Chapter 2
A s promised, Jed arrived at her door Sunday evening promptly at six.
She drew in a breath at the sight of him, standing there in jeans and a button-down striped shirt that hugged his trim waist. Her palms dampened.
What was under that shirt? Would his skin feel velvety under her fingers despite his hard muscles?
She blinked a few times before inviting him to come inside.
All afternoon, she’d debated about whether or not to do so.
It wasn’t shame about her five-hundred-square-foot apartment.
She had it decorated nicely, especially now that she had a real couch and kitchen table.
The landlord had repainted and put in new carpet before she leased it last year.
Living alone, she was able to keep it clean and tidy.
So what was it that held her back? Made her feel slightly embarrassed?
The first time she’d spent with him had been in a limo nearly the size of her bedroom.
Did her poverty make her not good enough for him?
She knew what Mom would say. Don’t be ridiculous. Your character matters more than how much you have in the bank.
But still, it was a strange feeling to invite someone like Jed Marsh into her modest dwelling .
In the end, she decided to act like a grown-up. If he didn’t like her circumstances, then he wasn’t for her.
“Would you like to come in?” she asked. “I opened wine. We could have a glass before we go.”
Behind him, the spring light was soft and pink. “I’d like that, thank you.”
“Will Thomas mind?” she asked, as she opened the door wider for him to pass through.
“No Thomas tonight.” He stopped just outside the doorway. “Just me. Is that all right?”
“Yes.” She blushed. Did he think she wanted him to bring his driver? That she was only interested in the glamour? “I don’t know why I assumed he would drive us tonight.”
“For the most part, I only use him for business.” He pushed his hands into the back pockets of his jeans. “Sometimes for special occasions.”
She beckoned him over to the table, where she had the a bottle of wine opened and two glasses.
“I don’t really date much,” she said. “I’m not sure how all this is supposed to work, but one of my sisters suggested I ask you in for wine as an ice breaker.
” When Alissa had called her sister Stevie to tell her about her date and ask advice, she’d changed the details of how she’d met Jed.
She’s said she met him in a bar while out with friends.
All true, other than her friends were strippers and she’d been the one serving the drinks.
“May I pour for us?” Jed asked.
“Sure. Booze is kind of your expertise.” Booze is your expertise? What was wrong with her? This was why she didn’t date. She was too much of a dork.
But he smiled graciously. “Actually, I was thinking you’ve probably had enough of serving people drinks by this time in the weekend.”
“Oh, well, that’s true. Thank you.” She hadn’t thought of it like that .
His lips twitched as he inspected the wine bottle. “White Zin. I haven’t had this since high school.”
“Is it the wrong kind?” She flushed with embarrassment.
“I don’t really know anything about wine.
I liked the color.” She’d also liked the price.
At six dollars, she figured it must be better than the boxed wine that sold for about fifteen.
She could not have possibly served Jed Marsh wine from a box.
“Pink. Your favorite.” He smiled he poured them each a small glass. “I like your place. You have good taste.”
“Thank you. I furnished it with my bar money. Before Sophie got hurt, that is.” She’d decorated it with a subtle palette of light greens and grays, with her sister Hailey’s artwork hanging on some of the walls.
A couch and chair in dark gray cotton looked fat and comfortable.
The coffee table was made of refurbished wood.
“Would you like to sit?” she asked.
“Sure.” He sat in the chair. She took the closest end of the couch.
“I forgot to say how nice you look.” He set his glass of wine on one of her Paris coasters with retro art from France.
Someday, she hoped to visit. For now, they reminded her of one of her life goals, to travel Europe.
“You look pretty, that is.” He cleared his throat, then picked up his glass again.
“Thank you. You too.”
She hadn’t been sure what to wear and had tried on multiple outfits, which were now in a pile on her bed.
In the end, she’d chosen a pair of loose jeans and a fitted brown sweater that matched her eyes and hair.
She’d done her makeup more carefully than usual, rimming her eyes in a smudged smoky look and applying a soft pink lip gloss.
In addition, she’d used product to make her fine hair do something besides lie flat against her scalp. Now, she fluffed her hair on one side, self-conscious. What would they talk about all night ?
He took a sip from his wine and then made a face, as if it were a sour lemon.
“Is it too dry?” Dry was a wine description, wasn’t it?
“Um, no. It’s a little sweeter than I’m used to,” he said.
She tried some from her own glass. Sweet and cold. “It’s good. Kind of like Kool-Aid.”
He laughed. “Yes, that’s a good description.” He took another sip. This time without the grimace. “Alcoholic Kool-Aid. What could be better?”
