Page 33 of Reckless (Adventures in Love 3)
Chapter 11
JADE
Sitting in the parking lot of one of the burger places in town, I dip my hot fries into my vanilla shake, then shove them into my mouth. I was halfway to my house when I got over the fact that Maverick had kissed me, and I realized there was no way I could go home, so I turned around and went back to town, where I drove around for a bit before deciding to get something to eat.
As much as I enjoyed the kiss Maverick and I shared, and as much as I want to kiss him again, I can’t go there. My track record with men is not good—case in point tonight—and there is no way I want to risk making things awkward. And they would be at some point; it’s inevitable with my luck.
When my phone rings, I expect it to be Maverick calling me again, but Cybil’s number pops up on my dash. I want to ignore it but don’t want her worried about me. I’m sure she’s curious about how my date went.
“Hey,” I answer after I press the button on my steering wheel.
“Where are you? I walked down to your place to see how dinner went, but you weren’t there.”
“Sorry, I’m parked outside of Jane’s Burgers eating my feelings,” I tell her, picking up my soda.
“You’re what? Why?”
“Ken is married.” I set down my drink and grab my burger. “His wife showed up while we were waiting for our food to arrive.”
“Shut up. You’re lying.”
“Oh, I wish I was, but unfortunately I’m not.” I shove some more fries into my mouth and chew. “And if you don’t believe me, there are about a hundred people who witnessed what happened and can vouch for me.”
“I can’t believe he’s married,” she hisses. “What a prick.”
“Yeah, so needless to say, I’m officially done with anything having to do with men.”
“I’m sorry, Jade. God, I feel like a jerk for insisting you call that guy.”
“It’s fine. Really I feel bad for his wife; it seemed like it wasn’t the first time that he’s cheated on her.”
“Why do men do that?” she says, and I know she’s shaking her head in disgust.
“I don’t know.” I grab a few more fries. “In other news, I did offer his wife a job.”
“You what?” she yells.
“He told her that she wouldn’t be able to make it without him, so I told her that she could work for us or that I could get her a job at the Bear.”
“Of course you did.” She laughs. “God, I love you.”
“I love you too.”
“So you’re in town eating in your car?”
“Yeah.”
“Tanner said he thought he saw Maverick’s truck drive down to your place earlier.”
“Since he was with Margret at the restaurant and they both witnessed the whole scene, I bet he was probably coming to check on me.” I bite my lip, hating that I’m keeping things from my best friend. But I know her; I know that if I tell her about the kiss, she’s going to start getting ideas in her head, and I already have enough ideas of my own. “By the way, I really like Margret; she’s sweet.”
“She’s the sweetest,” she agrees, then asks: “When are you going to be home?”
“Maybe thirty minutes or so.”
“Do you want me to come hang with you? Claire is asleep; I could bring some wine, and we could watch a movie or something.”
“As much as I appreciate that offer, I think I’m just going to go to bed early tonight. It’s been a long day, plus I didn’t sleep great last night.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah,” I assure her. “Plus, tomorrow we have to meet with Gene before I start work, so I want to make sure that I’m up early for that.” I remind her of the meeting we have scheduled to sign the lease.
“Okay,” she says, sounding unsure. “If you change your mind, you know I’m just a phone call away.”
“I know. Love you.”
“Love you, too, and I’ll see you in the morning.”
“See you in the morning.” I hang up after she says goodbye, then finish my food before I dump my garbage in one of the trash bins near the restaurant.
When I get home a while later, I head inside and change into a pair of sleep shorts and a tank top, then make myself a cup of tea before I get comfortable on the couch with the book I’ve been reading and my favorite blanket.
“Jade.” Fingers slide down the side of my face, and I blink my eyes open, sure I’m dreaming when I come face-to-face with Maverick.
“What are you doing here?” I sit up, knocking the book I was reading off my lap.
“I told you I was stopping by.” He picks the book up and looks at the cover, shaking his head before handing it to me.
