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What the hell did I do?
He didn’t have to answer that since he likely knew the answer: he showed up. And now Yvonne was attempting to stake some kind of claim while also witnessing Colt and JJ’s innocent interaction, something JJ was obviously upset about. But he knew women, and the Taylor women in particular, made up the majority of the town’s gossip. Colt wanted to slap his hat and curse himself because damn it, he had come here to win JJ over by convincing her he was discreet.
“There’s nothing going on at all. I’ve got to get to recess duty,” Jenna said sharply and Yvonne seemed way too satisfied with that answer.
Jenna moved past him and toward the door while Yvonne shimmied a little closer into his personal space. Damn it all to hell.
“Thank you for coming, Colt. It meant a lot to Alex,” JJ said as she walked out the door, her words hanging in the air long after she left.
…
“How was school today?” Lily asked both McCade men as she pulled milk from the fridge.
“So good!” Alex said. “Uncle Colt was a way better sharing than Michael’s snake. Miss Jenna didn’t like the snake at all.”
Colt wanted to scoff because Miss JJ didn’t seem to like him much either. But he had to be better than a snake right?
“And what has you pouting over there?” Lily asked Colt as she set down a couple cookies and two big glasses of two percent. Before Colt could answer, his nephew ratted him out.
“Uncle Colt was trying to impress Miss Jenna and it didn’t work.”
“Oh, really?” Lily put her hand on her hip and Colt suddenly found his cookie very fascinating and was not at all avoiding the death stare he knew his baby sister was aiming at him.
“Yep,” Alex said, crumbs of chocolate chip flying from his full mouth as he continued to throw his uncle under the bus. “Then Miss Taylor showed up and—”
“And you were supposed to be out on recess,” Colt interjected. To which Alex just shrugged, not looking the least bit guilty that Colt had caught him eavesdropping by the door earlier and was now replaying everything for Lily.
“Yvonne Taylor?” Lily said with a half grin, obviously amused. “How did that go?”
Colt blew out a breath. He had barely gotten out of a lunch date with the woman, making up an excuse to leave before those press-on nails sank any deeper into his biceps and she could drag him to the teacher’s lounge.
“Fine. Just a friendly hello and I was on my way.” Colt took a bite of his cookie and tried really hard not to slam his fist down and throw a fit because there had been only one thing on his mind all day and damn it… “What’s Jenna’s deal?” Colt blurted out, frustration finally getting the better of him. “She’s all uptight.”
When he looked up to see Lily’s eyes wide and staring at him like he’d just delivered a curse of the century, he felt like an ass. He hadn’t meant to lash out, but he needed some answers without giving too much away.
“Alex, honey, why don’t you go play for a few minutes while I talk to your Uncle Colt.”
Alex nodded, jammed the rest of his cookie in his mouth, and ran out of the kitchen with full cheeks.
Lily came to stand by Colt and glared down at him. “Please tell me you aren’t going after Jenna. She’s my best friend, Colt. She’s not like those floozies you meet up with on the circuit.”
“Floozies? I don’t date floozies, Lil.”
“You don’t date, period,” she said.
That was a good point. But JJ was different. This whole situation was different. “I just want to…” Colt stopped himself. He couldn’t tell his sister about what he wanted, partly because he was still figuring it out. He knew he wanted JJ, though. Knew there had to be a way to show her he was a good choice. Could keep her secrets and spend time with her. It would be a win-win for both of them.
“You want to what, Colt? ‘Hang out’ with Jenna?” She air quoted the last two words and Colt immediately hated himself for telling Lily when she was thirteen that when a boy says he wants to “hang out” it usually implies a lot more than that. He also told her that if any boy tried anything to kick them in the nuts and run. At the time, he was educating and protecting his baby sister. Now, years later, with her throwing his words back in his face, it sort of sucked.
“I’m not looking for anything,” he lied. Because this conversation was going nowhere quick. He knew Lily wouldn’t be thrilled about this idea of him and JJ hooking up. “I just want to know why she’s acting the way she is.”
“She’s under a lot of pressure right now, Colt. You know that.”
“The grant. I get it.”
“Do you? She’s been working on this for the past year. A lot of kids in Diamond go home to parents who aren’t attentive or even around. She’s trying to create a safe place for them. She wants to be the one they pick to see this through. And Yvonne Taylor is her competition. The same woman who walked in on you ‘impressing’”—again with the air quotes—“Jenna. You know that woman has a big mouth. Remember the rumor she started about me and Johnny Blanco sophomore year?”
Yeah, he did. Lily called him up in tears because Yvonne spread it around school that Lily and Johnny went all the way, when apparently they had only kissed. Which was good for Johnny because Colt would have been on the next flight home to kick his ass.
