2 months later

"Your divorce has been finalized. How do you feel to be a free and single woman," Sarah asked her friend as they sat down in the booth of the fast food outlet.
"There is no huge difference. I mean for the past six months I have spoken to Benjamin through the lawyer as he could not even see me face to face due to shame," she responded. "What should I get you?"
"Just a cup of coffee," Sarah said as Esther stood up to go get their hot beverages.

Sarah returned a few minutes later and handed her, her coffee.
After finishing up they left for her restaurant. She was actually thankful she had this place to go to when she left Benjamin. She had opened this place with the money her parents had given her as a graduation present.

Why didn't she just go and drink coffee at her restaurant?

She loved supporting other small businesses because she had started out small herself before expanding. Now it was time to further expand her business as the restaurant would be shut down for a month long of renovations. Having bought the building they where renting for the past few years. She had decided to open up another floor and turn it into the VIP dining area.

Making their way to her restaurant she walked into the building being greeted by her staff as they walked towards her office. She needed to prepare to meet the contractors.

"I should get going now," Sarah said before she even took her seat. "The twins should be driving their father crazy right about now," she said just as her phone rang. "Hi honey, I on my way don't worry. No don't give them any sugar or else there will be trouble," she said waving goodbye to her friend.

—————

As she was going over the restaurant records a knock interrupted her.
"Come in," she said seeing one of her staff members.
"There are some gentlemen here to see you," she said.
"Show them in," she said sitting up as two gentlemen walked in.

"Gentlemen good afternoon," she said standing up to greet them.
"Ms Matthews," the first one greeted giving her a firm handshake as his colleague who hadn't spoken greeted her likewise.
"My name is Mr Vincent Marshall and this is Mr...," he said stopping when his colleague cleared his throat. "His name is Jacob," Mr Marshall said with a chuckle.

Smiling she offered them seats as the other man silently sat down. Going over her ideas she smiled when they said they could put her ideas on paper and show her the plans.  All the while Jacob remained silent as he listened to her and Vincent discuss her ideas.

She couldn't help but glance in his direction at one point only to find him looking serious as he  looked in her direction. It was clear his suit was tailor made for him as it hid his strong physique. The grey suit and white shirt open at the collar did nothing to hide his golden brown skin as he cleared his throat a smirk on his face.
The light stubble covering his jawline couldn't hide his strong jaw as dark eyes looked at her. He was sporting a buzz cut that suited him quit fine as she heard someone clearing their throat.

Smiling she turned to Vincent seeing him looking at her with a smile as he informed her he would start working on her project once she approved of the designs he was going to bring in the following week.
Seeing them off she slowly closed her door as she slowly went to her seat a smile upon her lips.

———

Jacob's POV

Walking into the restaurant I was impressed as I took my time admiring the design of the establishment. Vincent had informed me of this job proposition and I had informed him I would accompany him to the meeting. When the little lady opened her door I felt my mouth go dry at her mere sight. Dark chocolate skin with a smile that instantly made my day. Her soft curly hair as black as midnight combed perfectly as her dark eyes shown with vibrant energy, something which was refreshing. He usually saw lust in women's eyes as soon as they knew who he was. Vincent made the introductions as I quickly warned him to not mention my last name.

Taking her small hand in mine I felt an instant pull as she gave me a firm handshake, the same one she had given Vincent I observed. Taking our offered seats I leaned back listening to them discuss. I watched her speak passionately about what she wanted to do with her restaurant, clearly this was her baby. I wondered why she wore no wedding band, better yet there was not a trace of a picture of her and any man who I could say was a supposed boyfriend.

I felt eyes on me as I realized she was looking in my direction. I didn't mind one bit as I looked at her admiring her high cheek bones and her lips. Full lips that could surely make a man promise her anything for just a taste. I couldn't help but smirk as Vincent realized what was going on. I beat him to it as I cleared my throat making her smile as she turned to Vincent. Concluding on the next meeting date we rose from our seats as I took in her beauty once more.

She truly was stunning and I knew I was going to have a hard time staying away from this project. I worked with my crew on the ground such that not many clients knew who I really was. All the city folks knew was my name and the power it held. I liked it that way as no one feared me. My employees respected me and treated me like I was one of them though they knew I was their boss. I always let Vincent be on the forefront handling the consultations but this one I had attended upon his insistence and I was not disappointed.

Walking out of the building I heard my friend whistle as he shook his head an all knowing smile upon his face.
"Give her the friends and family discount," I simply said as Vince looked as me in utter shock.
"Are you serious?"
"Dead serious. And don't you dare reveal my identity. There is something about that woman back there," I stated as my driver handed me the keys to my Range Rover once I informed Vince he would be taken to the office by my driver and bodyguard.

