Page 35 of Mr. February

“It’s, uh, a line from ‘The Philadelphia Story’.”

“I love that movie!”

“Yeah? Maybe we can watch it together some time.”

“I’d like that,” Jenny said in a quiet voice.

She’d love to watch old movies with Wade. That was more her speed than the parties and clubs Chad always bullied her into attending with him. But maybe next time, she wouldn’t pass out drunk or hit on him when she’d had so much to drink that she didn’t remember it.

At least he didn’t take advantage of the situation, but she would never have had more than one drink if she didn’t trust him on a deep level.

“Me, too,” Wade answered just as softly.

Neither of them spoke for a long moment, but it wasn’t a strained silence. Some of her tension eased when Wade settled deeper into the couch and pulled her back against him. Her head still throbbed, but at least her nausea abated. And he was so comfortable to snuggle since they were a similar height.

“How are you feeling now?” he asked after a few minutes of quiet.

His voice rumbled through her, and Jenny wished she could bottle it.

“Better. Nothing a hot shower and a huge pot of coffee won’t fix,” she said. “Speaking of which, we should get ready if we want to eat before the sessions begin, right? I don’t know about you, but my brain doesn’t come online without coffee and food. Plus, breakfast is my favorite meal.”

“Oh, yeah? What are your favorites?”

“I love all sorts of breakfast foods. I’d eat breakfast for every meal if I could. Waffles, giant muffins, and croissants. I’m a sucker for cinnamon rolls, but they’ve got to be good. Restaurants make the best pancakes, and they’re even better with that blueberry spread that has real blueberries in it. What’s that called?”

“Do you mean compote?”

“Yes; blueberry compote. I don’t like syrup, but I love that stuff. And omelets. I love omelets, but I’m not good at cooking them, so I order them a lot.”

“You should get an omelet maker. One of my sisters has one, and she likes it.”

“I know, but the omelets are so tiny, and the texture and mouthfeel are so different. I don’t want two mini omelets; I want one giant omelet with lots of stuff in it. God, no wonder everybody thinks I’m obsessed with food.”

She buried her face in the blanket, embarrassed again.

“Stop that. Nobody with half a brain thinks that. You like what you like, and there’s nothing wrong with that. I always get waffles when I go out because I can’t make them for shit. I’ve tried, and they always end up either burned or gooey. Do you think I’m obsessed with food because I always order waffles?”

“It’s not the same, and you know it. You’re not fat.”

“Neither are you,” he argued.

Wade sounded genuinely frustrated this time, and Jenny tensed. She felt his chest rise and fall as he sighed.

“I wish you could see you how I see you, how most people see you,” he said into the awkward silence that grew around them. “You’re beautiful, charming, and funny. And you’re sharp. Elizabeth has commented in our team lead meetings about the improvements you made after George left that make her life easier.”

“Thank you,” she murmured.

“No need to thank me for stating the facts.”

Now Wade sounded sad, but before Jenny could figure out how to fix things, the alarm on her phone went off. She scrambled off the couch, eager for an excuse to flee a conversation she shouldn’t have started in the first place.

“I’d better take that shower if I’m going to have any chance of staying awake and focused today. I’ll be quick so we can get breakfast if you want.”

She tossed those final words over her shoulder as she hurried to her bedroom without giving him a chance to respond. Jenny swept through her room, and she grabbed clothing blindly, grateful she hung everything up in the closet.

She wouldn’t blame Wade if he wanted nothing to do with her mood swings and neuroses. Most of the time, she tried hard to be even tempered and low maintenance around men since she already had so many things working against her. Around him, it all kept spilling out, front and center.

It’s a good thing she already decided getting involved with anyone at work was a terrible idea, since she kept torpedoing any chance of catching his interest. Plus, she was taking a break from dating. She needed to stick with that plan instead of considering Gloria’s idea.

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