Page 37 of Broken Boundaries

“Of course, I went. He’s a pretty good cook, too.”

“Oh my god, you’re just making me fall more and more in love with him.”

“Do you want me to put in a good word for you?” I tease.

She waves me off. “Nah, my ship has sailed with him. It’s your turn, baby.”

I shake my head. “I told you, I don’t need a turn.”

She gives me a pointed look. “And I told you that you do.”

“I just got out of a two-year relationship. With his son. Remember?”

“I’m not asking you to marry him, Asp. Just have some fun. I bet he’s way better in the sack than little Calloway was.”

The sad part is… I think she’s probably right. Things were lacking in mine and Zach’s sex life. I never felt fully satisfied, but I loved him, so I let it go. Now, I’m wishing I hadn’t. I let too much go to the point that he felt he could sleep around and I would forgive him.

“Yeah, well…”

She gasps and grabs my arms. “We should go out! This weekend. Let’s go out and try to find you a rebound since you’re so against you-know-who.”

I wish I could tell her that I’m not against you-know-who, per se. But having a hookup with my boss would not be a good idea. That’s just basic common sense.

I’m really not sure I’m ready for a rebound either, but going out might be nice, and who knows. Maybe I’ll meet the love of my life while we’re out. I’m truly starting to believe that this town is where I belong. There’s gotta be a reason for that, right? It’s certainly not for Zach Calloway like I initially thought.

“Ok, yeah. That might be fun. Not the rebound part, but the going out. Getting back out there.”

She smiles and claps her hands. “Good! It’s a date then. Saturday night? I’ll come get ready at your place, and we’ll go together.”

“Perfect.”

She starts going through her clothing options, and from the sounds of it, she has a lot more clothes than I do. I haven’t had much time to go out recently, so I haven’t needed anything for it. Jazz is mid-sentence about what she might pair with a black mini-skirt when she stops suddenly and narrows her eyes. A look of absolute disgust crosses her face.

“What’s wrong?” I ask.

“Ew. Asshole alert. Incoming.”

“What does that mean?”

I turn to see Zach walking toward the desk with flowers and a big smile on his face.

“What the hell?” I mumble under my breath. Jazz and I both stare at him as he walks over.

“Hi, Aspen. Jasmine.”

“Hi, Asshole,” Jazz says, and I have to bite my cheek to keep from laughing.

“Charming as always, Jazz.” Then he turns to me. “You look beautiful today, Aspen.”

I ignore his compliment. “What are you doing here, Zach? I’m working.”

He hands me the bouquet. This man has never, in the entire two years of our relationship, brought me flowers, and he chooses now? “I brought these for you.”

I grab them and put them down on the counter without even looking at them. He looks from my crossed arms to my unimpressed face, and I can see him start to get a little nervous. I’m not sure what he thought this would accomplish.

“Can we talk for a second? I won’t keep you long.”

I sigh and look to Jazz. “Can you watch the desk for a sec?”