Temporary Arrangement by Karen Erickson Page A

then,” she agreed. “Very handsome.”
    “And you’re very pretty.” He stepped closer to her. “I like your eyes.”
    They were her favorite feature, a bluish green that changed color depending on her mood. “Thank you.”
    “You have dots on your nose,” he continued.  
    “They’re called freckles.” She used to hate them, now was merely resigned that they were a part of her. Never liked her hair much either, though she’d grown used to it over the years. Red and curly when she’d always wished for blonde and straight, so typical.
    “Leave the lady alone, Matty,” the woman chastised. “Come back and sit.”
    “He’s no bother,” Paige said, smiling at the woman. “Really.”
    The woman observed her quietly, her dark gaze penetrating, her eyebrows scrunched in seeming concentration. “My grandson seems to like you.”
    “I like him.” He sidled closer to Paige, sent her an adoring look beneath a luxurious curl of thick eyelashes. When he grew up, he’d be devastating to the ladies. “I didn’t mean to intrude on your time with your grandson.”
    “You’re not intruding.” The woman waved a hand at one of the empty chairs at their table. “Please. Come sit with us.”
    “Oh, I don’t think—”
    “Please,” the woman repeated insistently. “I’d like to talk to you, if you don’t mind.”
    Feeling silly for arguing, Paige grabbed her purse and stood, rounding the table to sit between them. She set her purse on the ground at her feet. “What do you wish to talk about?”
    “Do you want something to drink?”
    Paige shook her head. “I already had a cup of coffee.”
    “Something to eat, then.”
    “Oh, I’m not hungry…” Her stomach chose that precise moment to rumble so loudly it sounded like the thunder that had rattled the windows earlier.
    “I heard your tummy!” Matty cried with glee. “You should have a cookie.”
    Her cheeks burned with embarrassment. “I’ll be fine. Really.”
    “How about I buy us some lunch?” The woman shot a stern glance in Matty’s direction. “You eat a sandwich, then you can have a cookie.”
    “Okay,” Matty agreed with a miserable sigh.
    “I—I don’t have much money,” Paige mumbled, embarrassment making her wish she could disappear.
    “My treat, cara. ” She settled her hand over Paige’s and gave it a squeeze. “Though I should introduce myself before I buy you lunch. My name is Claudia Renaldi.”
    “Paige Stewart.”
    The woman smiled, her brown eyes, much like Matty’s, soft with affection. “A pleasure to meet you. So tell me. Have you ever worked with children?”
     
     
    Matteo Renaldi glared at his ringing cell phone, growling when he saw his mother’s name flash across the screen. He should take it. Knew she’d been working hard for him all morning, and hopefully she had good news.
    Glancing about his office, he was thankful the advertising team had already left. He needed some time alone. To think, to digest all of their ideas for the new jewelry line his sister was designing. But he needed to talk to his mother first…
    “Did you find someone?” he asked without preamble, turning his chair so he could stare out at the Manhattan skyline. The rain had stopped an hour ago, the sky still heavy with dark clouds. It was a Friday afternoon—he should leave so he could spend time with his son, but the weekend loomed. Two full days of no work, no commitments beyond his son Matty, whom he loved above anyone else in the world.
    But he was lonely. Alone. And an empty weekend without a sweet woman to fill it was a constant reminder.
    His mother laughed. “So eager to find out the news? No, ‘Hello, Mother, how are you? How is my son?’”
    He loved his mother, but much of the time, she drove him insane. “I don’t doubt for a minute you’re perfectly fine, as is Matty.”
    “You would be correct. Your son is in the best mood I’ve seen in a long time.”
    “And why is that? Did you spoil him? Take him toy