Page 46 of Forever Fickle

“No,” Jace said quickly, glancing at the other men. “I want to talk to you, and we were practically done here.”

“We were?” Thumper and Alpo said in unison – looking at each other in surprise before looking at Jace.

“Give me five minutes, please…” Jace said softly, touching her cheek as he cupped her face. The look in his eyes wasn’t anything like she’d seen before – and Karen nodded. “Don’t leave without me.”

“I won’t.”

Karen practically ran to the car, hearing the whispers behind her as the men began to question what had just happened and what was going on between them.

She jumped inside her vehicle and thought about starting it, but didn’t want to distract Jace by giving him the impression she was leaving when she said she wouldn’t. Instead, she stayed put, wishing she could curl into a ball and just fade away as she replayed the conversation in her mind.

Could she get any more possessive or protective of a guy –a guy she barely knew?

My goodness, it was mortifying that she’d basically just told off the top three brass at Flyboys… well, two of the three, and announced that she and Jace were in a relationship.

A relationship that had barely started!

“I’m such a dork…” she uttered, putting her head down on the steering wheel in frustration.

Hearing a vehicle start, she jumped as she heard a horn honk near her car and saw Valkyrie and Thumper waving with this smarmy smile on both of their faces. Alpo and Jace were walking over towards her car – and she hesitated, unsure what to say or do.

Rolling down her window, Alpo leaned in as Jace slid into the passenger seat.

“Am I fired?” she asked quietly.

“Do you want to be?”

“No.”

“Then no… but when I tell you to stay put it’s because Harley has crammed it down my throat that I’m supposed to do things by the book and interviews are confidential,” Alpo grinned. “How am I supposed to know things are that good between you guys, if no one ever talks about it? I told you he’s a good guy… but just warned you to take it slow.”

“Yes, dad…” she muttered, not looking away as she rolled up her window – only to hear Jace chuckling beside her.

“Can we go to your place and talk? I’ll whip up something for us,” Jace said gently. “I just want to be alone for a little while.”

“I am so sorry if I caused you not to get the job here,” Karen began, feeling devastated, and tears of remorse stung her eyes. “I never imagined that you would be interviewing and…”

“Karen, it’s fine.”

“You got the job?”

“No, they said they had to talk – all of them as a team.”

“That’s not good.”

“That’s actually the best, because decisions should be made as a team when it affects everyone involved,” Jace countered. “I’m glad and truthfully, I don’t need an answer for almost a year or so. That’s when I need to either re-enlist or start panicking. I’m sure I could find a job with an airline, but I would rather be home every evening and on the weekends, if I am getting out of the Air Force.”

“Why are you getting out?”

“I’m not sure yet.”

“Why are you considering it?” she amended, glancing at him as she drove down the road towards her condo. “I mean, it’s got great benefits, pay, there’s a retirement plan… that is what attracted me to teaching.”

“I found something else…”

Karen glanced at him as she pulled into the parking lot, before shutting off her car. She could have asked him to explain, or for more information, but realized that she wasn’t ready to hear it. This was all so explosive between them, almost as if from the very moment she’d laid eyes on him, there had been an uncontrollable flare of emotion that was beyond anything of the scope of her imagination.

“C’mon,” he said gently, opening the car door and getting out. “It’s been a long day and it would be nice to just unwind for a little while.”

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