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Rene released a sigh of relief. She misunderstood the whole thing. Jesse was just talking about her being better than all the other girls who applied for the position. That made sense. This sense of relief allowed her to smile again, without that uncontrollable twitch in her fingers.
“Thank you,” she smiled, acknowledging it as a compliment.
“Well, I guess I’ll be out of your hair then,” he got up, picking up all the plates and clearing the entire table, before she could say anything. “I can be a bit of a jerk sometimes, sorry about that.”
His grin told her that what he was saying was really true. He could be annoying sometimes, but he could also be almost pleasant. She liked this pleasant guy better.
“It was nice meeting you,” she smiled back, accepting his peace offering.
“Same,” he grinned back. “What about tonight?”
“Tonight?” she asked, wondering if she forgot something.
“Can you stay or would you like me to take over?” he reminded her.
“Oh, that!” she laughed nervously. “I can stay, no problem.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah, don’t worry about it.”
“OK,” he shrugged his shoulders. “Just so you know, if you can’t reach Hyde or if you need someone closer, I’m just down the street. My number is on the fridge, so you can give me a call if you need anything.”
Rene immediately remembered how Hyde offered that same thing. They seemed nice, helpful guys - both of them. Feeling a bit naughty, she gave herself a fun scenario: if she would have to choose one of them to be her partner on a desert island, who would she choose? She had to admit that it was a tough choice. She would need to think about it long and hard, and then decide, because both of them were tempting choices. She could almost see herself sleeping in a little make shift tent that Hyde built, or enjoying a cold coconut drink that Jesse picked from a tree and burst open with a big rock.
“Thanks,” she returned to reality, in Hyde’s kitchen. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Or, if you just need someone to help you with Parker,” he winked at her.
“That would mean I’m not really good at my job, wouldn’t it?” she smiled back, sensing that he was just trying to work her up a little, to see if she would blush again.
He walked around the table and stood right next to her. His face was so close to her that she could almost taste the blueberries he just had, on his lips. Her heart started beating like a race horse, as if it was about to jump out of her chest cavity any second and gallop away with this gorgeous man she just met, leaving poor Rene Olsen an empty shell of a woman.
“I can keep a secret if you can,” he whispered right into her ears, and a thousand little goosebumps rushed up and down her body, then dispersed all over, leaving her with a strangely pleasant tingling sensation.
Sure that if he touched her, she would implode from the heat and force of his touch. Luckily, Parker rushed back into the kitchen, carrying a small gardening set of tools.
“I’m ready!” he shouted at them excitedly.
“That’s great, bud,” Jesse nodded, patting him on the shoulder.
“Are you coming, too?” Parker wondered.
“No, I have to get some work done, but I’m leaving you in the capable hands of yo
ur beautiful nanny,” he smiled.
Parker gave him a hug, as Rene looked on, feeling a little out of place. She had no idea why she wanted Jesse to stay.
“Thanks for the pancakes,” he smiled, passing her by. “Don’t worry, I’ll let myself out.”
A second later, Rene heard the front door close. This guy left such an impression on her and she was almost upset with herself. She felt like a giddy school girl who stumbled onto her crush by accident and became totally tongue-tied upon seeing him. It wasn’t enough that she felt this way about Hyde, now it had to be like this with his best friend as well.
“Rene, are we going out?”
Rene heard Parker’s sweet, pleading voice, and she immediately smiled back at him.
“Of course, sweetie. Let me just grab my sweater.”
