Not Quite Over You
Page 33
“How’s work?” he asked as she dumped the cooked vegetables onto a plate, then wiped the pan clean before pouring in the egg mixture.
“Busy.”
“You never said how you came to buy the printing business. That’s all it was at first, right? You added the graphic design part?”
She kept her attention on the pan, carefully swirling the egg mixture until it was even. She collected a bag of shredded cheese from the refrigerator, then returned to the stove.
“Why all the questions?” she asked.
“It was two.”
She checked the omelet. After adding the vegetables back to one side of the pan, she sprinkled everything with cheese, then carefully flipped the other half of the cooked eggs over. Using the spatula, she cut the omelet in half and slid a piece onto each plate.
They sat across from each other at his kitchen table. She sipped her coffee, then looked at him.
“Don’t be curious about me, Jasper. I’m not going to tell you more than I have.”
“Why?”
“I don’t want to talk about it. You need to respect that.”
“I’ve known you a long time now. More than two years. Don’t you trust me?”
Her dark gaze gave nothing away. “It’s not about trust.”
“Sure it is. Don’t you want more than what we have?”
She smiled. “You mean like a commitment and a ring. Do you?”
A question he hadn’t been expecting. Did he want more?
Before he could decide, she laughed. “Uh-huh. That’s what I thought. This is good for both of us. I like things exactly as they are and you do, too. Every now and then you get a bug up your butt about wanting more, but it passes.”
“I don’t understand you.”
“How many women do you understand?”
He chuckled. “You make an excellent point and an equally great breakfast.”
“Thank you.”
“How’s Hunter?”
Her good mood faded. “Jasper, I swear, you don’t give up. Maybe it’s a writer thing. You know what I said about Hunter.”
“I never get in touch with him, Wynn. You know that.” He didn’t have to. Hunter always found him.
He supposed by not telling her that, he was being an asshole, but some part of him was willing to risk it. Partially because he liked hanging out with the kid, and partially to see what would happen when it all hit the fan. Because one day it would. Happily Inc was too small for it to end otherwise.
Was he hoping she would relent? That she would tell him what they had was worth saving? Or was the more likely scenario that she would simply turn and walk away? And if he believed that and hung out with Hunter anyway, what did that say about what he thought of their relationship?
“I do know,” she told him. “Now eat your eggs before they get cold. Then you can tell me all about your trip to New York and how great your editor thinks you are.”
“She does think I’m pretty great.”
“Of course she does.” Wynn’s smile faded. “Jasper, I like you a lot. I like this, but don’t be fooled. If you cross me, it’s over.”
“I know.”
“When we started, you said this was enough. Is that still true?”
He nodded. “I’m not looking for more.”
“Good.”
Her smile returned and they both started eating.
Later, as he walked her to her car, he wondered if he’d been telling the truth about not wanting more. He was pushing things with Wynn; he was restless in ways he couldn’t explain. What did that mean? She drove away and he retreated to the house.
Maybe it didn’t have to mean anything, he thought. After all, more than one VA therapist had warned him his experiences had left him emotionally shattered. He’d been warned he might never be whole. So what he had with Wynn should be perfect. A beautiful woman, great sex and nothing more. Only he found himself in the uncomfortable position of having to admit that some days, it wasn’t enough.
CHAPTER TEN
SILVER WAS GOING to throw up. Doing the right thing was highly overrated and she was, honest to God, going to throw up. Not that she had a choice—she’d put off telling Drew about Autumn too long and now they were less than two weeks from Leigh and Denton’s wedding. Autumn was due to arrive, there was a big royal party to plan for, construction was nearly finished on the first trailer and Drew’s mother was back in town. Other than that, and telling Drew about their child, she was fine. Completely and totally fine.
She paced the length of the retail space, careful to avoid the stacks of new furniture still wrapped in plastic, and did her best not to bump into the stripper poles. She was still getting used to where they were and had crashed into one the previous day. An incredibly dumb thing to think about but better than her conversation with Drew.
