“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I said with a toss of my hair, “but I’ll take your word for it. When entering, bellow names. Got it.”
Evie gestured for me to join her in the kitchen, where she had several pans going on the stove and a glass of wine on the counter. “Hungry? Orange chicken tonight. There’s gonna be plenty.”
“I’m good but thank you. Jack fed me.”
“I see.” Her eyes twinkled like I just told her I’d slept with the guy.
“Do tell. What exactly do you think you see?”
Honestly? Probably the truth. Our friendship was the kind that didn’t keep secrets and Evie knew me very well. There was something between Jack and me, and whatever that hug was only affirmed it. We just weren’t in a place to chase chemistry. Not with him trying to do the single dad thing and me trying to start a business.
With a stern finger my way, my friend dismissed my dismissal. “Don’t think I can’t see what’s happening between you two. I would have thought you were more of a Jude kinda woman, but hey. If sexy accountants do it for you, then who am I to judge?”
Alex wandered into the room. “Sexy accountants? Please tell me we’re not talking about Jack.”
“Oh, we’re talking about Jack.” Evie gave her future husband a scandalous look. “He took Amelia out for dinner.”
I rolled my eyes. “Hamburgers. We had hamburgers and fries from Mike’s with the kids. Not exactly a romantic dinner for two.”
Evie laughed. “You spend the day obsessing over their gut microbiome, then grab fast food for dinner. Hello contradictions.”
“Neither of us can cook!” I threw up my hands. “At least not yet. I totally plan on fixing that. I already have a ton of recipes I can’t wait to try.”
Alex looked confused. “Their gut microbiome? What’s going on here?”
“Nothing is going on.” The grin on my face outed me as a liar. There was something going on between Jack and me, but it was too small, too new to label, let alone talk about with one of his best friends.
Evie didn’t call me on it, but she did give me the stink eye.
“I’ve been worrying about them. That’s all. And the kids seem to react well to me, so I brought them some snacks from Ted Mason’s market, sent the sitter home, and maybe cleaned the house a little. I taught them to meditate, did a sage smudge, and Jack took me to dinner as a thank you. That’s all.”
Both Alex and Evie burst into laughter.
“What? We’re not exactly whispering sweet nothings or making out in the corner.”
“The first meal I bought the future Mrs. Prescott was burgers and fries from Mike’s.” Alex widened his eyes in mock concern. “I’d be careful if I were you. Sounds like Jack means business.”
While the happy couple continued to tease me, my phone buzzed with a text.
Jack: I forgot to ask. What did you think of Mike’s? Did it live up to expectations?
Seeing his name made me smile and I grinned even harder as I typed my response.
Me: It was every bit as delicious as I’ve heard. 5 stars. Highly recommend.
Jack: Good. I’m glad you enjoyed it.
The conversation was simple, but I couldn’t stop the grin from spreading. I drummed my fingers as I tried to think of something else to say, then looked up to find both Evie and Alex staring at me with knowing smiles.
“Who ya talkin’ to?” Evie asked as she poured me a glass of wine.
Alex waggled his brows and leaned on the counter. “Oh yes. Do tell.”
“Fine.” I accepted the glass as she slid it my way. “It’s Jack. And yes, I like the guy, but no, it’s not going anywhere. He has enough on his plate and we don’t exactly seem like a match made in heaven, you know? He’s an accountant who wears business casual to a party and I’m…” I flared my hands at my eclectic style. “I’m a free spirit. I’ll drive him crazy with all my…”
My phone buzzed again, claiming my attention before I could finish that sentence.
Jack: I’ve thought a lot about what you said. About who I want to be. What’s it say that I don’t have an answer? Does that make me shallow?
Me: I think that makes you busy being super dad. But maybe it’s something you should think about.
Evie made a show of trying to read the messages and I hid the phone behind my back. “You know? Now that I think about it, I should probably leave you lovebirds to your evening and take my conversation on home—where every move I make can’t be dissected.”
“Like that’ll save you,” Evie replied with a laugh.
I hugged my friends then headed across our yards to my house, shooting a quick text to let them know I’d get my car in the morning. The sun kissed the horizon, sending rays of color through the sky. The red maples waved me home and a sigh of contentment slipped past my lips, only for a shiver of anticipation to send my blood pumping when another text came in.
Jack: Jude just texted. Apparently Greta Macmillan saw us out together and has been posting about it on Facebook.
I paused at my porch steps and took a seat. When Alex and Evie started dating, Greta banded the entire Wildrose community together to cheer on the budding relationship. I thought it was adorable. Evie? Not so much. Now that it was about to happen to me, I had to wonder how I’d take it.
Me: Oh man. How bad is it?
Jack: It’s bad.
Me: How bad?
Greta had called Alex and Evie Wildrose Landing’s newest power couple. What could she be saying about Jack and me?
Jack: She said she’d never seen a more mismatched duo in her life and she hopes we don’t drag the kids through a messy relationship because we’re sure to blow up before Evie and Alex’s wedding. She said we’re being shameless…whatever that means.
My jaw dropped. The more I thought about Jack and his kids, the more it felt like my higher self had brought me to Wildrose Landing to meet the Coopers. Sure, we had our differences, but who was I to question my spirit guides? And for that matter, who in the flippin’ flappin’ world was Greta Macmillan to judge us before we’d even started?
Jack and I were good together and we’d only just met.
Maybe we’d be great together.
I typed my indignation into the phone.
Me: Whaaa???
Jack: Right? I mean, that’s a little presumptuous of her to assume we’re dating.
Oh.
Right.
We barely knew each other, and he’d only taken me out to dinner as a thank you. How had I gone from trying to convince Alex and Evie of that fact, to being offended that Greta didn’t think we’d survive a relationship? I tried to come up with a response and finally settled on a gif of a little girl shrugging in confusion.
But that didn’t quite sum up how I felt, and I’d never been good at not expressing what was on my mind. So I typed in a response, saying we could always prove Greta wrong. It was a challenge, an invitation to ask me out and excitement buzzed through me as I drafted my text. The bubbles indicating Jack was responding started before I hit send, so I paused with my thumb over the button.
Jack: Well hell. The sitter you sent home today just texted to let me know she can’t keep watching the kids. I’m gonna have to say goodnight to you early so I can hunt down a replacement for the morning.