6. Memphis
SIX
Memphis
I t’s been a week since the night I met Jade at the bar. Since then, I’ve made sure to do all the runs to town to pick up parts and food for the garage. I’ve also gone back to The Place every night, hoping to see her again, but I haven’t seen her anywhere. It’s like she’s not only avoiding me now, she’s avoiding the whole town. I can’t stand it any longer. I have to see her. I have to talk to her. I don’t know how I managed to stay away from her as long as I did, but now that I know she’s close, the pull she has on me has only gotten stronger.
On my lunch break, I leave the shop and head into town. I know my mom said that she’s working at the local vet’s office. If that’s the only place I can see her, that’s where I’ll go. I swing by the bakery, Bean and Bun, and grab her favorite blueberry muffin and coffee before driving over to the vet’s office.
She’s behind the desk when I walk in. She looks up from her paperwork with a smile, but then she sees that it’s me, and her smile falls as her eyes squint in my direction.
I hold up the muffin and coffee. “I’m not here to fight. I even brought a peace offering,” I say, placing the coffee and muffin down on the counter in front of her.
She frowns but picks it up and takes a sip. “What’s up?”
“Have you had enough time to think over what we talked about?”
She nods and takes a deep breath. “I don’t know if I can do it, Memphis. I mean, I agree that this town is too small to ignore one another, but you broke my heart and stole my trust. I don’t see how I can get over that.”
I hang my head and look at her from beneath my lashes, sticking out my bottom lip in a pout. This always got her.
She lets out a giggle and shakes her head. “Don’t do that to me.”
“Come on, Jade. Remember all the good times we had? Remember how much fun we had, how much we laughed?”
She rolls her eyes. “Fine, whatever. We can be friends. Happy now?”
My smile breaks free. “Yes, I am. Friends get drinks. Tonight? The Place?” I point at her as I’m backing toward the door.
“No, no drinks,” she argues.
“Six o’clock work for you?”
“What? No!”
“Alright, see ya there. Don’t stand me up. You know how I hate that.” I walk out the door. She doesn’t come chasing me out, so I take that as a good sign as I climb behind the wheel and drive away as quickly as possible.
Six o’clock rolls around, and I’m sitting at a pub table all alone with my bottle of beer. I look at my watch and see that it’s already going on six-thirty. She isn’t going to show. I wave down the waitress and order a double Jack on the rocks, and she walks away to get it. I lean back in my chair, annoyed that my stupid little plan to get Jade back isn’t working. Of course it isn’t working. She’s too smart to fall for all my old tricks a second time. I was lucky that I got her once. Twice, that’s just unheard of .
“Well, you got me here,” she says, sitting across from me and making me jump.
Surprise takes over my expression, and my mouth drops open. “I…I can’t believe that you showed up,” I say, shaking my head.
“Me neither. This better be worth it.”
The waitress comes and sets my glass down, and Jade reaches out and takes it.
“Aw, you even ordered me a drink? Thanks, friend. ”
I don’t miss the sarcasm, but I don’t ask about it either. I nod. “No problem.” I sit up straight and take a swig of beer. “So, tell me about this boyfriend of yours.”
She cocks her head to the side and scoffs. “So, you’re going to make fun of me for it too?”
I show her my palms. “I swear, I’m not. I was just asking. How’d you meet? Where’s he from?”
She takes a sip of her whiskey and lets out a long breath. “His name is Paul. We met on a dating website but ended up taking things off the app and to messenger. He’s really nice and sweet. Since we’ve been talking, I haven’t felt so alone, and I’ve felt alone since…” she looks up at me, and it’s like she suddenly remembers who she’s talking to, “well, since you.” She motions toward me .
I hang my head as shame pumps through me. “I really am sorry, Jade. I just?—”
“There’s no excusing what you did, Memphis. I didn’t come here for another apology. Let’s just drop it, okay?”
“Why did you come here?” I ask, feeling myself being pulled closer to her.
“I don’t know. I honestly have no idea what I’m doing here. I wasn’t going to come. But the next thing I knew, I was changing out of my work clothes and putting on makeup. Then I was driving and before I could stop myself, I was here.”
There’s a long silence between us. “You remember that time that you failed your final exam in Mr. Wilmer’s class?”
She laughs and nods. “I thought my mom was going to kill me.”
“Remember what I said?”
She pulls her eyes from mine. “You said not to waste time worrying about the future when you could be using this time to be here with me.”
I nod. “The same thing works for the past. Don’t waste time thinking about it when you could be using this time to be here with me.” I shoot her a smile, and like that, her resolve falls away.
