5. Chapter 5 Do You Want to Listen to an Audiobook While We Drive?
Chapter 5: Do You Want to Listen to an Audiobook While We Drive?
J ENNY
As they exited the highway, Jenny’s mind spun with all the new information she learned. She and Wade had always gotten along; they were work friends. Even though she already harbored a small crush on Wade before Gloria put other ideas in her head, she had no expectations for anything more.
She wasn’t kidding when she told Gloria she had a bad picker, though. When she had a little too much fun earlier, she tried to trip him up so she could dial back her attraction. But their music conversation threw her for a loop instead.
She knew there were male fans of her favorite singer-songwriter, but she hadn’t expected him to be one of them. And he volunteered the information so casually as if there were no stigma about enjoying music that most men—and some women—dismissed as trash for pre-teen girls.
But the situation with her feet caused her the most turmoil as they drove in silence. Nearly all the men in her life, from her father to male friends and all her past boyfriends, had one thing in common: they couldn’t resist telling her what to do and acting as if their way was the correct way.
Then there was Wade. Wade talked to her about his worries instead of assuming he knew more just because of his gender. He offered a valid concern as an observation and then stressed that her decision was her own.
She had never, ever been in car trip of any duration with a man without a battle of wills to stop more than once every few hours. In fact, she was hungry now because she skipped breakfast to limit her need to use the restroom.
Thinking about it more, she realized Wade had always treated her that way. In their conversations, he engaged with her instead of waiting for his turn to talk. He remembered things she said, didn’t laugh at her unless she was trying to be funny, and always treated her like she deserved to be there.
Despite Wade’s protestations, Jeff wasn’t the only one in their office who thought that everyone who wasn’t a programmer was beneath them. It didn’t matter that she had a master’s degree and years of experience in her field; she wasn’t a programmer, so she didn’t know anything important.
Damn it. This was the worst possible thing that could have happened to her at the start of this trip.
She wanted to call Gloria but already knew what her friend would say. Jenny had thought of little else in the last week other than the temptation of hooking up with Wade. Honestly, she had been counting on him alienating her so she could more easily resist her growing attraction.
Of course, there was always the possibility that he was playing her. Maybe he wanted a conference hookup, and this was all an elaborate ruse. She’d be the easiest option since they already knew each other, and he wouldn’t have to waste as much time once they got to the hotel. Yeah, that was it.
She exhaled with relief when they pulled into the parking lot.
“I need to hit the head,” Wade said as he turned off the ignition. “I’ll wait for you at the counter to order since I’ve got the company card.”
“Sure.” Jenny grabbed her hoodie from the backseat. “That sounds good.”
She was relieved to have a few minutes apart. After she took care of business in the bathroom, she examined herself in the mirror. What would a guy like Wade even see in someone like her?
She was overweight, and he wasn’t. It was as simple as that. She liked how she looked, but fifteen years of dating had taught her that the only men who were accepting of her figure were men who also carried extra weight. And heck, some of them still held women to a higher standard than they did themselves.
Wade was a geek, but he wore it proudly. The glasses, his shoulder length hair and neatly trimmed beard, the un-tucked button-down shirts over graphic tees on his average frame. Even if she didn’t know how smart he was from talking to him, he radiated geek culture.
Yet for all that, he was attractive, and Jenny knew she wasn’t the only woman at In-Tech who thought that. He could do a lot better than her, looks-wise, especially if the female attendees at the conference were eager for male attention. Wade was good-looking and funny, which was a winning combination.
Okay, it was decided. Wade was great, but she needed to stick to her plan. She was on a self-imposed dating moratorium for at least six months since her breakup with Chad, and she still had a few months to go.
Maybe then her picker would recalibrate, and she’d stop dating men who didn’t like her or find her attractive. She had her toys, including the favorite vibrator currently residing in her suitcase, so her orgasm count wouldn’t suffer.
With her head held high, she returned to the restaurant area to find Wade in conversation with an attractive redhead who held his arm as if she needed support to stand. That was unexpected and unwelcome.
Wade gave her a twisted smile she didn’t understand when she waved. He called her over for introductions.
“You’ll never believe this, Jenny, but Suzanne used to work at our office. She’s headed to the same conference we are.”
“We didn’t just work together,” Suzanne said with a flutter of lashes. “Wade and I dated until I left for a different job. I hoped we’d run into each other this week, but I didn’t expect it to be here.”
“What are the chances?” Jenny asked.
“I know!” the bubbly young woman said. “I couldn’t believe it when I saw him walk in. It’s like karma or something!”
