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“Nice to meet you,” I say.
We haven’t spoken since she hung up on me the other night for saying the awful things I said.
She doesn’t look like she’s still mad at me, though. In fact, she almost looks oddly excited. In her typical Jade demeanor, she chews on her lip and stares at me for guidance. I glance down at my outstretched hand before she gets the hint and plays along.
“Nice to meet you,” she replies before shaking it. In a daring move, I shoot her a quick wink, which makes her smirk to herself.
That’s a good sign she’s no longer angry at me. Until I get a chance to talk to her alone, I won’t know for sure, but it’s enough for now.
“And this is Jack,” Clay adds proudly. I don’t miss the way he holds a hand on my son’s shoulder as if he’shis. The thought sends a warm wave of affection through my chest, and it’s so foreign I wish I could bottle it and hold on to it forever.
Jade immediately kneels so she’s on his level. “Hey, Jack,” she says. “I like your baseball uniform.”
“Thanks, I got a hit today.”
“Shut up,” she replies, feigning shock. “Did anyone get that on camera?” She looks up at me and Clay, but we both shake our heads. Then she turns back toward my son. “Next time, I’ll come, and I’ll make sure to record all of your hits.”
Jack giggles. “Thanks.”
The four of us find a table inside Jack’s favorite burger place. Then Clay goes up to the counter by himself to order our lunch, and Jack quickly trails along as if he can’t stand to be away from Clay for one second.
There’s nothing wrong with him having a friend,I think to myself. It doesn’t need to be anything more than that.
When Jade and I are left alone at our table, I don’t waste a second. “Jade, I’m sorry,” I mumble quietly.
“Don’t,” she replies, stopping me. “It doesn’t matter.”
“Yes, it does. It was incredibly unprofessional of me, and I apologize.”
She turns toward the boys in the line on the other side of the restaurant. Then she turns back toward me. “Thank you.”
Only allowing for one second of awkward silence, she immediately starts in with her rambling. “This is weird, though, right? I feel a little bad that he had to introduce us like we don’t already know each other. I mean, what’s going to happen tonight? We still have to act like we barely know each other. It feels wrong, but at the same time, it’s not like we did anything inappropriate.”
When I hold up my hand to stop her rambling, she doesn’t.
“Thank you for agreeing to tonight, by the way. I know I should have come to you, but I thought you were mad at me, and I figured if he asked, you might be more inclined to say yes.”
“Jade, stop,” I say, stifling a laugh. “We don’t need to talk about that here. In fact, when we’re not at the club, we don’t talk about club stuff.”
“Oh,” she replies, sitting back in her chair. “Then what should we talk about?”
I bite my lower lip to keep from smiling. Before I can even respond, she starts in again.
“You look different, you know, outside the club. Better, if you ask me,” she says.
I feel a blush rise to my cheeks, which is abnormal for me. “Thank you, I think.”
We both laugh a little. “You look good, too,” I say, although she looks exactly the same as she does when she comes into the club. She’s in a steel-blue one-piece jumper with a thin bralette underneath. It’s both adorable and sexy at the same time in an effortless way that only Jade can manage. As I let my eyes cascade over her petite shoulders and down to her nimble fingers, I try to act as casual as possible.
My only female friends are the women at the club and our friendship is hardly conventional. I’m not an idiot, so I understand why it’s suddenly so hard for me to act normal around Jade. I just can’t letherknow that. It doesn’t matter how much I want Jade. She’s Clay’s, and that’s not going to change. So I avert my eyes and let her ramble on without saying a word myself.
When Clay and Jack return a few minutes later, they have their hands full with milkshakes, fries, and a tray of burgers. As they sit down, the four of us dig in, enjoying easy conversation and effortless laughter. I know it should worry me how easily I’m breaking more of my rules for them, but for some reason, it doesn’t.
Rule #21: Always do the paperwork.
Jade
I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous. Of course, I am. Who wouldn’t be?
