“Don’t be ridiculous,” Lindsey said. “Of course you could handle Jack putting his tongue down some hot young model’s throat right now. Or setting up a romantic little dinner for two at that place you like with the cheesy bread loafs. You’re totally the type of girl who doesn’t mind sharing when she’s found a good thing.”
I could feel my nostrils flaring.
Breathe in. Breathe out.
Still pissed.
I got up from the table. “I don’t have to sit here and let you two manipulate me.”
“You’re right. It would be better if you went out and did whatever it is you look so charged to do,” Lindsey said.
I pointed a finger in her face, lips pursed with annoyance. She was my best friend, and this was far from the first time she’d practically driven me into a frothing rage for what she believed to be my best interests. The part that made me the most irrationally angry was how good she was at pushing my buttons.
Because at that moment, I cared more about the possibility she’d painted. I was imagining Jack with his hand on the small of some other woman’s back. With his perfect, gorgeous penis in some pretty little thing’s face.
I may not have any idea what the future held for the two of us, but I knew he should at least have the decency not to sleep around the freaking day after he gave me the best sex of my life.
I was out the door, and I made sure not to look back when I heard the sound of Lindsey and Luca high fiving each other in victory.27JackI’d been sitting with Ally for close to two hours, as hard as that was to believe. But I wasn’t about to make a light decision on whether she was fit to be back in Ben’s life. I wanted to know she meant what she said—that this wasn’t just some ploy to trick me or push a hidden agenda.
So far, she was passing the test. She had almost exclusively been asking questions about Ben. What he liked to do, who his friends were, what he wanted to be when he grew up, how he did in school, and a hundred others. The only hint I’d seen of anything alarming was when I mentioned that he was great friends with Nola’s son. She had corrected me and asked if I meant “the nanny.” It was as if she was offended by me being on a first name basis with Nola. So I’d made sure she understood it wasn’t her place to give a shit or not and continued calling her Nola.
My phone buzzed several times in rapid succession in my pocket. After Nola’s call, I figured I should make sure there wasn’t some complication with the plans for me to pick up the kids.
“Just a second,” I said, cutting Ally off as she was explaining her stance on discipline when children misbehaved.
Her lips tightened briefly, but then she smiled and waved it off like it was no big deal.
I glanced at my phone.
Nola (2:41 p.m.): Watching you.
I looked around the cafe, halfway expecting to see her peeking out of a bush or behind the back of a nearby booth. What the hell?
Nola (2:42 p.m.): Franklin Autocollect. Where are you.
Nola (2:42 p.m.): AUTOCORRECT. I hate my phone.
“Since when do you smile so easily?” Ally asked.
“Hm?” I wiped the look off my face and then shook my head. “It’s nothing.”
Without thinking, I texted her the name of the cafe and put the phone back in my pocket. Ally started talking again before I could even wonder why Nola wanted to know.
It was about five minutes later when movement caught my attention. There was a flash of color to my left. Red color. As in, red braided hair and big blue eyes that had been looking in at me from the window.
I half turned in the chair, once again cutting Ally off mid-sentence. She pressed her manicured nails into the table hard enough I thought they might crack.
“Everything okay, Jack?”
“I just thought I saw someone I know.”
As soon as I’d turned my head, the person had disappeared. The only way that was possible with how low the windows went would’ve been if they literally dropped to the floor on their belly. In the middle of a busy street.
Sure enough, every person who walked by the spot I’d seen someone was looking curiously at the ground as they went by.
I got up from my chair and moved to the window, apologizing to the family sitting in the nearby table. When I looked down, I saw Nola’s perfect little ass in a pair of jeans. I thought it was telling that I knew it was her from the ass before I even confirmed another detail. Then again, after last night, I had a feeling I was never going to forget her ass or how good it had felt to take her from behind.