonde as there were no hints of dark roots in her soft, shoulder-length hair that was smooth and nicely styled.

"So...are you a real estate agent?" Jake finally asked, assuming that's why she looked so professionally dressed.

"No. I'm moving back to the area and looking for a place to live. I...I lost my husband almost four years ago, and our daughter, Anna, is out here going to college at the University of Washington. She absolutely loves the area, and after visiting last summer, I made the decision to sell our home in Spokane, and come back here."

"So you grew up around here?" Jack asked, even though that's what she'd clearly implied, without mentioning his almost mother-in-law lived in the city Morgan was leaving.

"Yes. I was born and raised in Kent, and when I got married, my husband's business took us to the eastern side of the state, and that's where I've been ever since," Morgan replied with a very beautiful smile. "How about you, Jake?"

"Yes. Born and raised right here in...sunny-old Auburn, Washington," he told her, knowing she'd understand the humor.

"Sunny. Right. I have to say I've really missed the green. It's so beautiful here. I'm not wild about the rain, but you take the good with the bad, right?" she said very cheerfully.

"That's definitely true," Jake replied as he tried not stare.

Morgan had a body to match her face, and her face was incredibly attractive. She was clearly older than him, but he had no idea how much older. He had no intention of asking, but he was very curious because she somehow seemed much younger. He knew that didn't make any real sense, but it was the impression he came away with after their very brief chat.

"Well, we'll let you get back to seeing the house," Jake told her, giving her an out as to being able to get away.

"If you must," she said, the smile still there. "I enjoyed meeting both of you, and I want to wish this pretty little ballerina all of the success in the world."

Morgan bent down then said, "And who knows? Maybe we'll see you on television one day dancing at the Bolshoi Theater."

"What's the Bull Showy Theater?" Becca asked very innocently causing Morgan to have to cover her mouth as she laughed.

"It's in Russia, and Bolshoi means 'big' in Russian. It's one of the most famous ballet theaters in the world."

Becca pulled on her dad's finger and asked, "Can we go there?"

He glanced at Morgan who was clearly taken with the little girl then said, "No. Not right now, honey. But I'll tell you what. If you do become a ballerina, maybe you can go there someday and dance for all of the people."

"Will you come with me?" she asked just as innocently.

"Um...da!" he told her, using the only Russian word he knew which caused Morgan to laugh again.

"Duh? Why did you say 'duh'?" Becca wanted to know.

Jake let out a long, slow breath, smiled at Morgan again, then said, "Sorry, sweetie. Sometimes...daddies just...make mistakes."

"Oh. Okay!" his daughter said before tugging at his finger again. "Come on! I just saw PopPop!"

"That would be my father," Jake said as Becca continued to pull.

"It was a pleasure meeting you, Jake," Morgan told him again.

"Same here," he replied as his daughter grabbed his wrist with both hands and pulled as hard as she could. "Sorry. Duty calls!"

He saw Morgan laughing politely as he was literally pulled away. As Becca ran toward her grandfather, he glanced back and when he did, Morgan smiled again. Jake couldn't remember the last time he'd let a beautiful woman befuddle him, but when he goofily waved to her he realized he'd just been completely knocked off kilter by one.

"So...who's the actress?" he heard Kayla saying.

"What?"

"The blonde. The younger version of Morgan Fairchild," his sister said as she looked at the other Morgan.

"That's too funny," Jake told her as he ventured another look. "Her first name just happens to be Morgan. But I think she looks more like Kate Beckinsale with blonde hair."

"Hmmm. Yeah, I guess I can see that. But don't get any ideas, brother of mine. She's too old for you, and she's got a huge rock on her left hand."

Without making a big deal about it, Jake quietly said, "Her husband passed away a several years ago."

"Oh, geez. Can you help me pull my foot out of my mouth?" Kayla said, now feeling terrible.

"She said she grew up in Kent, moved to Spokane with her husband, and now her daughter, who goes to the U Dub, recently convinced her to move back here. So evidently, she's out looking to buy."

"Huh. Well, I guess an open house is a pretty good place to do that," his sister mused as they both looked Morgan's way again. She now had a man their father's age 'chatting her up', and Jake had a momentary pang of jealousy that completely surprised him.

"Get a grip, Wheeler," he told himself before telling his sister he wanted to finish his tour.

