11. Chapter 11 It’s Not Like We’re Really Dating Anyway
Chapter 11: It’s Not Like We’re Really Dating Anyway
J ENNY
Jenny groaned against the light streaming in through the curtains and burrowed her face into the warm, lumpy mattress. Then the mattress moved. She shrieked and jerked to a seated position. Her eyes flew around the room before she moaned against the shattering pain that ripped through her head.
Dizziness had her slump back against the couch, and strong arms held her loosely in an embrace. She made eye contact with Wade, who she’d been sleeping on and was now almost cuddling. God, this was a million times worse than any of the other horribly embarrassing things she’d done in the last few days.
It was official. If she didn’t melt into a puddle or get abducted by aliens in the next ten minutes, she’d need to move and find a new job. Maybe she could convince Gloria to come with her in her self-imposed exile.
Wade offered her a slow grin as she maintained eye contact, and a fierce blush overtook her skin. She squinted against the bright light. Her eyes closed in protest, and she took stock of her situation.
They were both still dressed, minus their shoes, so that was good news. While the couch hadn’t looked familiar, it must be the one from the living area of their suite. Her whole body ached, even her hair, but her head hurt most of all.
Since Wade didn’t appear annoyed by her leaning against him, and she wasn’t sure she could hold her own head up, she didn’t try to move away after that first miserable attempt. A million questions flooded her mind, which didn’t help with either her anxiety or the headache to end all headaches.
She settled on the most important question. “What happened?”
“What’s the last you remember?” Wade asked her instead of answering.
“Um, let me think. We were at the networking thingy—”
“The networking reception, yes. Drink some water. It’ll help.”
Wade handed her a bottle after he twisted the safety seal. Her eyes closed against that slight noise even though she appreciated that he opened the bottle for her. She didn’t have the strength to do it herself. Jenny carefully sat up and took a cautious sip. The water was amazing, and she was suddenly parched. With her eyes still closed, she drank.
She would have drunk the entire bottle, but Wade cautioned her to go slow. She cracked one eyelid and met his concerned gaze.
“How are you doing? Would you like to take some ibuprofen?”
“Yes, please,” she croaked.
After she took the pain reliever and drank the last of the water, she felt wrung out but also closer to being human.
“Thank you. I don’t think I’ve ever felt this bad before. I guess I drank a lot more than I realized. Most of the time, I only have a glass or two of wine, but I must have drunk a lot more than that to feel like this.”
“I’m not sure. There were several glasses on the table, but I don’t know who drank them. I’m sorry I left you on your own for so long. It wasn’t my intention.”
His self-recrimination was clear in his tone, but he wasn’t her keeper.
“You didn’t do anything wrong. I’m a big girl,” she said. “And it’s not like we’re really dating anyway.”
She wasn’t sure which of the two statements were more depressing.
“Do you remember anything after the reception?” Wade asked.
“There’s more?”
“I’ll take that as a no. You got sleepy, but I wanted to make sure you ate something more than hors d’oeuvres to soak up the alcohol. We came back here to order room service, but it was going to take two hours, so we ordered pizza.”
Jenny giggled.
“Did we really order pizza to a fancy suite?”
“We still have some leftovers if you want them.”
She heard the smile in his voice, and it made her feel a little better. The air conditioner chose that moment to kick on, and she shivered against the cold air.
“You’re cold. Lean back, and I’ll pull the blanket back over us,” he suggested.
Jenny was too tired to argue, and she didn’t know if she’d ever have the chance to snuggle up with this yummy, gentlemanly guy again. She sniffed him as he settled the blanket back over them. It felt wonderful to cuddle with someone. No, that wasn’t right. It felt wonderful to cuddle with Wade specifically.
Instead of enjoying the moment for what it was, melancholy settled over her. Here she was mooning over him, and he was taking care of her like she was a child. Could she be any more pathetic?
“What are you thinking about?” Wade asked.
His low voice, spoken softly near her ear, curled around her. Wrapped in his arms and sharing a blanket, she could almost pretend they were more than work friends who bonded during some unusual circumstances. But she needed to nip that thought in the bud.
“Nothing,” she lied.
“Jenny.” A shiver ran through her at how he said her name. “I can see your face. What made you so upset?”
“I’m just mad at myself for how I acted. I got drunk at a work event on the first day and embarrassed myself. Since we’re curled up together on the couch, I’m guessing I either threw myself at you, and you were too nice to let me make a total fool of myself, or else I got sick, and you were worried about me.”
His chuckle reverberated through her skin.
“Neither. We ate pizza, talked, and found out we’re both suckers for nineties movies. We fell asleep in front of the TV.”
Maybe she wouldn’t have to explore witness protection after all.
“You did tell me you wanted to kiss me, though.”
She let out a groan of mortification, and he laughed again.
“That’s so embarrassing,” she said with a moan. “I’m so sorry. God, you must be regretting this whole trip. Speaking of which, what time is it? I need a shower and at least a gallon of coffee before I—”
“Stop,” he said. “There’s no need to be embarrassed. I was flattered, but you were not yourself.”
“Oh, sure. Who wouldn’t be flattered by a sloppy drunk hitting on them?”
“You were extremely attractive, but you were a little worse for the wine, and there are rules about that.”
“Why does that sound so familiar?”
This time, it was Wade’s turn to sound embarrassed. He tensed behind her, but she didn’t know why.
“It’s, uh, a line from ‘The Philadelphia Story’.”
“I love that movie!”
“Yeah? Maybe we can watch it together some time.”
“I’d like that,” Jenny said in a quiet voice.
She’d love to watch old movies with Wade. That was more her speed than the parties and clubs Chad always bullied her into attending with him. But maybe next time, she wouldn’t pass out drunk or hit on him when she’d had so much to drink that she didn’t remember it.
