“I also know you work with sharp objects and solder irons. I thought it best not to surprise you there.”
“Okay, I’ll give you that one, but you could have just asked to see me. Or called.”
“This was more fun, and I need some of that in my life.”
I tilted my head. His melancholy tone caught me off guard. “Have you had enough fun yet?”
He leaned forward and without touching me whispered, “Not even close.”
Shivers erupted. I stepped back, nervously swiping my bangs.
Jonah wasn’t backing off. “There’s nothing going on between Eliza, my ex-wife,” he clarified, “and me. She’ll just be in town, and for our daughter’s sake, we want to have holidays together as much as possible.”
“That’s nice.” I wrung my hands. Maybe he wasn’t hung up over his ex.
“I want you to meet Whitney, my daughter.”
“Why?”
“Because we both need some fun in our lives.”
Didn’t we all?Chapter Six“I’m still not talking to the two of you.” I slammed a roll of copper tape down on one of the tables in the studio. I was setting up for Sip and Solder night. We were expecting a big crowd. Our Tiffany-style ornaments were all the rage this time of year.
Kinsley and Dani laughed at me.
I hadn’t said a word to them since telling them off yesterday when I got back from taking Grandma to her appointment. You know, after I did a fashion show for them with all my new clothes. But after that I’d been giving them the cold shoulder. I didn’t care how good I looked.
Kinsley started nibbling on a chocolate cookie.
“Those are for my customers,” I growled.
“I made them.” She took a large bite and chewed dramatically, making Dani and me laugh.
“Fine, you have a point,” I conceded.
Dani reached out across the table and took my hand. “Don’t be mad at us. Everything we did was out of love. And see how cute you look?”
I stared down at my form-fitting, soft gray tunic and black leggings that left no doubt I had long slender legs. I even had on some stylish leather booties. My feet weren’t loving the constrictive nature of them, but when I was in the studio it was the price my feet had to pay for protection. Glass and heat were a painful combination.
“So how was it seeing Jonah?” Kinsley asked after swallowing. “You never told us yesterday.”
“What makes you think I will now?” I suppressed a smile. It was hard to stay mad at them.
“Oh, come on,” Dani begged. “If you tell us, I’ll tell you what Jonah told Brock about seeing you again.”
I grabbed on to the table for support. I wasn’t sure how I felt about Jonah talking about me. “What are we, in high school? Do you want me to tell Brant to tell Brock you think he’s fine and you would say yes if he asked you out?”
Dani bit her lip. “Please don’t.”
Ugh. Now I felt bad. I sat next to her on one of the stools and rubbed her leg. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t tease you about him. Is he really bringing a date tonight?”
Dani rested her head on her hand and sighed. “Yep. I gave her my Dani seal of approval.” Sarcastic tones oozed through her words.
Kinsley handed her two cookies. “You need to quit torturing yourself like that. Brock’s a big boy, he can keep choosing the wrong woman all on his own.”
Dani grabbed the cookies, devoured a large bite of one, and took a moment to savor it. After letting out a deep breath, she said, “I gave up hope a long time ago that he and I will ever be anything more than friends.” She sat up tall. “Anyway, let’s talk about Jonah, who we know wants to be more than someone’s friend.”
I swallowed hard. “He said that?”
Dani waved her finger in front of me. “Oh no, the deal was for you to tell us how you felt first.”
“Please,” Kinsley begged while brushing cookie crumbs off her cropped sweater that showed off her tight abs. Food may have been her life, but she worked out like no one’s business.
I rubbed the back of my neck. “There’s not a lot to tell. I saw him, made a fool of myself, and that was pretty much it.” I stood to finish setting up for my class, refusing to mention that he’d followed us out to the parking lot and kissed my cheek before saying, “We’ll get together later and talk.” I’d mumbled something incoherent like, “What? No. Yes. Okay. I need to go buy bread.” It wasn’t my finest moment. I don’t know what had happened to me. I never used to be so nonsensical around him. He used to call me witty. Now I felt dimwitted.
Dani grabbed me, making me stay put. “You are such a liar. You have Jonah glow.”