"Oh, sure. I'll keep an eye on the little princess. Oops. I hope she didn't hear that. I meant...ballerina," his sister whispered causing her brother to laugh.

When he did, she told him, "You need to smile more, dude. You're not half bad looking when you do."

"Wow. Try not to get carried away with the praise, okay?" her brother kidded back.

"And...stay away from the 40-something women, would you?" his sister said back.

"I'll try, but if I smile, and I attract a bunch of them, I'm blaming you," he told her very seriously.

"Yeah, right. Like you'd go out with anyone let alone a woman that old and..."

Morgan wrinkled her nose then begrudgingly said, "That hot."

Jake was at the far other end of the house checking out the master bathroom in his normal level of detail when he heard someone say, "I really like the higher-end finishes in this house."

He nearly hit his head on the shower door when he raised up, and when he saw who it was, Morgan was covering her mouth again as she tried not to laugh. Jake couldn't help but notice the beautiful French nails which matched the shiny lip gloss she was wearing when she raised her hand.

The perky real-estate agent was giving her the nickel tour, and she stood there quietly waiting for her potential future buyer to finish talking with the handsome younger man.

"I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to scare you. Are you okay?"

"I managed not to damage the glass door," he told her as he remembered to smile.

"Oh, good. Yes, we can't have you going around destroying solid objects...with your head," she told him, her own smile killing him.

He rapped his head with his knuckles as he tapped on the glass door with his other hand.

"Like they say, knock on...glass."

Morgan laughed again as she stepped inside a little further.

"Wow. There's room enough for two in there," she said drawing a 'what did you just say' look from Jake.

Before covering her mouth again. "I...I didn't mean..."

Now Jake laughed and said, "It's fine. I know what you meant. And yes, it's a really good-sized shower. I love the rain..."

"Oh, so there you are!" they both heard a loud, booming male voice say.

"Oh, God," Morgan said quietly before slipping her arm under Jake's, just as the real estate agent rolled her eyes and indicated she was leaving via a nod toward the door.

Jake nearly pulled away just as she pointed to the shower head and said rather loudly, "Oh, look, honey! It's that rain shower head you like so much."

Jake didn't overreact as his brain tried to figure out what was going on. It only took a second, because he understood as soon as he looked over and saw the man who'd been talking to her earlier.

When he turned his head back toward the shower, Morgan moved her mouth to his ear and said, "Please play along so he'll leave me alone."

Jake looked back at the shower head and said, "Right. Yeah, we've talked about getting one for quite awhile now, haven't we...sweetheart?"

He felt Morgan squeeze his arm in thanks before she replied.

"Yes, we have, and they have these in both of the shower stalls. So what do you think?" she asked as she gently pulled him toward the door so she could escape this man she obviously wasn't very fond of.

When the were a few steps away, Morgan let go of his arm and said, "Thank you!"

"Wow. He must have made quite an impression on you," Jake said with a nervous laugh.

"What a...pig! He...he hit on me within 30 seconds. I kept trying to get away from him, but he wouldn't let me go. Thank goodness someone came by with food and distracted him," she told Jake quietly.

"In that case, it was my pleasure," he let her know, still remembering to smile. "And if you ever need a fake boyfriend again, just let me know, okay?"

Morgan laughed happily and promised she would.

"Do you sell real estate, Jake?" she asked before he could get away.

"Me? No. But I did excavate the area under the house for the foundation," he told her. "I'm a heavy equipment operator. So if you ever need a hole dug...I'm your guy, too."

"Okay. Good to know," she told him, that perfect, white smile still there.

"My dad owns an excavation company, and we partnered with McKee Homes to build this development, but I can only take credit—or the blame—for the dirt. Or actually—the hole left from removing the dirt. So...yeah," Jake said, knowing he wasn't doing so well in the conversation arena.

"I'm actually thinking very seriously about buying one of the homes in this development. I'm not sure I need quite this much space for just my daughter and myself, but this one is really nicely done."

"They have a pretty wide variety from around 1,750 square feet to just over 3,500, so you should be able to find something to fit your needs. And honestly? I've actually been thinking about buying one myself."

"Oh. Is there a...Mrs. Wheeler or just you and your little princess?" she asked very politely.

"Oh, don't let her hear you call her that, okay? It's—ballerina."

Morgan winced as though she'd done something very wrong then whispered, "Sorry. It'll never happen again. Ballerina it is."