“I can tell you don’t like it,” she said, laughing. “But you’re very sweet to drink it anyway.”
“I love it.” He took another large sip. “Great vintage.”
She folded her legs under her, feeling more comfortable. There was no reason to be nervous. Not with Jed.
“I have reservations at a restaurant in Redmond. A steakhouse.” He raked his hands through his perfectly trimmed hair, making it stick up in tufts similar to the other night. “And now I’m sitting here wondering if you’re a vegetarian.”
“I’m not. I like steak. I don’t eat it often because it’s so expensive. It’ll be a treat.”
“Are you sure? Because we could go anywhere you want. I hope this doesn’t sound like I’m bragging, but I can get us a reservation pretty much anywhere that serves Marsh Vodka. One of the perks of the job.”
“As long as it’s not the club where I work, then I’m game.”
“As much as I like Rif, I’d never take you there for a date.”
“That’s reserved for clients?” she asked, teasing.
“Exactly.”
Jed drove a luxury SUV with gray leather seats that seemed to hug her.
At dinner, she had a tenderloin that melted in her mouth, asparagus soaked in butter and fluffy mashed potatoes that made her groan with satisfaction.
They shared a bottle of red wine that cost as much as a night’s worth of tips.
She tried not to think of it, but every time she lifted the glass to her mouth, she calculated how many dollars it cost per sip.
Regardless, they had a great time, talking and laughing all through dinner.
He liked action films and she liked romantic comedies.
No surprise there. He adored graphic novels and podcasts about politics.
She admitted to a love of historical series from BBC.
He’d never seen one, which she found nearly impossible to believe.
“But you look like a character from one of them,” she said.
“What? Like how?”
She hesitated. How did she describe the quality? “Clean-shaven and that floppy hair, for one. The heroes always have hair that a girl wants to run their fingers through.”
“Do you want to run your fingers through my hair?” He leaned his head over the table. “Feel free.”
She tapped the top of his forehead, laughing. “Not in a restaurant.”
“Oh, sorry. I was excited for a moment.”
“It’s your eyes, too,” she said, after he’d settled back in his chair. “They have this earnestness to them. Most men these days seem either disinterested or cocky or so nerdy you’re sure they’re counting the moments until the next comic-con, instead of listening to what you’re saying.”
“I do love comic-con.”
“As long as you don’t make me dress up in a costume and go with you, we can agree to disagree.”
“I’m in despair.” He clutched his chest. “What if we have nothing in common?”
“Let’s try music,” she said.
“Country?”
“Me too.” She grinned back at him.
“I have tickets to Zac Brown Band next week. Will you go with me?” he asked .
She squealed. “I would die to go.” Her heart sank. “But I can’t if it’s Friday or Saturday night.”
“As luck would have it, the tickets are a week from tonight.”
“I can’t wait.”
The talk turned to dreams and bucket lists. She shared her desire to travel through Europe. He admitted to a year where he’d studied in Paris. “I visited every country by high-speed train. It was the best year of my life.”
“You’re so lucky.”
“I have been. But none of it’s as good as sharing this meal with you.”
She stared at him. “Are you for real?”
“I’d never lie to you. I can promise you that.
I’ve not felt this way about a woman, ever.
I know we’ve just met but there’s something about you that feels so right.
I could spend the rest of my life talking to you and never get bored.
” He pushed his plate away and folded his fingers together like she had her students do when they were done with their lunch and ready to go to recess.
The tender gesture moved her, almost to tears.
She couldn’t explain why exactly, other than it reminded her of the innocence and vulnerability of her small students.
The world hadn’t gotten to them yet. They were not yet guarded and suspicious. This man appeared to be the same way.
She reached across the table and placed her hand over his. “What makes you so willing to show me all your cards?”
“You. Just you,” he said.
They were barely inside the door when they started kissing. Only managing to unbutton shirts, they stumbled to the bedroom. She remembered the pile of clothes but suddenly it didn’t matter if he saw them. She pushed them all on the floor, then turned back to him.
He grabbed her close, and they piled onto the bed together. They kissed, breathless and wanton. Still close, he lifted himself above her and looked into her eyes. “Are you sure this is what you want?”
“I’m sure,” she said. “But you should know—I’m not that experienced.” She’d had a boyfriend in college and then one other, but no one else.
“I don’t care.” He brushed her bangs away from her eyes. “It’s just you and me here. We can make our way together.”
So, this is it, she thought. The start of a new chapter. One in which Jed was front and center.
She wrapped her arms around his neck and drew him to her. “Just you and me,” she whispered. You and me forever.