At least he didn’t take advantage of the situation, but she would never have had more than one drink if she didn’t trust him on a deep level.
“Me, too,” Wade answered just as softly.
Neither of them spoke for a long moment, but it wasn’t a strained silence. Some of her tension eased when Wade settled deeper into the couch and pulled her back against him. Her head still throbbed, but at least her nausea abated. And he was so comfortable to snuggle since they were a similar height.
“How are you feeling now?” he asked after a few minutes of quiet.
His voice rumbled through her, and Jenny wished she could bottle it.
“Better. Nothing a hot shower and a huge pot of coffee won’t fix,” she said. “Speaking of which, we should get ready if we want to eat before the sessions begin, right? I don’t know about you, but my brain doesn’t come online without coffee and food. Plus, breakfast is my favorite meal.”
“Oh, yeah? What are your favorites?”
“I love all sorts of breakfast foods. I’d eat breakfast for every meal if I could. Waffles, giant muffins, and croissants. I’m a sucker for cinnamon rolls, but they’ve got to be good. Restaurants make the best pancakes, and they’re even better with that blueberry spread that has real blueberries in it. What’s that called?”
“Do you mean compote?”
“Yes; blueberry compote. I don’t like syrup, but I love that stuff. And omelets. I love omelets, but I’m not good at cooking them, so I order them a lot.”
“You should get an omelet maker. One of my sisters has one, and she likes it.”
“I know, but the omelets are so tiny, and the texture and mouthfeel are so different. I don’t want two mini omelets; I want one giant omelet with lots of stuff in it. God, no wonder everybody thinks I’m obsessed with food.”
She buried her face in the blanket, embarrassed again.
“Stop that. Nobody with half a brain thinks that. You like what you like, and there’s nothing wrong with that. I always get waffles when I go out because I can’t make them for shit. I’ve tried, and they always end up either burned or gooey. Do you think I’m obsessed with food because I always order waffles?”
“It’s not the same, and you know it. You’re not fat.”
“Neither are you,” he argued.
Wade sounded genuinely frustrated this time, and Jenny tensed. She felt his chest rise and fall as he sighed.
“I wish you could see you how I see you, how most people see you,” he said into the awkward silence that grew around them. “You’re beautiful, charming, and funny. And you’re sharp. Elizabeth has commented in our team lead meetings about the improvements you made after George left that make her life easier.”
“Thank you,” she murmured.
“No need to thank me for stating the facts.”
Now Wade sounded sad, but before Jenny could figure out how to fix things, the alarm on her phone went off. She scrambled off the couch, eager for an excuse to flee a conversation she shouldn’t have started in the first place.
“I’d better take that shower if I’m going to have any chance of staying awake and focused today. I’ll be quick so we can get breakfast if you want.”
She tossed those final words over her shoulder as she hurried to her bedroom without giving him a chance to respond. Jenny swept through her room, and she grabbed clothing blindly, grateful she hung everything up in the closet.
She wouldn’t blame Wade if he wanted nothing to do with her mood swings and neuroses. Most of the time, she tried hard to be even tempered and low maintenance around men since she already had so many things working against her. Around him, it all kept spilling out, front and center.
It’s a good thing she already decided getting involved with anyone at work was a terrible idea, since she kept torpedoing any chance of catching his interest. Plus, she was taking a break from dating. She needed to stick with that plan instead of considering Gloria’s idea.
Just as she finished her hair and makeup, her phone dinged with a text message. She expected Gloria with some pithy or sarcastic comment, but her headache throbbed again when she saw Chad’s name. Despite the voice in her head demanding that she ignore it, she clicked on his name and read his message.
“Where are you? I need to talk to you.”
Jenny was grateful she left her car at work since they had better security than her apartment complex. She couldn’t fathom why Chad thought she wanted anything to do with him after the things he said. Then again, Chad thought very highly of himself and spent almost no time thinking about other people.
She turned her phone back to vibrate and slipped it into her jacket pocket. Jenny checked her image in the floor-length mirror in the bathroom. She didn’t look any worse for the wear after drinking too much. It’s amazing how much a hot shower—and major embarrassment—could eliminate a hangover.
When she headed into the sitting area, Wade was noticeably absent. She’d been nervous about seeing him again after her emotional outburst, but this was worse. Disappointment filled her when it became clear that he left.
Obviously, a put-together guy like Wade would want to have nothing to do with her when she was apparently having an early mid-life crisis. Tears threatened to fall, but she forced them back. She had no one to blame but herself for overreacting at every turn.
Jenny shrieked when the door made the chiming noise as Wade used his keycard to let himself back in the suite. He grinned when he saw her and held up a coffee in each hand.
“Perfect timing! The in-room coffee was pitiful, so I thought I’d help you feel human again.”
He passed her a cup. Jenny took a sip before she moaned. It was exactly the way she liked her coffee.
“When you finish your coffee, we can head down to breakfast,” he said. “Or you can bring it with you.”
Before Jenny responded, Wade’s phone rang from his room.
“Hang on. I thought I had that in my pocket.”
In a few strides, he crossed to his room to answer his call. Even with his door mostly closed, his voice carried clearly. Her dawning horror must have shown on her face because he rushed to her side as soon as he ended his conversation.
“What’s wrong? Did something happen?”
Jenny tried to play it off.
“Nothing. I just remembered something I forgot to do at work, but it’ll be fine.”
“Are you sure? You looked like you got some bad news.”
“How about you? Everything okay at work? The walls here are kind of thin, aren’t they?” she asked nonchalantly.
“Yes, everything’s fine, yes, the walls are thin, and, yes, we can avoid talking about it if you’d prefer. Shall we go have breakfast now?”