He was going to be so angry with her, she thought grimly. No, he would be hurt and even as she told herself she hadn’t done anything wrong and it wasn’t as if he’d ever asked about their kid, she couldn’t help feeling...guilty.
She heard the door opening and spun to watch him walk inside. It was barely noon. He’d come from the bank for what he thought was a business lunch.
“Hey,” he said with a grin as he approached. “Tell me this isn’t about my mother.”
“It’s not.”
“Excellent. Then I have news. I have a rabbit.”
The statement was just unexpected enough to momentarily distract her. “Excuse me?”
“A rabbit. Mr. Whiskers is a standard chinchilla rabbit, which means he’s kind of gray and very soft. He’s around seven pounds and get this—he’s litter box trained. Seriously. He uses a little litter box with this wood pulp litter. He eats a special kind of hay and lots of greens. Lettuces and kale and carrot tops. He’s actually not too bad to have around. He sleeps a lot. I put him in one of spare rooms, but when I’m home I let him out.”
“A rabbit? As a pet?”
He pulled her close, hugged her, then chuckled. “Doug and Melissa adopted a newborn.”
He explained about Emily and her new baby brother and the rash and Mr. Whiskers. “I’m keeping him for a couple of weeks, while they get everything sorted out.”
She took a step back. “I really can’t see you with a rabbit, but if it’s working...”
“It is. And people say I have commitment issues.” He led her to a couple of folding chairs. “What’s up? Everything okay with the construction? I haven’t heard from Walter except to have him say they’re on schedule.”
“It’s not about work.” She looked at him and hoped this was going to go a lot better than she’d imagined. “Drew, I want to talk about the baby we gave up for adoption.”
He stared at her. “Now? It’s been years.”
“I know.” She swallowed, then told herself to just get it over with. “We had a girl.”
He looked surprised. “I figured we’d had a boy, but I guess that’s because I’m a guy.” He hesitated. “Did you see her after she was born?”
“I did. Her name is Autumn.”
“You named her?”
“No, I didn’t. I, ah, it was hard after we broke up and I found out I was pregnant. My uncle helped me find a nice couple to adopt our baby. They lived in Los Angeles and I ended up staying with them until Autumn was born.”
“Busy.”
“You never said how you came to buy the printing business. That’s all it was at first, right? You added the graphic design part?”
She kept her attention on the pan, carefully swirling the egg mixture until it was even. She collected a bag of shredded cheese from the refrigerator, then returned to the stove.
“Why all the questions?” she asked.
“It was two.”
She checked the omelet. After adding the vegetables back to one side of the pan, she sprinkled everything with cheese, then carefully flipped the other half of the cooked eggs over. Using the spatula, she cut the omelet in half and slid a piece onto each plate.
They sat across from each other at his kitchen table. She sipped her coffee, then looked at him.
“Don’t be curious about me, Jasper. I’m not going to tell you more than I have.”
“Why?”
“I don’t want to talk about it. You need to respect that.”
“I’ve known you a long time now. More than two years. Don’t you trust me?”
Her dark gaze gave nothing away. “It’s not about trust.”
“Sure it is. Don’t you want more than what we have?”
She smiled. “You mean like a commitment and a ring. Do you?”
A question he hadn’t been expecting. Did he want more?
Before he could decide, she laughed. “Uh-huh. That’s what I thought. This is good for both of us. I like things exactly as they are and you do, too. Every now and then you get a bug up your butt about wanting more, but it passes.”
“I don’t understand you.”
“How many women do you understand?”
He chuckled. “You make an excellent point and an equally great breakfast.”
“Thank you.”
“How’s Hunter?”
Her good mood faded. “Jasper, I swear, you don’t give up. Maybe it’s a writer thing. You know what I said about Hunter.”
“I never get in touch with him, Wynn. You know that.” He didn’t have to. Hunter always found him.
He supposed by not telling her that, he was being an asshole, but some part of him was willing to risk it. Partially because he liked hanging out with the kid, and partially to see what would happen when it all hit the fan. Because one day it would. Happily Inc was too small for it to end otherwise.
