Loving Her (2 page)

She was incredibly beautiful.  I
hadn’t seen her at any of the dinners before. When I found her sitting at the
same table and she looked straight at me, I froze not knowing what to say.  Thankfully,
some of the awkwardness went away as soon as Jim showed up and began his
inquisition, taking her focus off me. 

I listened intently all evening
to learn more about her.  What I learned was that she worked for a rival ad
agency and had impeccable people skills.  She didn’t skip a beat keeping up
with all the macho crap at our table and I was pretty impressed. 

She looked close to my age and
judging by her conversation with Jim Davis, she was well educated and worked
hard.  Knowing Michael like I did, he’d obviously seen her talent and respected
her abilities enough to send her in here with all these sharks.   

I sat quietly most of the night,
as usual.  I rarely saw the need in mindless, meaningless conversation anymore. 
It served no purpose to me, even though I did enjoy listening to it.  It
occupied my mind and kept me focused on the present…on life. 

At some point during all the
table talk, I slipped away to go walk around the room.  I needed to move a bit
and appear interested in everyone else.  I made a few short stops at other
tables to shake hands and say hello, but I found myself continuing to glance
back at her as I mingled.  There was something about Jen Bailey that had my
attention and it was unnerving and not welcomed.

I watched as she laughed and
seemed to have fun.  She disappeared with Ellen for a little while only to
reappear looking refreshed and even more beautiful than before.  I couldn’t
stop myself from moving back toward the table when I saw she was the only one
sitting there as the rest took to the dance floor. 

I forced myself to ignore the
boulder crushing my chest and go to her and ask her to dance.  I told myself it
was because I didn’t want her sitting alone at the table, but I wasn’t sure
that was the truth.

Surprisingly, she agreed to dance
with me.  I felt the need to pull her closer to me, but withheld the urge.  She
smelled as good as she looked and my mind was a jumbled mess.  I was barely
getting my emotions under control when Jen leaned back, stared in my eyes and
ask me why I was there.  I curtly gave her an answer because I couldn’t think
of anything else to say.  Her big, beautiful blue eyes were mesmerizing and I
felt my whole body become rigid.  Before I could say anything else, the song
was over and Jen was thanking me and slipping away. 

I stood there in shock for what
felt like hours as I watched her grab her things and head toward the front
doors of the hotel.  I had to say something else to her. 

I followed and barely made it to
her cab as she was climbing in.  I needed a few more minutes with her, but
after convincing her to let me share the cab, I was at a loss for what to say. 
We just rode in silence until we reached my house and then I watched as the cab
drove away with Jen Bailey.  

I slept in the next morning,
enjoying the fact that it was Saturday.  I stretched my body and felt all my
muscles wake up.  I needed to drag my ass out of bed and go for a swim. 
Saturdays were my days to either swim for a few hours or take a long run. 
Today was swimming for me. 

I looked over to the window and
noticed my black dress draped across the chair and was immediately taken back
to the odd events of my previous evening and Rylan Daniels.  As quiet as he
was, he certainly made an impression on me…..not sure what kind of impression,
but one that had my brain buzzing with curiosity. 

I made my way to the kitchen,
made coffee and sat to read for a bit.  I loved reading, but had limited
chances to do it.  At the moment, though, I was having a bit of trouble
focusing on my book.  I needed to get going and burn up some energy. 

I ate a little breakfast and
packed a bag to head to the gym to do some laps.  On the drive over, I remembered
the stupid date I was supposed to go on that evening and it put a damper on my
whole day.  UGH! 

This was some guy my best friend
had begged me to go out with.  She and her husband were constantly trying to
set me up with this guy or that guy.  They’d been together since our freshman
year of college and married shortly after we graduated and were one of those
sickening couples that actually liked spending a lot of time together. 

Sad as it was, I had to admit
that Emily and Cale were a pretty awesome set.  And, as friends, there was no
comparison.  Those two had seen me go through more than a few heartbreaks and
disasters and just kept hanging in there with me.  I rarely told them no, even
when I knew whatever they were asking was going to be a painful undertaking. 

I grabbed my phone from my bag
and called Emily.  “Hey, girl.  Ready for tonight?”

Oh good lord, she was all chipper
and excited.  “Hey Em, you not even gonna say ‘hello’?”

Emily started cackling into the
phone.  “Um, you do know that people’s names and sometimes their faces show up
on each other’s cell phones, right?  Damn, how old are you?”

“Whatever, hooker.  I just called
to say I’m totally OUT for tonight.  I’m not feeling good.”  No doubt she’d
know I was full of shit.

“Jennifer Marie Bailey!  You are
NOT cancelling on us!  You’d better dope up with some good meds and have your
ass ready by seven!”

Shocked at her sudden forceful
tone, which I knew was making her physically shake since she never yelled, I
calmly said, “Em, calm down.  You sound a little crazy, girl!”  I was grinning
as I said that knowing she hated when anyone accused her of being crazy.

Breathing deeply into the phone,
Emily said, “Jen, you’d better be just messing with me because I cannot tell
Jack that you aren’t showing up.  He’s way too excited about meeting you.”

See, that was just the kind of
thing that a girl does not want to hear about her blind date.  Eager men are
creepy weird.  “Em, I’ll be there, but this had better not be like last time. 
You knew damn good and well that dude was wearing a toupee and you and Cale
just ignored it all night while I couldn’t take my eyes off of it.”

