Chapter 13
13
M ia stepped into Brewbirds and smiled at the barista behind the counter. The night had been long. After the kittens were settled for the night, she went back to her place despite wanting to stay at Jackson’s. He didn’t ask her to stay, and she didn’t want to ask if she could. Things still felt a little weird breaking the friend barrier. They kept their hands to themselves the rest of the evening, and Mia partially wondered if it would stay that way. If maybe he had a momentary lapse of judgment and now regretted it.
For now, the kittens were staying at his place. She woke up to several texts from him from all hours of the night as he gave updates on the kittens. He had tried to keep them out of his bedroom, but apparently they were meowing at the door, so he let them in. But once he let them in, they ran all over him and wrestled on the bed, keeping him awake.
She took pity and stopped in to get him a coffee before he had to head to work. The texts had stopped at about 5 a.m., so she suspected he was still asleep. Either way, she should be able to get to the coffee shop and back before he left.
“Hey, Danielle,” Mia said.
“Hey, Mia. What are you drinking today?”
Mia looked up at the menu with her lips pursed. “I think I’ll go with two twenty-four ounce vanilla lattes and two muffins.”
“Coming right up.”
Mia thanked her and stepped off to the side to wait for her order, but spotted Jeff sitting at a table near the window. He waved, so she made her way over to him.
“Hey,” she said.
He held a hand out to the seat across from him. “Join me. Please.”
“Okay, but only for a minute. I need to get back.”
“How are you?”
Mia smiled. “I’m doing well.” She squeezed her eyes shut briefly before opening them again. “Listen, I’ve enjoyed spending time with you, but I think things with Jackson are picking up. I feel like I need to see where it goes.”
Jeff reached across the table and set his hand on hers. “I know. I knew he was head-over-heels for you when I brought you home after our date. That man loves you. I won’t lie and say I’m not disappointed, but I want you to be happy.” He chuckled. “Noah gave me a heads up last night that Jackson might crash our date. The warning came way too late, but that’s why I sent you home with him.”
She turned her hand over in his to give it a squeeze. “Thank you for understanding. I know there is a woman out there who is going to be blessed to be yours.”
“Thank you.”
“Mia!” Danielle called.
Mia looked over to where Danielle set her drinks and muffins on the edge of the counter.
“Oh, I need to get that. I’ll see you around?”
Jeff nodded. “Of course. I’ll be here.”
Mia smiled and stood up from her seat, giving him a small wave before walking over to the counter and getting her order. She thanked Danielle and left.
Jackson aggressively drove his shovel into the ground, scooping up the dirt and dumping it into the wheelbarrow. He repeated the motion over and over, his arms getting sore. He had only been at the resort for fifteen minutes, but had sweat pouring down his temples at the exertion.
“Jackson!”
He stiffened. He would know that voice anywhere. Mia. The last person he wanted to see right now.
The night had been rough, with four kittens running around his house. He barely slept and finally gave up when the sun came up. Mia’s car was already gone by the time he left his place this morning. He didn’t want to get to work too early, so he spent some time playing with the furballs, who never seemed to run out of energy.
On his way to the resort, he veered over to Brewbirds to get his caffeine fix. What he saw stopped him short. Mia was sitting in the coffeehouse with Jeff. They were holding hands from across the table and Jackson’s heart split in two.
He never knew he could feel as much pain as he did at that moment. Perhaps it took him too long to realize he wanted her. Was he stupid? Yes. Should he have listened to his brothers even if he didn’t want to admit it? Yes.
But after the night before, when they wound up making out on the couch, he thought they would be together. He thought she wanted to be with him and didn’t expect to find her out with Jeff again. Especially not this early in the morning.
Did she spend the night at his place last night? Is that why she didn’t respond to a single one of his texts? He figured she was sleeping, but now he thought maybe she had been with another man, and that’s why she wasn’t replying.
His blood boiled, and he slammed his truck into drive and went to work. Caffeine be damned. He no longer needed it when he could be fueled by anger and pain.
He didn’t turn toward her, he just drove the shovel into the ground again. She walked closer and called his name again. Once again, he ignored her.
“Jackson! Why are you ignoring me?” She approached his side and grabbed his arm.
His jaw clenched, and he brushed her hand off before digging the shovel into the ground. Then he turned toward her, and his eyes narrowed. She stood before him, holding two coffees. One was tucked into the crook of her arm.
“Whoa. All right. I know you had kittens keeping you awake last night, but this is taking ‘waking up on the wrong side of the bed’ to a whole new level.”
She cracked a smile, but he only stared back at her. She furrowed her eyebrows.
“What’s going on? Are you okay?”
“I’m not in the mood for this, Mia.”
“For what? Me, your best friend, bringing you coffee because I know you barely got any sleep?”
Best friend. It was like the knife that was lodged in his heart when he saw her with Jeff was twisted.
Yes, it had only been a night of them kissing for a few minutes, but he thought they were beyond the best friend stage at this point. But clearly, her having coffee with Jeff this morning meant they hadn’t moved beyond friends. And she just confirmed it.
“You can keep your coffee,” he said.
She raised an eyebrow. “Okay. What’s going on?”
“You should know.” He turned back toward the shovel and used his foot to bury it further and pulled out a chunk of dirt. He then threw into the wheelbarrow.
“I should know? Why? Because you bought four kittens that you had to take care of last night, so you’re crabby you didn’t get any sleep, and now suddenly it’s my fault?”
Jackson drove the shovel into the ground again and spun back to face Mia. “I’m not upset over the kittens!”
“Then what’s your problem?”
“Hey, hey, hey. What’s going on?” Ethan approached from the side with his hands raised like he was approaching a wild animal. “Why the fighting?”
Jackson stood nose-to-nose with Mia. Her eyes were ablaze as she glared at him. She still held the two coffees, with one tucked into the crook of her arm. Her free hand was on her hip.
“Good question,” Mia said. “I came to bring him coffee, and he’s acting like a whiny bitch.”
Ethan barked out a laugh before quickly covering it with a cough. Jackson’s nostrils flared as he glared down at her. Ethan stepped a little closer.
“Okay. Jackson, why are you being a?—”
At Jackson’s sharp glare, Ethan fought a smile. “Why are you being difficult when she’s just bringing you coffee?”
“Because she isn’t being transparent.”
“Transparent about what?” she asked.
“About Jeff.”
Ethan stepped a little closer and put his hands on their shoulders, pushing them each back a few steps. “Why don’t you two take this somewhere else? You’re drawing a crowd.”
Jackson broke his stare from Mia and looked around. Several tourists stood about watching them, and he suddenly felt guilty for being so unprofessional at his family’s resort.
“Mia needs to go to work anyway. She can leave,” Jackson said.
Mia’s nostrils flared, and she moved to step closer, but Ethan held up a hand.
“You are both leaving.”
“I have work to do,” Jackson said.
“I don’t care. You’re causing a scene, which isn’t a good look for you or Mia or for the resort. Go deal with whatever this is and then come back,” Ethan said.
Jackson turned to argue, but he knew Ethan was right. He wouldn’t be able to focus until he hashed things out with Mia, and she didn’t look like she was going to leave without discussing it. Jackson resigned with a sigh.
“Okay. Mia, come to my place. Let’s talk.”
He expected her to argue, but she only nodded once in acknowledgment before stalking off toward her car.
Ethan whistled low under his breath. “I don’t know what you did, but you’re in the doghouse.”
“Can’t be in the doghouse when you aren’t together,” Jackson said bitterly.
Ethan only chuckled. “Whatever you say, man.”