Was he hoping she would relent? That she would tell him what they had was worth saving? Or was the more likely scenario that she would simply turn and walk away? And if he believed that and hung out with Hunter anyway, what did that say about what he thought of their relationship?
“I do know,” she told him. “Now eat your eggs before they get cold. Then you can tell me all about your trip to New York and how great your editor thinks you are.”
“She does think I’m pretty great.”
“Of course she does.” Wynn’s smile faded. “Jasper, I like you a lot. I like this, but don’t be fooled. If you cross me, it’s over.”
“I know.”
“When we started, you said this was enough. Is that still true?”
He nodded. “I’m not looking for more.”
“Good.”
Her smile returned and they both started eating.
Later, as he walked her to her car, he wondered if he’d been telling the truth about not wanting more. He was pushing things with Wynn; he was restless in ways he couldn’t explain. What did that mean? She drove away and he retreated to the house.
Maybe it didn’t have to mean anything, he thought. After all, more than one VA therapist had warned him his experiences had left him emotionally shattered. He’d been warned he might never be whole. So what he had with Wynn should be perfect. A beautiful woman, great sex and nothing more. Only he found himself in the uncomfortable position of having to admit that some days, it wasn’t enough.
CHAPTER TEN
SILVER WAS GOING to throw up. Doing the right thing was highly overrated and she was, honest to God, going to throw up. Not that she had a choice—she’d put off telling Drew about Autumn too long and now they were less than two weeks from Leigh and Denton’s wedding. Autumn was due to arrive, there was a big royal party to plan for, construction was nearly finished on the first trailer and Drew’s mother was back in town. Other than that, and telling Drew about their child, she was fine. Completely and totally fine.
She paced the length of the retail space, careful to avoid the stacks of new furniture still wrapped in plastic, and did her best not to bump into the stripper poles. She was still getting used to where they were and had crashed into one the previous day. An incredibly dumb thing to think about but better than her conversation with Drew.
He was going to be so angry with her, she thought grimly. No, he would be hurt and even as she told herself she hadn’t done anything wrong and it wasn’t as if he’d ever asked about their kid, she couldn’t help feeling...guilty.
She heard the door opening and spun to watch him walk inside. It was barely noon. He’d come from the bank for what he thought was a business lunch.
“Hey,” he said with a grin as he approached. “Tell me this isn’t about my mother.”
“It’s not.”
“Excellent. Then I have news. I have a rabbit.”
The statement was just unexpected enough to momentarily distract her. “Excuse me?”
“A rabbit. Mr. Whiskers is a standard chinchilla rabbit, which means he’s kind of gray and very soft. He’s around seven pounds and get this—he’s litter box trained. Seriously. He uses a little litter box with this wood pulp litter. He eats a special kind of hay and lots of greens. Lettuces and kale and carrot tops. He’s actually not too bad to have around. He sleeps a lot. I put him in one of spare rooms, but when I’m home I let him out.”
“A rabbit? As a pet?”
He pulled her close, hugged her, then chuckled. “Doug and Melissa adopted a newborn.”
He explained about Emily and her new baby brother and the rash and Mr. Whiskers. “I’m keeping him for a couple of weeks, while they get everything sorted out.”
She took a step back. “I really can’t see you with a rabbit, but if it’s working...”
“It is. And people say I have commitment issues.” He led her to a couple of folding chairs. “What’s up? Everything okay with the construction? I haven’t heard from Walter except to have him say they’re on schedule.”
“It’s not about work.” She looked at him and hoped this was going to go a lot better than she’d imagined. “Drew, I want to talk about the baby we gave up for adoption.”
He stared at her. “Now? It’s been years.”
“I know.” She swallowed, then told herself to just get it over with. “We had a girl.”
He looked surprised. “I figured we’d had a boy, but I guess that’s because I’m a guy.” He hesitated. “Did you see her after she was born?”
“I did. Her name is Autumn.”
“You named her?”
“No, I didn’t. I, ah, it was hard after we broke up and I found out I was pregnant. My uncle helped me find a nice couple to adopt our baby. They lived in Los Angeles and I ended up staying with them until Autumn was born.”
