Page 11 of Jenny
“What are we celebrating? Did another cat from the rescue get adopted?”
“No, but your new bookmarks arrived. They’re gorgeous.” She pointed to a small cardboard box on the counter. “And while I was at the post office picking them up, I bumped into Josh Cooper. He’s been meaning to call you. Mentioned something about you two getting together.”
“I…” Words failed Jenny.
Josh had been her high school crush. Who was she kidding? He’d been every girl’s fantasy.
Smart, athletic, hot.
“What’s he doing in town?” she asked. “I thought he was a big-time sports announcer.”
“He is. Football, I think, but he bought a house not too far from here. Said he needed a home base. Since he owns a plane, he can easily fly to the Portland airport if he can’t get to a game directly.”
“A plane, huh? Moving home should be good for him.”
“And you.” Missy pulled out a measuring cup and mixing bowl from the dishwasher. “You can finally go out with your dream guy.”
“My dream guy when I was a teenager.” That was well over a decade ago. “Josh isn’t going to ask me on a date. He probably wants to have an old classmate stroke his ego.”
“Or another appendage.” Missy grinned.
Jenny shook her head.
“What? He’s still attractive, and you had a thing for him once. That’s why I gave him your number. You need to get out more.”
“I get out as much as you.”
She shot Jenny a no-you-don’t look. “I have two jobs—one at the cupcake shop and one with you—and I volunteer at the cat rescue.”
“I work from home.”
“Exactly. Going out with Josh will be good for you.”
“I get out to do book signings or writer workshops and events.”
“Not enough, especially when those are work related. You’re thirty-one. Pretty and successful. You should be dating, partying, and having the time of your life.”
“I’m happiest staying at home and writing. I can’t help it. I’m boring.”
Missy tsked. “What am I going to do with you?”
“Keep feeding me, sending my reader newsletter to fans, and staying on top of my social media.”
“You know I will, but please say yes when Josh calls. He could be the one for you.”
“He just wants to go out with Jenna Ford.”
Guys hit on Jenna Ford a hundred times more than Jenny Hanford. The reason was money. Jenna Ford had bank.
Been there, done that, gave back the ring two weeks before the wedding.
Three years ago, she’d discovered her then-fiancé, Grant, had racked up six-figures worth of gambling debt. He’d claimed to have gone to rehab to help his addiction. She’d had no reason to doubt him, but friends had suggested she postpone the wedding to give Grant time to pay off the debt so she wouldn’t have to. It had sounded like a smart idea to Jenny. Except Grant hadn’t wanted to wait. He’d wanted to get married as they’d planned.
Jenny was willing, but she decided to speak to her CPA and her attorney first. Both recommended she have Grant sign a prenuptial agreement so her assets would not be used to pay off his debt. Her lawyer had also added verbiage so that Grant gave up his rights to her intellectual properties, aka books.
Grant wouldn’t sign it. During a tantrum worthy of a two-year-old, he’d claimed to have only proposed because she was Jenna Ford and rich. He’d said no man would ever be interested in Jenny Hanford.
She’d thrown the engagement ring at him. Not her finest moment, but his words had decimated her self-confidence. She’d been devastated. Not because she canceled the wedding—that was just collateral damage—but from being viewed as an easy mark to be taken advantage of by a handsome, money-hungry charmer. She’d lost faith that decent men existed. Or if they did, in her ability to find them.
