AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“You think?” Ben had said, giving her the once-over.
Apparently, he wasn’t impressed with “weird,” and he was feeling more and more comfortable letting her know it. He liked women looking as much like Barbie dolls as possible, and she definitely didn’t fit that mold.
But she refused to live her life to please him or anyone else. If she couldn’t even please her own father, she figured that was an impossible task. So she did the exact opposite—and made sure she lived large and didn’t seek approval.
When Kurt sent a text message on Friday of the following week to see if Hendrix would like to meet him at Hank’s to play pool again—this time with two of his brothers, Ranson and Miles—Hendrix almost refused. He wasn’t in the mood to be sociable. It’d been almost two weeks since he’d taken Leo to the dessert diner, and yet Leo had just called to see if he could find out if Ellen was working there again this weekend. He wanted to go back and wouldn’t take no for an answer. He insisted she’d need his help, but Hendrix suspected there was more at play. Leo believed he’d made a new friend, and a new friend, especially one who treated him as kindly as Ellen had, was so magical that he couldn’t get her out of his mind.
Shewas the real draw. And Hendrix didn’t know what to do about it. Was she planning some kind of revenge for what he’d done with Ben? Was it possible, even after he’d apologized, that she was still angry enough to strike back at him by hurting the one person he cared about most?
He hated to suspect her of being that callous, but it was plausible. After all, what he’d done was costing her a significant amount of money.
Kurt texted again. Hendrix had taken too long to respond. His other option was to stay in by himself. Would that make things any better?
He didn’t think so. Besides, if they had four players, they could form teams.
Yeah. I’ll head over in fifteen.
Cool. We’ll be waiting for you.
He’d just hit Send when Lynn called.
“Leo’s in his room crying because you told him he couldn’t go back to the dessert diner. He’s convinced Ellen will be there, waiting for him this weekend and he needs to show up,” she said.
“She treated him well when he saw her there and she made it fun,” he responded.
“She must have. The question is why? Is she trying to divide us as a family?”
Hendrix couldn’t answer that question with certainty.
“I don’t think so,” he said. “It seems different than that. She doesn’t hate him like she does us, so she treated him the way she’d treat anyone in his situation.”
He didn’t add that he’d been impressed by how she’d interacted with Leo, how intuitive she’d been when it came to communicating with him and making him happy. He guessed she’d also be good with kids. But instead of continuing the conversation with his aunt, he told her Kurt was expecting him soon.
He took a quick shower and didn’t see Lynn’s text message until he was gathering his keys.
Stu won’t do anything when it comes to her, so you’ll have to. Can you tell her to stay away from Leo? Please?
Lynn had always been able to count on him to look out for her son. But how could he tell Ellen to stay away from Leo when she wasn’t the one who’d approached him? He and Leo had gone into the dessert diner where she happened to be working. That wasn’therfault. The only thing she’d done to create this problem was to be friendly, which was hardly something he could complain about.
I’m afraid that will only make matters worse. Leo will forget about her eventually.
I’m not so sure about that. He’s convinced she really likes him.
Hendrix got the impression she did. He just didn’t know if he could trust that impression—or her.
Ellen had never met Jordan in person. She had no idea how well he’d match the pictures he’d posted on the dating app. So she was relieved to find she recognized him as soon as he got out of his Audi sedan and started across the parking lot toward her. Because he’d had a patient with a dental emergency this morning, he was getting in later than he’d originally planned—and he’d indicated he was hungry—which was why she’d told him to meet her at Hank’s Bar & Grill. There was probably more fun to be found at Hank’s than anywhere else in Coyote Canyon. They could have dinner, listen to live music, dance a little—ifhe danced—and play a few games of darts or billiards. Also, since she didn’t know Jordan very well, she thought it would be smarter to meet him at a public place rather than invite him to her house. Talulah had insisted she’d be foolish to trust him too soon.
“I know you think you’re bulletproof and are used to hanging with the guys but being too confident could get you into a difficult situation,” her friend had advised.
“He’s a dentist, for God’s sake,” Ellen had responded. “Dentists are the most steady, reliable people on the planet. Other than accountants, of course.”
Talulah had rolled her eyes. “Those are stereotypes. You have to be careful. He could just as easily be an axe-murderer.”
“From what I know of him so far, I highly doubt he’s dangerous. Besides, you don’t have to worry about me. You know I can’t let my guard down even when I should.”
“There’s a difference between protecting your heart and your person,” Talulah had said. “We’ve all heard terrible stories about meeting someone online. So...just be careful.”
After that, Ellen hadn’t argued. Talulah was right. She’d be stupid not to approach anyone she didn’t know with caution.
