Page 17 of Mr. February

“I know!” the bubbly young woman said. “I couldn’t believe it when I saw him walk in. It’s like karma or something!”

At least now Jenny wouldn’t have to worry about keeping herself away from Wade. Suzanne was clearly smitten and ready to stake her claim. Since they had a history, if all Wade wanted was a hookup, she’d be the obvious choice.

“I think you mean kismet,” Jenny said in an undertone that Suzanne ignored. Wade’s eyes flew to her face, but he said nothing.

“It was surprising to see you, Suzanne,” Wade said, “but we need to eat and get back on the road, so we don’t miss the opening events.”

Jenny was surprised at Wade’s words. They were the exact opposite of what he just told her. He sounded so believable, though. Maybe he was better at manipulation than she thought.

“My group is about to leave anyway. I’ll be sure to seek you out later. Maybe we can have a few drinks and catch up, Wade,” Suzanne said as her fingers trailed along his arm. “Oh, and it was nice to meet you, uh…”

“Jenny,” Wade supplied.

“Yes, Jenny.” Suzanne giggled. “Sorry, seeing Wade again so unexpectedly scrambled my brains.”

Suzanne shared a toothpaste ad-worthy smile and bounced off to meet her group. Wade kept the smile on his own face, but as he turned away from the departing woman, he gently placed his hand on Jenny’s arm.

“Please don’t leave me alone with her,” he said under his breath.

“She seemed nice,” Jenny said politely.

“She’s a nightmare.”

Jenny schooled her face, but she wasn’t very successful. Wade grimaced.

“I know, I know; I was in a bad place mentally when she started at In-Tech. Suzanne’s attentions were flattering, and I couldn’t believe someone like her would be interested in me. I didn’t realize she was just using me to do her work. She’s sharp but very lazy and incredibly manipulative.”

“We’ve all been there.”

“I don’t know what her goal is now.” Wade muttered to himself. “Our breakup was awful. She left the company shortly afterwards, but there’s no reason for the performance you just witnessed. There’s nothing I can do for her now.”

“Maybe she just missed you. You’re a great guy.”

Heat spread over Jenny’s face when the words fell out of her mouth without prior approval by her brain. Luckily, it seemed Wade was too focused on his ex’s sudden reappearance to pay close attention.

“No, that’s not it. In hindsight, it was easy to see that all her relationships were transactional. That’s not bitterness on my part, either. I was far more relieved than angry when things ended. She is all drama and scheming.”

“Yikes!”

Wade shook his head and forced a smile on his face.

“I’m going to put her out of my mind for now. I won’t figure out what she’s after right now, so I can’t let it ruin my day. How ‘bout we order our food and try to enjoy the rest of our trip.”

“Did you change your mind about getting back on the road right away?” Jenny asked cautiously.

“Hell, no. Now I’m even less interested in getting there early.”

The two ordered their lunch. Once their food was ready, they sat at a table and shared more light banter. Jenny was still confused about her feelings for Wade, but he was a great road trip companion if nothing else.

His phone rang as they finished eating. He glanced at it and frowned.

“It’s Kyle. Since he’s calling instead of texting, it’s probably work-related.”

He answered the call. “Hey, man, what’s up?”

A furrow appeared between his brows as he listened.

“What? No, that shouldn’t be happening. You were right to let me know. Give me a minute to dig my laptop out and tell him I’ll call him in a minute.”

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