At least now Jenny wouldn’t have to worry about keeping herself away from Wade. Suzanne was clearly smitten and ready to stake her claim. Since they had a history, if all Wade wanted was a hookup, she’d be the obvious choice.
“I think you mean kismet,” Jenny said in an undertone that Suzanne ignored. Wade’s eyes flew to her face, but he said nothing.
“It was surprising to see you, Suzanne,” Wade said, “but we need to eat and get back on the road, so we don’t miss the opening events.”
Jenny was surprised at Wade’s words. They were the exact opposite of what he just told her. He sounded so believable, though. Maybe he was better at manipulation than she thought.
“My group is about to leave anyway. I’ll be sure to seek you out later. Maybe we can have a few drinks and catch up, Wade,” Suzanne said as her fingers trailed along his arm. “Oh, and it was nice to meet you, uh…”
“Jenny,” Wade supplied.
“Yes, Jenny.” Suzanne giggled. “Sorry, seeing Wade again so unexpectedly scrambled my brains.”
Suzanne shared a toothpaste ad-worthy smile and bounced off to meet her group. Wade kept the smile on his own face, but as he turned away from the departing woman, he gently placed his hand on Jenny’s arm.
“Please don’t leave me alone with her,” he said under his breath.
“She seemed nice,” Jenny said politely.
“She’s a nightmare.”
Jenny schooled her face, but she wasn’t very successful. Wade grimaced.
“I know, I know; I was in a bad place mentally when she started at In-Tech. Suzanne’s attentions were flattering, and I couldn’t believe someone like her would be interested in me. I didn’t realize she was just using me to do her work. She’s sharp but very lazy and incredibly manipulative.”
“We’ve all been there.”
“I don’t know what her goal is now.” Wade muttered to himself. “Our breakup was awful. She left the company shortly afterwards, but there’s no reason for the performance you just witnessed. There’s nothing I can do for her now.”
“Maybe she just missed you. You’re a great guy.”
Heat spread over Jenny’s face when the words fell out of her mouth without prior approval by her brain. Luckily, it seemed Wade was too focused on his ex’s sudden reappearance to pay close attention.
“No, that’s not it. In hindsight, it was easy to see that all her relationships were transactional. That’s not bitterness on my part, either. I was far more relieved than angry when things ended. She is all drama and scheming.”
“Yikes!”
Wade shook his head and forced a smile on his face.
“I’m going to put her out of my mind for now. I won’t figure out what she’s after right now, so I can’t let it ruin my day. How ‘bout we order our food and try to enjoy the rest of our trip.”
“Did you change your mind about getting back on the road right away?” Jenny asked cautiously.
“Hell, no. Now I’m even less interested in getting there early.”
The two ordered their lunch. Once their food was ready, they sat at a table and shared more light banter. Jenny was still confused about her feelings for Wade, but he was a great road trip companion if nothing else.
His phone rang as they finished eating. He glanced at it and frowned.
“It’s Kyle. Since he’s calling instead of texting, it’s probably work-related.”
He answered the call. “Hey, man, what’s up?”
A furrow appeared between his brows as he listened.
“What? No, that shouldn’t be happening. You were right to let me know. Give me a minute to dig my laptop out and tell him I’ll call him in a minute.”
Jenny sat back in the booth and watched him with concern. Wade ran a frustrated hand through his hair and huffed out a breath.
“Sorry to do this, but I need to deal with a work crisis before we get back on the road. Our junior dev broke something, and there’s no one available. Kyle’s off-site with a client, Mike’s on vacation, and Alan had to go pick a sick kid up from school. It would help if I could take care of this right away.”
“Of course,” Jenny said. “Do what you need to do.”
Wade looked relieved and headed to the car to grab his laptop. Jenny observed him through the full-length windows of the fast-food restaurant and admired his round ass. When he got his laptop out of the backseat, she hastily brought up the e-book she was reading on her phone.
The words that jumped out at her made her blush, and she glanced around to ensure no one could read over her shoulder. Maybe she’d better not read it in case he saw her screen. Jenny switched over to the audio-book version.
She pulled up an innocuous word game on her phone. Now she could play a game while she listened to her book, and nobody would know, Wade in particular.
Jenny wasn’t embarrassed to read romance novels, but knowing about it in general was different than reading or hearing the raunchy stuff that occurred in the books she liked. Listening to it in public made her a little tense, but she didn’t want to start another book. If she was careful, it would be fine.
She mindlessly played on her phone as she listened to an incredibly hot scene. The two main characters in her book gave in to their overwhelming lust for one another and had sex for the first time.