We sit and sip our drinks while talking and chatting about old times. It’s like no time has passed. Right now, we’re both just a couple of teenagers, picking up where we left off. I tell her about my time in the army, and she tells me about sticking around here to help her mom, who has had bad luck in the health department. She tells me about skipping out on college and getting a job at the vet’s office, but how lately, she’s been wanting more and is about to start some online classes, hoping to do more than just book appointments and file papers at the office. She wants hands-on experience working with the animals.
The longer we sit and talk, the more drunk we get, and the funnier everything seems to be. I’m not exactly sure what I said to get her on the dance floor, but that’s exactly where we end up, in one another’s arms.
Her breath is blowing lightly against my neck, and I can feel her racing heart as it beats against my chest. Her heat sinks into me, warming every part that I thought had frozen over long ago. I breathe her in deep, and that familiar scent of lavender and honeysuckle fills my nose. Breathing her in is like walking through a field of wildflowers, with the warm sun shining down on you. She’s warm, inviting, and welcoming. God, how did I ever manage to walk away from her?
She pulls back slightly and looks into my eyes.
“What is it?” I ask quietly, just loud enough that she’ll hear me over the music .
She shakes her head and closes her eyes like she’s trying to fight against herself. “I thought that after all this time, touching you and being with you would feel different, like you were just a stranger. But that’s not how this feels.”
“How’s it feel?”
“It feels like no time has passed,” she replies just as I move in, pressing my mouth to hers.
The second our lips meet, it feels like I’ve been zapped by electricity. There’s a tingle, a burn, something egging me to keep going, to keep pushing.
I expect her to pull away, but she doesn’t. Instead, her hot tongue comes out and demands entrance. I give her exactly what she wants, and she melts against my chest. My hands move up to her face, cupping her cheeks as I beg to take the kiss further. I realize that neither one of us are dancing now. We’re too lost in one another to do anything but feel, remember, love.
“Jade,” I whisper against her lips as I rest my forehead against hers. Her eyes are closed, and I see her take a deep breath.
“I’m sorry, Memphis. I can’t do this. Not again,” she says, pushing away from me and running from the bar, leaving me alone on the dance floor.
Damnit. How could I let myself do that? I thought I had a handle on myself. I thought that I would be able to keep my distance. Now, everything I’ve worked this last week for has been thrown away. She’ll never let me in again, not after that. I said I wanted her friendship, but she knows that I want more than that now.
I turn and walk out of the bar, back to the parking lot where my car is. It was my plan to get her to be my friend again. I know that she still loves me. I know because I still love her, and when she’s around, I can feel it. Nothing has changed for us. I thought that if we could be friends, I could get us back to where we were before. She accepted the friendship, but she ran from our love. I guess things just happened too fast. I’ll give her some time, but I’m coming back. I’m going to be the best friend she’s ever had. I’m going to gain her trust again. And then, I’m going to tell her how much I love her and can’t stand to be without her another day. I won’t stop until she’s mine.
A few days pass before I manage to track down her apartment building. I hold out a bouquet of flower as I knock on the door. She opens it, her eyes landing on mine, then down to the flowers, and back.
“What is this?” she asks, not inviting me in.
“For you. I’m sorry about the other night. I’d been drinking, and it was dumb of me to kiss you.”
She reaches out and takes the flowers, bringing them to her nose and inhaling the scent deeply. “I know how you can make it up to me. ”
“You do? How’s that?” I’ll jump at any chance I get.
“Come on,” she says, opening the door wider and nodding toward her apartment.
I follow her inside and stop at the dining room. On the table, there are a variety of framed pictures and some artwork of friends and family.
“I need these frames hung on that wall, but as you know, I’m not great with tools…or measuring…or keeping things straight.” She laughs out.
I smile. “No problem. Got a hammer and some nails?”
She nods and leaves to get the items.
She’s back within minutes, handing over the things I asked for. “I’ll be in the living room.”
I get to work hanging the picture frames just as she had them laid out. It only takes a few minutes, and when I walk out of the dining room, I find her sitting on the couch.
“Done already?”
I nod. “Yep. Anything else you need help with?”
“Well…”
“Just name it, Jade. I’ll help out any way I can.”
“My bathroom ceiling has been getting a little dingy. I guess from all the steam from the shower and the lint from the washer and dryer. I bought some paint for it, and I attempted to do it myself, but I just made a mess. If you have time…”
“Done. Where’s the paint?”
She gets the roller, brush, and the paint and takes me to the bathroom. The bathroom is bigger than I thought it’d be, but I guess I should have figured since it also doubles as a laundry room. Still, it shouldn’t take me more than an hour.
I nod. “I’ll get started.”