Chapter 20
CHAPTER TWENTY
She could have lived without hearing him laugh. Could have lived without the gravelly sound ringing in her ears all night. Could have lived without it haunting her dreams as she slept. Maybe solemn and serious, a little grumpy, completely standoffish at first, but beneath, Miles cared deeply.
He did everything deeply.
He may not find her shallow, but she had a hard time believing it of herself.
Compared to him, she burbled like a brook, dancing over the rocks of life with a tinkling giggle and no depth whatsoever.
He was the ocean. He was a fly route with four downs and a long pass to the endzone.
She was a dive play with barely enough coverage to get back to the line of scrimmage.
She shook her thoughts away. As the sound of his laughter faded from her mind, the memory of his warm skin against hers returned. Not the electric jolt of sexual attraction she usually experienced from men, his touch matched his personality: deeper, richer, more.
“Earth to Jif.” Britt waved her hand in front of Jif’s face.
“Sorry.” She chugged her mimosa, hoping her heated cheeks would be attributed to the alcohol.
“Where are you today?”
“Jimmy saw you last night.” Leticia narrowed her eyes. “Said it looked like a date, but he didn’t recognize the guy.”
“A date?” Britt squealed. “A real one?”
Jif wrinkled her nose. “It wasn’t a date. Also, rude. I have lots of real dates.”
Britt waggled her champagne glass with an “Eh...” the liquid sloshing dangerously before she set it down and leaned across the table, her gaze more intense than a rookie quarterback tracking his favorite receiver. “You know what I mean.”
“It wasn’t a date,” Jif reiterated, waving to the waitress for another drink. “We ate dinner, nothing else.”
“He has a dog. A beautiful Dalmatian.” Leticia sipped her cocktail, declaring, “All the best guys have dogs. It’s a sign of character.”
“Corey has a dog. Garrett doesn’t.” Jif pointed out sweetly.
The waitress dropped off another glass, and Leticia clinked hers against it. “Fair point.”
“Wait,” Britt interrupted, leaning forward on the table and crossing her arms. “A Dalmatian? Did you go on a date with the therapy-dog guy? What’s his name, again?”
“For the last time, it wasn’t a date,” Jif huffed. “Neither of us had plans, so we grabbed dinner together. And his name is Miles.”
Britt snapped her fingers. “Yes, Miles. And the dog...?”
“Nix,” Jif supplied, sipping her drink. “Short for Phoenix. He’s such a firefighter; he has a Dalmatian named after a firebird.”
If Miles didn’t take himself quite so seriously, she might consider ribbing him about it, but she also didn’t want to prick his steady gravitas too deeply. He didn’t deserve light-hearted teasing about things that obviously meant so much to him.
“Oh. My. God.” Britt’s mouth hung open.
Jif hurriedly gulped a sip of champagne, but the bubbles tickled her nose, and she sneezed. Clearing her throat, she demanded, “What?”
“Nothing.” Britt pressed her lips together, her eyes glowing. “Nothing at all.”
Jif scowled at Leticia, who raised her hands in surrender. “Not a date, got it.”
“No, not a date,” Jif repeated for the third time. And, if the slightest hint of disappointment lingered, well, she could ignore that.
Changing the subject, she raised an eyebrow at Britt. “I heard Garrett broke the fundraising record for the Oncology department. Bet he’s proud, huh?”
Britt’s cheeks pinked. “You have no idea. He wants to help, to make a real difference, and... I think I might love him.”
“Really?” Jif wriggled in her seat, her joy too much to contain within her body. “Oh, Britt, I’m so happy for you!”
Her friend’s eyes flicked to the plate in front of her. “I haven’t said anything yet.”
“You should.” If Jif had learned nothing else from Miles, she’d learned you should tell people how you felt.
“Have you said it?” Britt glanced toward Leticia.
She nodded. “But Jimmy and I have been together for longer, too.”
“I’m scared. What if he doesn’t feel the same way?”
“Don’t worry, he does,” Leticia reassured her.
“How can you say that?”
Jif took a long sip of her drink, smacking her lips theatrically before answering. “Because Donte said he wouldn’t shut up about you at poker night, which is usually a strictly no-girls clubhouse.”
Britt’s eyes brightened. “Really?”
Jif shot her friend a sly grin. “If you can believe the rumor, yes. The guys talk. They’re worse gossips than girls!”
Except Britt wouldn’t understand. She hadn’t spent years existing in this world, and didn’t know how to read between the lines.
Leaning forward, she caught Britt’s hand with her own. “Garrett’s the serious kind, and Leticia’s right. You should tell him. Being honest is important.”
Both women blinked at Jif, surprise on their faces, but a moment later, Britt broke into a brilliant grin.
“I will, then. Tonight.”
“And you’ll call and tell us all about it, right?” Leticia demanded.
“Well, maybe tomorrow morning, okay?”
Leticia burst out laughing. “I suppose tomorrow is soon enough.”
If a slight twinge of jealousy remained that her friend had everything she’d ever wanted, everything she’d worked for, before Jif, well, she wouldn’t let it prick her too deeply.