"But no, there's no...Mrs. Wheeler," he said quietly and without a smile.

He saw the discomfort on Morgan's face thens said, "Her mother and I aren't married."

"Oh, well, my husband and I lived together for a year or so before we got married," she offered.

"It's...it's not that," Jake said. "We uh, we never did get married or even live together. Becca's mom passed away and I uh, I've been raising her by myself for the last 3 1/2 years or so."

"Oh, my. I should probably stop asking questions before I bury myself in the huge hole I've just dug. For myself."

Morgan looked almost mortified, so Jake smiled and said, "If you'd have called me, I'd have dug it for you. And...at a discount."

Very relieved, she laughed and thanked him for bailing him out.

"My pleasure," Jake assured her.

Just then, the same man came out of the bathroom and Morgan again put her arm through Jake's and laughed, as she said a little too loudly, "The master bedroom is just as nice. I could see us having a lot of fun in there, too, honey!"

The older, balding, heavyset man gave Jake a dirty look as he walked by without excusing himself as Jake said, "Oh, there you go again. You and that...dirty mind of yours."

The man was far enough away that Morgan was able to laugh without drawing attention.

"Oh, my goodness! If only I were a few years younger!" she said very playfully. "Or maybe...many years younger."

Jake suddenly felt like he had to say something, and it came out before he had time to think it through.

"You're quite possibly the most attractive woman I've ever met, Morgan. I have no idea how old you are, but I don't really care. And well, I...I haven't asked anyone out in a long, long time, but I...I was wondering if you might like to, you know, um...

"Jake. Wait. Are you...are you asking me out?" she said, her eyes filled with disbelief.

He saw the look then looked away for a second before saying, "Well, I kind of was, but after that reaction, I think I'll see if I can find a rock to slither..."

She reached out and touched his arm then smiled.

"I...I'm...flattered. I just wasn't sure you were being serious. You know, after our um, faux whatever that was we just did. Twice."

"I was. I was being very serious," he told her.

"My daughter is always nagging at me to start dating again and to be open to new possibilities. I've only dated a couple of times, but if you don't think the age difference is...too extreme...I...I think I'd like that."

"Really?" he blurted out, again realizing his 'game' needed a lot of work.

"Yes. Really," Morgan replied. "I don't know anyone here in Auburn, and the friends I had have either moved away or..."

She wanted to say, "Died," but left that alone.

"Well, in that case, could we maybe exchange phone numbers?"

"Oh, yes. That might help, huh?" she replied, that dazzlingly white smile there again.

Once they had each other's numbers, Jake agreed to call or text her and see if they could agree on what to do and when.

"Oh, I'm not hard to please, Jake. I'm up for almost anything, so you choose and I'll be glad to go with you. And if you want to bring the little prin—ballerina—along, that would be just fine by me."

"Okay. I'll definitely let you know," he told her.

"And I'll look forward to it," Morgan told him just as Becca came zooming in.

"Daddy? Where have you been?" she asked as she latched on to his leg, relieved to have found her father.

"I was just talking with Morgan," he told her. "Is that okay?"

She looked up and the older, beautiful woman and nodded.

"Yes. It's okay, cuz she's very pretty."

"Ohh! Thank you, sweetheart!" Morgan told her as she bent down again.

"My mommy was very bootiful. Just like me," the little girl informed her very matter of factly, causing Jake to shrug his shoulders meaning 'kids say the darnedest things'.

"Well, I'm sure she is, because you are such a pretty...ballerina," Morgan said, using the present tense where her late mother was concerned.

"Thank you!" Becca said before tugging on her dad's finger again. "Daddy. Come on. I have to show you something, okay?"

Jake shrugged again and Morgan laughed as she said, "Go ahead, Dad. Have fun!"

"I will call you!" he told her as Becca drug him off again.

"Bye!" she called back as she looked around for 'Creepy Guy' before deciding whether or not to look at the rest of the model home.

As often happened, the thing Becca just had to show her dad was something only a five-year old could appreciate, so after dutifully saying, "Oh, how nice," Jake walked up to Kayla and asked her if she wanted to leave.

"Yeah, but we kinda just got here," she replied.

"I got more than I ever dreamed of already, so if you're game..."

She looked around for their dad, and seeing the coast was clear, she said, "In that case, let's blow this popsicle stand!"

"I want a popsicle!" Becca said as her father picked her up and quickly walked outside.