Chapter 21
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Jenna
“God, the way he looked running. His muscles have their own muscles, but still, he moves so gracefully.” And when he stretched, his shirt straining against all those muscles, the ridges of his six-pack and pecs defined enough to show through the fabric…yeah, that did funny things to my insides.
“Aww,” Nicky crooned, and she, Juliette, and Hayden all smiled at me. Big, goofy, grins. I grinned back. Girls’ night was even more fun when I had my own boy talk to share.
“He’s an amazing cook too,” I said, unable to stop gushing. “And his parents are awesome.”
“Woah, you met his parents already?” Hayden asked, dipping a chip into the guac.
“Not in person.” I explained our call and how enthusiastic they were and how endearing Liam was. “He even said he could see me with—” A tingle of apprehension ran down my spine.
“See you with…” Nicky prompted, leaning in.
Hayden didn’t miss a thing. “What’s up?” she asked, her casual words at odds with the tension in her tone.
It was on the tip of my tongue to say it was nothing, just out of a knee-jerk habit and maybe some wishful thinking too, but I caught myself. Was I subconsciously thinking about what had happened after Liam so sweetly said he could see me with his family, when I’d freaked out over a little hug?
Or was this the feeling of being watched—and if so, was it in my imagination?
It was so unlikely, but if there was even the tiniest chance Snake Eyes was here, it would mean he knew about my friends now, and that was unacceptable.
“I’m not sure, but I kinda have that feeling like someone’s watching me,” I admitted.
Hayden quickly scanned the restaurant, half standing and obviously trying to look natural even though she looked every bit the sheriff’s deputy to me. After a tense moment, she sat back down, and said, “I don’t see anyone suspicious, just a table of cocky dudes. See if you recognize anyone.”
We stood to see over the booth and looked around, not the slightest bit casual or natural.
I didn’t see Snake Eyes or anything out of the ordinary.
Just those guys a few tables behind us. They raised their glasses and smirked like they’d caught us checking them out.
I almost laughed. Any other time, they’d make me nervous.
Now I’d be thrilled if they were the ones giving me the chills.
“Could’ve been those guys,” I said with a shrug as we sat back down.
It was possible. It was also possible I was losing my mind.
It was a small restaurant, and Snake Eyes was so creepy, Hayden wouldn’t have missed him.
Neither would I. This wasn’t big like Market Square or filled with nooks and crannies like the library. He wasn’t here.
“I’ll take a lap around the restaurant,” Hayden declared, her jaw set.
I grabbed Hayden’s hand to stop her. “No! It’s fine.”
“Just to be sure so we don’t have to keep worrying about it.”
Well, I couldn’t argue with that. “Thank you,” I said with a tight smile.
We watched Hayden scope out the restaurant, including poking her head into both bathrooms, and she was back only a minute later, because the restaurant really was that small.
“Are you worried because of what happened last night?” Juliette asked gently.
"Yeah, that’s probably it,” I said, latching onto the excuse. But even if it was true, falling into that spiral was almost as scary as Snake Eyes.
Nicky took a long sip of her margarita, eyeing me over the glass, and I braced myself. “I’m thrilled to hear all the juicy details about you and Liam, and I definitely want more—a lot more. But first, let’s deal with the elephant in the room. How are you really doing after that shocker last night?”
“Um, I’m okay…”
“Jenna!” she scolded. “The truth!”
I leaned back and looked, really looked, at my friends attentively and worriedly waiting for my answer and decided to answer honestly. “I don’t know. If it was the park you went to every week, would you be okay? Am I supposed to be okay? I’m mad. I’m mad that now I never want to go back.”
“Are you mad or scared?” Juliette asked softly.
“I’m mad that I’m scared.”
“I think that’s reasonable. You don’t need to pretend to be okay,” Nicky said.
“Is pretending so bad?”
“You can try, but you can’t fool yourself,” Nicky said, “or Liam either.”
She was partly wrong. I was usually pretty good at fooling myself. But she was probably right about Liam. “What do I do about Liam?”
“Be honest with him?” Juliette suggested.
Easier said than done, especially when there was so much more I was worried about than anyone knew. “I’m scared his worries will make me more worried, and if I’m even more worried than I already am, how am I going to function?”
“Give yourself the credit you deserve,” Nicky said. “There’s nothing wrong with being cautious. Plenty of people are, with or without the crap you’ve been through. You’re still living your life, and doing an awesome job of it, while being cautious. This is just a little extra of that.”
“Yeah,” Juliette added. “You always push through. You’ll get through this too, and it’s all going to keep getting even better.”
“You’re right. Can we just forget all this and get back to the good stuff?” I tilted my drink toward them with a grin. “To friends, fun, and boyfriends.”