-------

2 weeks later

Having approved of the designs and informing everyone of the upcoming close; work began a few days later.
She walked up to the entrance and saw Jacob carrying some wooden boards his body glistening with sweat. His muscles bulging as he effortlessly carried the boards placing them by the staircase they were working on. Another group of men were working with concrete as a truck with steel beams pulled up.
She felt his presence beside her before he even spoke.
"You should put this on ma'am," he said holding a hard hat.
Smiling at him she put the hat on realizing it was too big. A chuckle escaped his lips as he helped tighten the strap that would hold the hat in place.
"Thank you," she whispered as he nodded his head picking up a bag of nails he went on to start working on the staircase.

Seeing Vince he updated her on their progress as she went to her office which was still intact. Shutting herself in she worked to a point of forgetting she had to go home. Grabbing her coat to ward of the cold air she locked her office before she left the restaurant. Getting into her car her worst fears came to life as her car wouldn't start. Discovering that her battery had died she called Sarah but she wasn't picking any of her calls.
A light tap on her window had her looking up to see Jacob standing there.

"Is anything the matter?"
"I think my battery died," she said as he asked her to open the hood.
Stepping out of the car she went to see what he was up to.
"Well yes your battery is dead but when was the last time you had your car serviced?"
"Ummm it's been a few months," she said.
"I suggest you get it checked out before it gets worse," he said.

She sighed having forgotten about taking care of her car. Ben had always had her car serviced thus she had no need to worry about such things.

Setting a reminder to leave her car by the auto shop the following morning he assisted her by jump-starting her car with his.

"I thought no one was around," she said as he rolled up the cables.
"I was looking at what needs to be done tomorrow," he said looking into her eyes.
A cold breeze made her pull her coat tightly around her as she watched his expression change.
"You should get in your car. Wouldn't want you falling sick," he said softly as she nodded her head going towards the drivers door.

Watching her pull off he realized he should stay back more often. If he hadn't been doing the progress check by himself she would have been stranded here and just the thought of her walking alone at night made him both angry and worried.
He had seen no man coming over to see her for the past couple of days thus he knew she was seeing no one. He wanted to ask her out but knew he had to play his cards right.

-------

Following morning

A knock distracted her as she said, "come in."
Jacob stood by the door holding a cup of coffee for her as he asked her to join him on the floor. All the rubble had been swept out and the floor looked very much bare.
Holding the blueprints they went through them again as she confirmed what she had envisioned. Having finished he told the men to continue.

-------

Esther's POV

I looked over at him to find him looking intently at me as I smiled taking a sip of my coffee. This was not store bought as it was in a thermal cup.
"This is really good," I murmured.
"I'm glad you like it," he said with a shy smile.
This threw me off. How could a man his size be shy from just a small compliment. I heard him clear his throat making me blush as I was caught once again.

"I should go and finish up on some paperwork."
A simple nod of his head was all it took for me to turn and head to my office as a enjoyed the cup of coffee.

-------

At 18:30 I heard a knock and saw Jacob standing by the door. His tool bag in hand looking tired.
"Hi Jacob," she said with a tired smile.
"Good day Ms Matthews," he whispered. "I wanted to find out if you have transportation to take you home?"
She looked surprised as she realized her car had gone in for repairs.
"I was going to call my friend but it's now too late. I will just catch a bus."
"I don't mind taking you home Ms."
She looked at him surprised.
"Please call me Esther. You make me sound older that I look."
"As you wish, Esther," he said with a smile.

Closing down for the night he opened the door for her helping her into the car.
"Can I make a quick detour," he said as she nodded her head.
Stopping by a Italian restaurant he left her in the car coming out with two bags of food.
"Now you don't have to cook when you get home. You look really tired," he said as she looked at him in surprise.
"You didn't have to buy me dinner. Especially this expensive she said looking inside the bag.

"Its nothing. You work so hard someone should at least show you a little appreciation," he said with a smile as they blended with the traffic.

Pulling up in front of her apartment building he helped her out of the car. Getting back into the car he bid her farewell before driving off once she was inside the building.

-----------

A month passed by with Jacob bringing her a cup of coffee each morning as they talked for a few minutes each morning. He loved her easy going nature as she laughed at a joke he had stated before becoming serious as they spoke about the progress of the renovations.

"We should be done by the end of this week," he said.
"Oh," she said looking a bit sad.
"I was wondering if you would like to accompany me this weekend to an event the company is hosting," he said.
Her face lit up as she couldn't deny that she actually liked him before she responded with a simple, "I would love to. "

He released the breath he had been holding as soon as he heard her reply. Smiling at her he watched as she walked away from him. He chuckled as she stole a few glances back to him before he turned to head back to work. Walking over the boards laid out to form a path she cried out in pain as all hands stopped what they where doing. He stopped in his tracks looking back to find her on her knees.

