Page 25 of Love and Loathing

Alex: Uh-uh. I can’t tell you that. You have to find me.

Jessie shook her head and glanced around once more, squinting as if that might help in her search. His day was just getting better and better. Still not seeing him, she shot off another text.

Jessie: Forget if you’re stalking me; are you on drugs?

Alex: Do they serve drugs at Blue Shadow? Cuz I didn’t see that on the menu.

She looked across the street, first at the front window of the restaurant, and then her eyes trailed over to where he and Charlie sat on the veranda. He waved, and to his delight, she waved back. That was it. He was asking her out.

But of course the moment he decided to do that would be the moment Roxy returned. Roxy stared across the street when she saw Alex’s hand come down, and she caught Jessie waving back.

Roxy sat down, glanced at Charlie, then back, and raised a brow. “Who’s that?”

Charlie sat up. “Who’s who?”

Roxy pointed one long bright-pink-taloned finger across the street. “The pretty brunette?”

Charlie looked. “Oh, that’s Jessie.” He smiled, his first smile all day, and waved over his head. “Jessie!”

She laughed and waved back.

“She works for us,” Charlie said.

Roxy lifted her blond brows and stared down her nose at Alex. Her bright blue eyes zoomed in on all those crazy emotions that popped up when Jessie had stepped into view. “Is that right?”

Crap, she was on to him. Why hadn’t he been more careful? Oh, right. He’d been on a Jessie high, that’s why.

Another text came through. Instead of answering right away, he took a long pull of his water, trying not to draw attention to his phone. He snuck a peek at Jessie. She watched him and frowned noticing him taking his time.

“Don’t you want to get that?” Roxy asked.

“Yeah, I will.”

Jessie ducked her head, and another moment later, a second text came through. He picked it up this time.

Jessie: Is her hair pink?

He smiled, despite Roxy staring at him. And then …

Jessie: I got to go. Meeting Jacob. See you Friday.

That one didn’t make him laugh at all. He glanced up just in time to see her disappear out of view towing the Schwinn after her.

Chapter 10

She’d flirted. With Alex. Jessie still couldn’t believe it. She didn’t know what had gotten into her.

His first text that morning had shocked her so much, she’d nearly stumbled right into a row of tulips. She’d been up at the butt crack of dawn to film the tulip festival in the morning light, and she’d gotten dang good footage, too. And then his text had come through, telling her they needed her pitch.

They’d never given her a direct timeline, but she assumed she had until the end of May at least, since they didn’t need to pitch to Steve and Kevin until July. And since none of the spring events had started, except for Tulips in Tandem, she’d had to get creative.

She’d been sneaking in time to film and edit between working full time at the bookstore and part time for Emma Lee, which had left her very little personal time. For which she was glad. Personal time led to thoughts of that night in the club, and to guilt. She’d been too hard on him.

So when he’d texted again that afternoon and had sounded friendly, she’d felt relief. She told herself that relief was finally knowing for sure she hadn’t been sacked—she’d be able to get her house, after all. Not the one she and Caroline had looked at—it’d sold—but another one. If they found one they liked.

And then Alex had kept texting, had been so obviously flirting with her, that before she’d thought about what she was doing, she’d flirted back. And it’d been fun. It had lifted a weight off her chest she hadn’t realized was there.

Of course, the moment the pink-haired lady had come out and pointed at her, and Alex had then taken his sweet time responding to her, the weight returned. And she’d felt … hurt. Which had been a revelation of a sort. Why should she care who he spent his time with? Beautiful pink-haired women or Charlie, it shouldn’t matter. But it had, and she could barely believe she’d actually told him she was going to meet Jacob.

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