We raised our glasses—three margaritas and one Coke. Hayden wasn’t drinking because she was on duty. I tried to insist she wasn’t, but apparently guarding me counted. And then, as we clinked, Nicky crowed, “And to juicy, sexy stories, too.”
“Shhh!” I hissed, barely resisting the urge to glance over my shoulder to make sure those guys didn’t hear her.
But, of course, that just made her laugh harder.
“You don’t like the margarita?” Hayden asked, her tone suddenly sharp.
I snapped my gaze to her and found her eyes narrowed on me. “I do.”
“You’ve barely had a sip. Don’t force down a drink you don’t like. What do you want instead?” Hayden frowned, already looking for the waitress.
“No, I like this, really.”
Hayden crossed her arms and raised a brow. Man, I wouldn’t want to be interrogated by her.
“Really,” I insisted. “I like the salt.”
Her lips wavered, a tiny crack in her composure she couldn’t hide.
“It’s true,” Nicky said in my defense. “Juliette and I always get just one drink each if we’re driving, but sometimes we’ll have a little extra from Jenna’s, except for when she gets a margarita because she licks the freakin’ rim each time she takes a pretend sip.”
“It’s not pretend. I taste it!”
“Sucking the glass doesn’t count!” Juliette crowed.
They broke out in laughter, and I couldn’t help but join in.
“I agree. Licking salt doesn’t count unless you’re a cow,” Hayden said. “What do you like to drink?”
“This is fine. I’m not a big drinker.”
All serious now, Hayden leaned in, holding my gaze. “Then get a soda or a virgin mocktail. You deserve a drink you enjoy.”
I tried not to fidget, unsure how to respond honestly without revealing too much or killing the mood. “I really don’t mind. It’s not that I don’t like drinking. Just not while I’m out.”
Fire burned in Hayden’s eyes. “If you don’t like to drink while you’re out, don’t get a drink while you’re out. Drink what makes you comfortable and happy. Nothing is more important than that. Now, tell me what the hell you want to drink.”
“Um…water?”
“You want water?”
“Yeah. I’m thirsty and I’d love some water.”
“Then drink your damn water!” Hayden jabbed her finger toward my glass of water, sitting right next to my margarita.
Juliette broke down first, and the rest of us followed, cracking up in full belly laughs. When the waitress came with our food, we barely pulled ourselves together enough to thank her, then we lost it again when Hayden asked for refills on our water.
“How’s Dylan’s first day going?” I asked Juliette between bites of my tamale.
She rolled her eyes. “Fantastic. They responded to a fire first thing this morning, and he said it felt so good to be back.”
A chill ran down my spine. Liam hadn’t mentioned a fire, which wasn’t surprising because every time we talked, he was too preoccupied worrying about me. We’d spoken a lot, though, so he was obviously okay, or he would have told me by now, right?
“They’re fine,” Hayden said firmly, obviously reading our worry. “It’s what they’re trained to do, and they’re great at it.”
“I know, it’s just…it’s hard after seeing him so badly hurt,” Juliette said.
“It’s okay to be a little worried. If he’s anything like me, he loves knowing you care enough to worry. But he needs to know you have confidence in him too,” Hayden said.
“I do. I know he’s amazing at what he does.” Juliette’s voice cracked as she admitted it was where he belonged, even if it terrified her. “I just want him to be happy and safe.”
“Knowing you’re home waiting for him will help him be both,” Hayden said. “Same for Liam, too,” she said to me, then she turned to Nicky. “What about you? Interested in any of the firefighters or law enforcement guys?”
“No,” Nicky said quickly, and Juliette and I laughed.
“What?” Hayden asked.
“Nicky!” I mocked. “The truth!”
Nicky narrowed her eyes at me. “That is the truth. I am not interested in being with anyone.”
“But…” I coaxed.
“But nothing! He’s a moody, broody asshole, and that’s the last thing I need or want in my life.”
“Ryan?” Hayden guessed.
“Ding ding ding! We have a winner!” I said.
Even Nicky cracked a smile. “Not hard when he’s obviously the biggest asshole around,” she grumped.
“Yeah, but he’s a nice asshole. I’ve been on some calls with him, and he really cares. We were at a DV call once, and I was worried we’d have to restrain him so he wouldn’t kill the guy,” Hayden said.
Nicky frowned. “Don’t make him sound likeable.”
We laughed again, and the rest of the night flew by.
By the time we were done, my heart felt as full as my belly.
I was so grateful that Liam had thought to ask Hayden to go with us and that she was so awesome.
This was exactly what I needed. A perfect night of normalcy, undeterred by all the crap going on.
It was even better than normal, though, because with Hayden here to keep an eye on things and make sure I got home safely, I was free to let my mind wander to Liam and what I’d say to him later—the cherry on top of a perfect night.
“One more toast before we go,” I said, raising my nearly empty water glass. “To friends, old and new.”
“To friends!”
And to boyfriends.