“What? She hired us?” I gasp, relief flooding my veins. “But it was a disaster.”
“She emailed me while you were driving back, and said that despite the slightly unprofessional behavior displayed by my employee, she’d like us to take the contract.”
I leap up from the recliner, my blood boiling at her comments. “Unprofessional? Employee?” I roar. “What the fuck? Did she mention that she walked into me and squashed a cinnamon roll into my one good sweater?”
My fists are balled at my sides and my indignation intensifies when my brother bursts out laughing. “She did mention something about adding dry cleaning costs to our quote,” he chuckles, handing me his iPad so I can read the email she sent. I snatch it out of his hand and there it is in black and white, the words that both fill me with a sense of huge relief, but also make my hackles rise.
Unprofessional, my ass!
She may be the most sexy woman I’ve ever been in a room with, but she’s also infuriating as hell. It’s definitely going to be an interesting working environment.
Chapter 3
Jessica
“How was your first week?” Connie asks. I hear the distinct sound of her slurping wine. “Ready to kill any of the kids yet?”
I laugh, sipping from my own glass of red wine, savoring the smooth flavor, and tuck my legs underneath me. It’s a beautiful evening, so I decided to take my weekly Friday night call with my bestie out on the deck where I can see the sun setting over the ocean.
“No,” I reply. “The kids are delightful, and the faculty are … mostly open to my new ideas. I’m loving it.”
And I really mean all of that; my first week at Crescent Bay Elementary has been great, and I feel like I made the right move taking the job and shifting my life to Northern California. I love the apartment I’ve chosen; the deck and view really sold it to me, making the choice between the ground and first floor an easy one. I like the peaceful, secluded space where I can do my yoga and meditation in the open air, without the worry about being overlooked. After the craziness of living in L.A. I’m certainly easing into the more laid-back lifestyle in this small town.
“Okay, enough of the boring job stuff,” Connie giggles, “Tell me about the man situation. Do they grow them sexy and rugged up there?” I can almost see her wiggling her perfectly shaped eyebrows, smirking into her wine glass.
But her question just reminds me that the man situation is pretty much identical to the one I left in L.A.—non-existent. Other than the slimy realtor who showed me around my apartment, the middle-aged janitor at school, and the college-age barista who serves me my double shot soy latte every morning, I’ve yet to dip my toe in the Crescent Bay dating pool.
“I’m going to take your silence as confirmation of what I suspected,” Connie’s voice snaps me out of my pity party, “You haven’t even been looking, have you?”
I choke out some kind of gurgling sound in rebuttal, but Connie just laughs. “You need to get back in the game, sweetie,” she says, stating the obvious.
But as I sit there, watching the final sparkles from the sun bounce off the ocean, I remember how much Patrick took from me. He made me feel worthless and unattractive. and I don’t know if I’m ready to be vulnerable with anyone yet.
“I don’t know, Con,” I sigh, feeling tears sting the back of my throat. “I don’t think I’m ready.”
“It’s been a year, Jess. Even longer if you count all the time you were unhappy with that douchewaffle,” she replies, “There are good men out there, I promise.”
“Well you would say that,” I scoff, “You and Steve have been married since college and are the most blissfully happy assholes I’ve ever met.”
Connie giggles, sipping her wine. “That’s true, but I want you to at least see the kinds of guys that are out there… so I may have done a thing.”
Suddenly my heart rate speeds up, and my palms get sweaty. Even though Connie has been my best friend since our first day of college, she’s not known for her subtlety or for keeping her nose out of my business.
“What did you do?” I growl, putting my wine glass down a little too hard, causing liquid to splash onto the table. “I swear, if you’ve set me up on a blind date, I’ll—”
“Not exactly a blind date,” she cuts me off. “More a way to safely explore the type of guys who are out there.”
“Okay... I need more information before I get in my car and drive back to L.A. to kick your butt.”
“I signed you up for a dating app!” Connie blurts out, and I suddenly feel like I’m having my first official chest pain.
“You did what?” I choke out in a strangled voice, clutching my chest as I sit bolt upright.
“Now, don’t freak out. I can hear it in your voice that you’re spiralling. Take a big gulp of wine and let me explain,” Connie says in her best stern mom voice.
I take several deep breaths, finish off my glass of wine before I’m ready to listen.
“Fine. Explain,” I say putting the phone on speaker because my hands are suddenly shaking. I twist a lock of my long dark hair absentmindedly, a habit which always helps me relax.