Rushing towards her he found the source of  her pain as blood matted the wooden board.
"Don't move," he ordered taking out his phone.
Vince found his friend and client looking at her leg as Jacob looked at his friend.
"I need you to slowly pull out the nail we can't move the whole board," he told his friend who nodded his head as Jacob wrapped his arms around her allowing her to lean against his chest.
"It will only hurt for a second," he whispered as he held her still nodding to his friend as he saw another man holding a towel close by.

Holding her firmly Vince grabbed ahold of the board before he slowly pulled the board thus pulling the nail out. Removing her converse shoe Vince's expression was not a happy one.

"I'm sorry love," he whispered in anguish as though he himself felt the pain before the towel was wrapped around her food.

Blinded by rage he did not acknowledge his men as they looked at the bloody nail. With her in his arms he carried her out to his car as his bodyguard held the door open. As soon as the door closed they were on their way to the hospital. Wiping her tears away he told his driver to hurry up as she continued to bleed.

There was no way that nail would have not penetrated her shoes. The way the boards had been placed was in such a manner that anyone would have encountered the same fate. The only difference being their shoes had a thicker sole. Closing his eyes he beat himself over the fact that he should have made sure she got a new pair of shoes to wear around the restaurant. Pulling up at the hospital entrance he carried her inside as she held onto him sweat now covering her forehead.

"Angie!" he called out grabbing the attention of the person he had called earlier.
Following her, he placed her down on the bed as instructed before he stepped back to watch as his sister worked with the aid of a nurse.
"No!" she cried out seeing the injection as Angie looked at him for help.
"I need to give you this tetanus shot," she said as Jacob moved to take her hand calming her down.
He felt her tighten her hold as she received the injection.

He did not pay attention as Angie instructed the nurse to call another doctor. Taking another syringe she looked at her brother who looked at Esther distracting her as her foot was injected numbing the area of puncture. An older gentleman walked in with a smile as he took a seat on a small stool wearing a pair of gloves to examine her foot before he started cleaning it and dressing it.
"I will need you to come back in exactly one week so i can reexamine your foot my dear. I want to make sure no nerves have been damaged. I the mean time you should not put any pressure on that foot. Keep the wound away from water and finish the antibiotic prescription Angie will give you. Young man monitor your wife, if she gets a fever bring her back to the hospital," he said with a smile before quickly leaving the room to attend to other patients before either one of them could correct the good doctor.
Angie walked in with a smile as she looked at her little brother. Clearly he was smitten as he still held the woman's hand in his. A nurse walked into the room holding a pair of crutches. He frowned looking at them before he asked the nurse to follow him as he moved close to her.

"This will be easier," he said scooping her up into his arms.
"I can walk Jacob," she said in shock holding tightly onto him fearing the probability of falling.
"This is all my fault," he said as he started walking.
She turned to see the young nurse smiling shyly as he walked out with a determined look on his face. She took her time to actually study his features as she was closer to him. She was surprised to see that his eyes had little specks of gold to brown in them once they stepped out into the sunlight. His scent overwhelming her senses. He carried her with ease as his driver opened the door for him. Many questions ran through her mind as she wondered how he could afford having a driver if he was working for  Vincent.

Settling into the car beside her he instructed the man to take them to her apartment. Helping her out of the car she protested against him carrying her once again. He watched as she slowly found her bearings with the crutches as she led the way into the building. They got into the elevator and he stood beside her in silence before she broke it.

"You don't need to walk me to my apartment, I'm sure I can manage on my own," she said as they came to a stop in front of her door.
He stopped and looked at her with a smile as he opened her bag allowing her to retrieve her keys. He has instructed his driver to bring her bag and had also asked Vincent to locate her close friend so she could see her.
Unlocking the door she felt his presence close to her as she led the way towards the living room.
Placing her bag down he helped her take a seat just as a frantic knock came. Opening the door he found a lady standing there.
"Where is she?" Was her first question as he stepped aside allowing her in.
"Living room," he stated closing the door as the woman headed there.

Navigating the kitchen he switched on the kettle as he started making both ladies a cup of tea. It would be good at such a time. Five minutes later he walked into the room holding two small mugs.
"I think this will help," he smiled handing her the cup as they both looked at him in surprise.
"I shall leave you ladies. Let me go see what is happening at the restaurant," he said still looking at her before turning to Sarah. "It was a pleasure to meet you. If she gives you any trouble call the number you were called with," he said with a chuckle seeing Esther frown.

Leaning towards her his lips touched her forehead as he murmured, "Frowning doesn't look good on you," as he stroked her cheek.
He sighed as he stepped away from her saying his goodbyes.

Hope you enjoyed. Sorry for the delay was dealing with school and work.