The reviews didn’t lie. If anything, they undersold the heat level. She found it difficult to listen to what they were doing without squirming in her seat. Now she understood why so many people preferred to read spicy romance books from the comfort of their own home.
Jenny peeked at Wade as she listened, admiring his intense concentration. Gloria’s words played on a loop in her mind. She wondered what it would be like to be the object of all that focus and intensity. Recently, her interest in him had morphed from a casual crush on a cute geeky guy into something more.
Right now, she had a bigger issue. Between the spicy story playing through her headphones and her growing attraction to the man across the table, her nipples were standing at attention. With the combination of the cold air and her lightweight top, they practically screamed, “Look at me, look at me.”
To avoid calling attention to herself, Jenny slowly shrugged her zippered hoodie back on. Unfortunately, just as her back arched with her arms bent behind her to slide into both sleeves, Wade looked up with a smile.
“I think I’ve figured—”
His words trailed off as he stared at her for a long moment.
Trapped in the tractor beam of his gaze, her nipples tightened further and sent insistent messages to the throbbing between her legs. For a few lifetimes or maybe a few seconds, Jenny remained frozen in place with her erect nipples standing at attention. He cleared his throat.
Jenny jerked into motion and nodded her head as she covered her torso—and her betraying nipples—with her hoodie.
Wade stared at his laptop. “I, uh, think I’ve figured out the problem. So, um, we should be able to head out in a few minutes.”
“Great! That’s great! I’ll just keep entertaining myself, I mean, playing my game. I’ll play my phone game while you finish up. I’m in no rush!”
“Great,” Wade repeated. “I should be done soon, but it will be easier to finish with the wi-fi and everything. So, I’ll just keep working until it’s done, and then we can leave. That’s the breast, I mean, best, that’s the best thing to do.”
“Yep. Got it! I think I’ll go to the bathroom again while I have the chance. All that iced tea, you know.”
She cringed at the fake cheer in her voice, but she couldn’t help it. Wade waved at her as she fled but kept his gaze deliberately trained on his laptop screen.
Shit. Now she’d made things awkward between them when all she wanted was to keep to herself and listen to her sexy stories.
Once again, Jenny found herself looking critically at her image in the same bathroom mirror. Compared to Wade’s ex, she came second in the looks department, but at least she was a decent human being. Too bad decency and loyalty weren’t in the top ten things men found attractive.
She’d never be able to speak to him again, so it was moot.
Oh, well. This was a work trip. It didn’t matter that she embarrassed herself by getting turned on in public. She might eventually forget that she’d almost shoved her hard nipples in his face, but she wouldn’t forget his obvious disinterest.
She didn’t know what she expected him to do, but he said nothing. He just went back to his computer and pretended it hadn’t happened, so she’d do the same.
Story of her life. She finally found a decent guy, and he was attracted to her polar opposite: a tall, willowy, evil redhead.
But it’s just as well. This is a work trip , she reminded herself for the thirtieth time in as many minutes. I’m here to learn, and so is he. That’s it.
“Ready to go?” she chirped when she arrived at the table.
He closed his laptop and said, “I don’t want to rush you if you need more time to finish your meal or anything.”
“Nope, I’m good,” Jenny said in that fake cheery voice again. “Do you need anything else before we head out?”
“Thanks, I’m ready, too.”
The overly polite behavior was painful, but at least they spoke. After they got to the car, they both stowed their belongings, though she kept her hoodie in the front seat with her this time. Her purse went on the floor under her legs.
Once Wade inserted the key into the ignition, Jenny forgot all about her previous awkwardness. The smutty book she was listening to on her headphones picked up where it left off and blared throughout the car’s speakers.
“I can’t wait to taste you. I want you to ride my face and come all over my tongue.”
“Oh, no,” Jenny whisper moaned as she dug around for her purse, hemmed in by the seatbelt that tightened when she jerked forward. Dammit, where was her stupid phone?
“Oh, yes. That’s just what I need,” Sylvia moaned as Patrick’s naughty tongue traced one of her nipples. His fingers plucked at the other one before that hand trailed down the front of her body. Sylvia tensed as his fingers crept closer to her aching—
“Got it!” Jenny shrieked as she frantically poked at her phone, trying desperately to turn off the narration, close the app, nuke her phone, something. Anything! Instead, her frantic, clumsy efforts led to her almost dropping it instead.
“Oh, baby, you’re so wet, you’re dripping. Is that all for me? Are you ready for what I’m going to do to you?” Patrick asked as he spread her legs wider and settled his mouth—
A loud silence filled the car as Jenny finally closed the application. Nervous laughter burst out of her, and she tried to squelch it to no avail. Jenny closed her eyes and begged for the rapture or something to remove her from this situation.
