Loving Piper Read Online Free Page A

them tea and together they had combed the free dailies and the internet for a more appropriate rental. She was, as he had imagined right from the start, a sweet young woman. He’d gone beyond the call of duty, which he did not regret at all. He’d been happy to do it and was relieved that Victoria would not be returning as his tenant.
    Relieved, and deflated, too. Sandra wouldn’t have had all this trouble. She had always done what needed doing in a somewhat careless fashion, had made even the most difficult tasks appear easy. Rob did not have that gift. Another reminder of how incomplete he could feel these days. All the reassurance that Sandra had meant in his life, her firmness, in body and spirit. The yearning he felt was a visceral memory of deep physical contentment now turned empty and restless. The simple memory of touching Sandra’s neck…and then her back and hips…and then making love to her. Was he suffering a broken heart or was his body just starved for touch?
    He rose from the chair and walked back downstairs. For a few seconds he stood in the doorway to the apartment and then entered and wandered through the space. This was one of those turning point moments: to be alone in this venture, like all ventures now. Which way to go? There was no one to ask anymore, so he was solely responsible for the questions and the answers. If he stopped now, he might as well get out of the business of living. What an impossible thought…he would do this for Jennie. Everything he did, he did for his daughter now. Some of his earlier resilience began to assert itself as his internal voice prompted him: You are a capable man. Stick with the plan . He might not be able to find a good tenant as quickly and effectively as Sandra, but he could still do it. He would still do it. He’d done the heavy lifting: made the decision and readied the apartment. Stay the course.
    Make that adjust the course, he amended, and he considered what had gone well and what needed to be improved. He thought he deserved credit for his thorough inquiries from prospective tenants. The over-the-phone list of questions was substantial and he had opened a file for every caller. Overkill, he knew but hadn’t been able to curb that impulse. His methods generated the joys and sorrows that were inherent in excessive organization. Sandra had often teased: Rob sweetie, that is a talent that is occasionally useful .
    He opened one of the files and glanced over it, reconsidering his baseline for an adequate tenant. With the exception of Victoria, no one had reached that benchmark. He hadn’t even advanced to the stage of contacting references and running credit checks on other applicants. The process was more convoluted than he had imagined. Uncle , he thought. Maybe he should just advertise for a medium-height woman with stunning hazel eyes, a curvy athletic body with perfect breasts to cup in his searching hands, and a mind to match her strong looks. Sandra, he shivered and sighed.If this was the best he could do, and the apartment remained empty, then he needed to delegate the task to someone else. He’d be better off calling in a professional. Rob checked his local business pages.
    Rent2U/Rent4U, Renting Rentals Is What We Do
    The sign had been hanging over a well-kept storefront on Bloor Street for years. Rob thought that no one could stay in business in a neighborhood for a decade if they offered substandard services, so they must be reputable. No extra marks for the slogan—or the rhyme—but he was about to lay the matter of the perfect tenant on their doorstep.
     
    Rob took in the sight of a long leg extending from the open car door. The car had been parked in his driveway for several minutes, the driver seemingly stuck half in, half out of the car. He could see that the woman was absorbed in a conversation on her cell phone. She was animated and…lovely, he thought, no, worried—no, he wasn’t sure, since he couldn’t clearly make out her