Page 50 of All's Fair in Love and Christmas
“Relax, man.” Jeremy leaned back in his chair. “You’re a great guy. If this woman can’t see that, then she doesn’t deserve you.”
Alejandro exhaled. “Thanks.”
“Tell me about her,” Jeremy said, hoping talking would distract his friend. “You met her at work, right? What’s she like?”
Alejandro’s face lit up like the Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center. “I have never met another woman like her. I know that’s cliché, but it’s true.”
Jeremy nodded. “What makes her so special?”
Alejandro thought a moment. “She is a walking contradiction, but then again, not.”
“How’s that possible?”
He held up his hands. “I don’t know. She looks one way but then talks and acts another. She dresses like an actress from a show on Nick at Nite but then talks like she learned at the feet of Ruth Bader Ginsburg.”
Funny. That sounded an awful lot like—
Alejandro shot up like a rocket, the backs of his knees knocking into his chair. “Here she comes.”
Jeremy stood, then turned. All the moisture in his mouth dried at the sight of the woman making her way toward the table, another following in her shadow.
Keri blinked at him before a grin played at her lips. She shifted her gaze to Alejandro, and her features softened. It looked like the interest between the two went both ways. Jeremy relaxed slightly. At least he didn’t need to worry on that front.
Keri still stood in front of the mystery woman. All he could make out was the long sleeve of a green knitted sweater and a pair of brown leather boots. Was Mackenzie his date for the evening? Did he want her to be?
His brain said no. He needed the whole weekend to get himself back in line. If Mackenzie stepped out from behind Keri, it’d be much more difficult to remain committed to his long-term plan.
His heart told his brain to shove it.
Keri whispered something to Alejandro, then shifted to the side. Standing there, looking more beautiful than should be legal, was Mackenzie. Her eyes widened when she saw Jeremy, surprise then a flash of fear streaking across her face. She shot a look at Keri before her lips wobbled into a smile.
“Seems like everyone already knows one another.” Alejandro pulled out a chair for Keri.
“Small world.” Keri smiled as if she couldn’t imagine the night getting any better.
Mackenzie, on the other hand, seemed paralyzed. Compassion overrode Jeremy’s own sense of self-preservation. He stepped toward her and placed one hand on the small of her back as he pulled out a chair for her with the other. “Breathe,” he whispered in her ear as she stepped in front of him to lower herself into the seat.
She picked up the menu and studied the options like she’d be tested on the contents at the end of the night. More than likely, she was attempting to hide behind the thick cardstock paper.
Jeremy put a hand over the menu so she’d look at him. He didn’t want her to be scared or nervous. Not around him. “Do you think we could get them to give us two dry spaghetti noodles? You could challenge me to a rematch.”
She giggled, tension leaving on the breathy sound. “I’m pretty sure dueling was outlawed in the seventeenth century.”
He mock gasped. “Does that mean we’re fugitives now?” He grabbed her hand and gave it a playful tug. “We’ve got to hurry if we don’t want the po-pos to catch us.”
She grinned, the last of the tightness leaving her body, and relaxed against the back of the chair. “Po-pos?”
Jeremy matched her grin. “That’s what Nathan used to call the police.”
Mackenzie looked as if she was about to say something in response, but Keri interrupted. “Have you guys eaten here before? What’s good?” Her eyes scanned the menu.
Jeremy leaned closer to Mackenzie so only she could hear him. “If the police show up, I’ll cause a diversion so you can make a clean getaway.”
Her smile hinted at secrets. More than the quiet exchange they’d shared.
Jeremy’s throat thickened. He reached for his water glass and took a sip. The cool liquid did little to ease the lump lodged there.
“What are you going to get?” Mackenzie asked him, looking back at her menu.