The phone she gripped so tightly in her hand vibrated, making her shriek, and she almost dropped it again. Her heart thundered until she saw Gloria’s name on her screen.
“Hi, Gloria,” she answered in a high-pitched voice. “Wade and I are still on our way to the conference hotel.”
“You sound weird,” Gloria said. “Are you okay? Did something happen?”
“Everything’s great. We spent more time at lunch than expected because Wade had to fix something for the office, so we used the restaurant’s wi-fi. We’re back on the road now, and everything’s back to normal. Just the way it should be.”
Jenny’s voice was at least an octave too high, but it couldn’t be helped. She could not talk about this right now. No way, no how. But later, when she was in the privacy of her own hotel room, and after she’d had a good cry and maybe researched legally changing her name, she would tell Gloria everything.
Well, maybe not about the nipples. That would be her shameful secret. It was going to be embarrassing enough without telling Gloria how wrong she’d been about Wade’s interest in her.
“No, you’re being super weird,” Gloria repeated. “He’s right there next to you, isn’t he? Can he hear me? Are you okay? Are you safe?”
“Everything’s back on schedule. We’re fine.”
“Then have you given more thought to my idea?”
“What are you talking about?” Jenny asked in a more normal voice.
“ You know. Operation conference get-it-on.”
“Nope, that’s not something you need to worry about. We’re on the road to the conference, where we’re going to learn all sorts of techie things. I can’t wait.”
“Uh huh, sure. I just wanted to make sure you were safe, and since you can’t talk now without sounding like a weird, high-pitched robot, I’m hanging up.”
“Okay, I’ll call you soon.”
“You’d better, or I’ll do something crazy. Like order a singing telegram to be delivered in the middle of the opening reception, handing out boxes of condoms while announcing your name over a bullhorn.”
“Do they even still have those?”
“Condoms? Yes, of course. They even have ones that change colors when exposed to certain STIs. Surely it hasn’t been that long since you’ve had sex with a real live person.”
“No, the other thing!”
“It’s the age of freelance deliveries and hustle culture. Of course I could order a singing telegram on short notice. I bet I could pay extra for them to wear an outrageous costume, so do not tempt me, woman.”
“All right, all right. I’ll call you back once we’re settled in.”
“Okay, good. Be safe, and don’t do anything I wouldn’t do. Better yet, do more of the things I would do.”
Jenny snorted as her friend disconnected. Even though nothing was resolved between her and Wade, she was a little less stressed about the awkwardness of their situation. As soon as she had that thought, Wade cleared his throat.
“We should talk about this before it becomes a thing.”
“That’s not necessary, because there’s nothing to talk about. Nothing happened. Everything’s fine,” Jenny spoke rapidly, her breath coming in short bursts.
Was she having a panic attack? No, no, no. She could not have a panic attack. Not right now. She’d never had a panic attack before, but her heart was beating way too fast, and she couldn’t breathe. Oh, God, was this a panic attack?
“Jenny, it’s not that big a deal, but you’re freaking out about it. It’s just a book. I already knew you read romance books, so, you know. It’s fine.”
“I’m not freaking out, and everything’s fine. See? Nothing to talk about.”
Wade turned sideways in his seat so he could face her, and Jenny wished they were driving so he would have to stare straight ahead. If they absolutely had to have this conversation, she’d prefer it to happen without him looking at her.
“Jenny, it’s not a big deal. It was a little… unexpected, but you shouldn’t let it upset you. We’re friends, right?”
Jenny’s heart sunk, but her head nodded in a jerky fashion.
“It’s cool. You’re not even the first friend I’ve had whose, uh, fictional liaisons I’ve interrupted.”
“You have another friend whose raunchy audiobook played over Bluetooth when you turned the car on?” she asked with skepticism.
“Not romance audiobooks, no. That would have been better. You’d be surprised how easy it is to walk in on your college roommate when he’s watching porn in the living room,” he laughed.
Jenny’s eyes widened, and Wade laughed harder.
“Yup. More than once. Like I said, you’re fine. We can get past this, okay?”
“Okay, I’ll try.” Jenny still couldn’t look at him, but some of the tension in her shoulders fell away.
“Good. Because you promised to rescue me from Suzanne, and it won’t work if you’re too embarrassed to look at me.”
“I did not!” she replied indignantly.
“I know.” He winked at her and put the car in reverse. “Hey, do you want to listen to an audiobook while we drive? No? Then can you put on some more music after you bring up the route?”
Jenny choked on a laugh.