Page 45 of Kissing for Keeps
“Jack causes trouble.”
“Wrong. The moral is to never challenge Jack Allred.”
Her little breathy laugh warms my neck, and I’m wracking my brain for something to say that will keep her right where she is. If I say something too nice, though, it’ll scare her off.
“You know I’m right.” Apparently, we’re going with cocky.
“It’s not funny, Jack. I’ve been charged 100 dollars to clean the floor mats in a rental car before. I can’t even imagine…” She doesn’t finish.
“Did you get the insurance?”
She shakes her head.
“But you used your credit card, right? They should cover the damages. Either way, we’ll figure it out together. Promise.”
Aaaand there she goes, pulling away and wiping her eyes. “I’mnota crier.”
My arms hang at my sides, suddenly useless and boring. “Really? I am. All the time. I’ve almost cried like six times today.” I start counting on my fingers. “First time was when I had to do that 700-point turn to park. Then when I ate that truffle. And then when Ipaidfor the truffles. And then… well, you get the point. The only reason Ididn’tcry was because I was scared you’d bully me.”
She punches me on the arm half-heartedly, and I grin. Evidently, I’m desperate enough for feminine interaction that mild violence is desirable.
I jerk my head toward the van. “Let’s get this thing outta here.”
She takes in a deep breath and gives me a look. “It’s not just the van, Jack, though that thing is abeast. A huge, maimed beast. It’s the cars trying to pass.” She gestures at them with her head. “They donotlike waiting.”
“Don’t worry about them. I’ll take care of that. You just hop in there, and I’ll guide you through backing out.”
Her eyes widen. “You’re asking me to get back in that monster and try a fiftieth time? Youdosee that massive battle wound I gave the van, right?”
“I’m not gonna debate its origin story with you anymore.”
She narrows her eyes. “Now that you’ve seen how small the space is, you know you can’t do it.”
I laugh. “I’m gonna be out here telling you how much room you have—and keeping the angry drivers at bay. I promise not to let the van get scraped again.” When I arrived, Ihadmeant to back up the van myself. But I think Siena needs this win.
And shedoesdo it. It’s a tense few minutes, with cars flashing their lights and honking and their drivers yelling things in French that don’t bear repeating—mostly because I literallycan’trepeat them. But, with centimeters to spare, we manage to get the van out safely.
Amidst a chorus of what I assume are obscenities, I grin at our unwilling audience and put out my hands to display Siena, whose head is peeking through the window. “Ladies and gentlemen, the one and only Siena Sheppard!” I start clapping, but when the guy in the first car in line revs his engine, I scurry to the passenger side and hop in.
Siena shakes her head as she puts the van into gear, but there’s a smile on her face. “If one of these angry people shows up at the chateau tonight, threatening my life, I’m going to blame you.”
“They’ll have to take both of us, then. We’ve trauma-bonded now, Sheppard. There’s no separating us.”
She rolls her eyes, and we’re on our way.
16
JACK
“Why didn’tyou persuade me to spend money on these baguettes instead of pig fungus?” I take another piece from the little platter Siena made. Each one is topped with a slice of the cheese I bought at the market. Money well spent, I’d say.
“You never asked my opinion.” Siena ties the freshly cut ribbon she bought around the bag offoie gras. “In fact, you blatantly ignored it.” She sits back to survey her work. Despite having prepared the platter, she has yet to touch the food. She’s hyper-focused on what she’s doing. Madi’s lucky to have such a dedicated friend so absolutely determined to make her wedding perfect. “What do you think?”
I come behind her. “It looks incredible.” It really does. “Who knew you could make goose liver look so classy?”
She tips her head from side to side, then adjusts the ribbon slightly. “Thanks. Let’s just hope Madi feels the same way.”
“She will.”