That brought on a fit of laughter
from Emily and even had me chuckling.  “It will be better….promise!  Just be
ready at seven.  And dress casual.  Gotta run.  Cale and I are running some
errands.  Love ya!”

And with that, she was gone.  I
stood there next to my car shaking my head at Emily and myself.  I must be a glutton
for crap like this. 

After an hour of doing laps in
the pool, I was exhausted.  I’d had a few too many glasses of wine the night
before for that much exercise.  It was going on two o’clock by the time I
finished my workout and made my way home after a side trip to look for a new
outfit and quick stop to pick up a few groceries. 

I put everything away and laid on
the couch with a pint of Ben & Jerry’s Cake Batter ice cream.  Yeah, not
the best choice after my workout, but I was wallowing in having to go on a
blind date.  It was my reward to myself for all the acting I’d be doing that
evening. 

At some point during my fat-fest
and my Mark Walberg movie, I dozed off.  Thankfully, I heard my phone ringing
or I might have slept through my ‘hot’ date.  I snorted at the thought.

My phone registered a few missed
calls from Emily, stalking me of course, and a number I didn’t know.  I
shrugged and typed out a text to Emily.

Jen:

I’m not coming!  Leave me
alone, stalker.

I laughed out loud because I just
loved getting her all pissy and crazy.

Emily:

Stop it, you psycho!  You know you’re coming.

I was calling to see what you
were wearing.

Jen:

I’m not telling.  You’ll have
to be surprised.

Emily:

You big cry baby.  See you in
two hours.

Two hours?  Crap.  I hadn’t
realized I’d slept so long.  I had to get a move on it to be ready in time to
gear myself up for this thing. 

I dressed in jeans and a new
sleeveless, red satin shirt that hugged my curves and showed off a little
cleavage and black heels.  It wasn’t that I was trying to impress Jack exactly,
but I did want to look nice. 

I had time to sip a glass of wine
before my doorbell rang.  Taking a deep breath, I briefly closed my eyes then
pulled the door open with a big, fake smile on my face. 

“Hey, girl!”  Emily was really
chipper.  “You look gorgeous, as usual.”  She leaned into kiss my cheek and gave
me a big hug.

“Stop trying to butter me up,
slick!  I know your game,” I whispered in her ear before she could pull away.

“Whatever.  You always look
good.”  Em winked and turned to the side so that I could see Cale and Jack
standing in the door.   Hmm, well he sure was a nice piece of eye candy….damn. 

Emily nudged my arm and I
suddenly wondered if I had said those words out loud.  I looked at Em and she
was just smiling at me. 

“Jen, this is Jack….Jack, this is
Jen.  Okay, let’s go.”  She was a huge pain in my ass.

I shook his hand and to my shock,
I wasn’t totally freaked out.  Maybe this date wouldn’t be so bad.  “Hi, Jen. 
I’ve heard a lot about you.  Well, I’ve probably heard everything about you.” 
Jack smiled and nodded his head toward Emily and Cale who were hugged up at the
door and staring like fools.

“Oh, I’m sure you have.  It’s
nice to meet you, too.  Shall we go, guys,” I said as I peeked around Jack to
my incredibly annoying friends.

“Yep, let’s go,” chirped Emily.

“After you…” Jack said as he made
a sweeping motion with his hand.  I just smiled and walked straight through my
front door toward the street.   I swore I heard Em doing that small little
chipper clap behind my back as I walked several feet in front of everyone
else.  Please….

We drove to The Poseidon and sat
outside under the beautiful night air, right at the edge of the ocean.  I loved
this restaurant and I was certain Emily knew that, which made it clear who
chose our dining accommodations.  Good thing I loved her like a sister or I
would’ve had to cut her.

I grinned at her as we sat down
at our table and she tried some innocent little look on me.  I just smiled
really big and shrugged letting her know I was fine with the choice.  As I
started to sit in my chair, I realized Jack was right behind me pulling out my
chair.  Really, men still do that?   Hmm, nice…I guess.

“Thank you.  You didn’t have to
get my chair for me.”  I didn’t really know how to respond.

He jerked his head back slightly
and said, “Of course I did.  That’s what all men are supposed to do.” 
Okay….whatever you say.

“Well, thank you.”  He seemed
like a nice enough guy.  I needed to chill out a little and just enjoy the
evening.  We stared at each other for several long seconds before Jack moved to
go to his own chair.

Just then, the waiter walked up
and took our drink orders.  Cale didn’t order any alcohol since he was driving
us…very big of him considering my memory of him in college.  He was
never
the designated driver.  The thought of those days made me smile and Jack
apparently saw. 

He leaned over to me and said,
“Something funny?  You look a little lost in your thoughts and they’re making
you smile.” 

“Not really.  Just a memory I
suddenly had.”  I smiled at him and then continued to look over the menu. 

“Hmm, I’m intrigued,” he softly
said as he turned to his own menu.  I had an unwelcome, but nice feeling
running through me.   His voice was sexy and soothing as he talked low where
only I could hear him. 

“Hey, Jen!”  Emily shocked me out
of the beginning of a little daydream. 

“Yes, Em?”  I couldn’t hide the
sarcastic, snarky tone. 

“You and Jack have something
really big in common.  He’s in advertising too.”  Good lord, she was so
freakin’ hyper.

Turning to look directly at Jack,
I asked, “Oh yeah?  Which firm?”

“Redman, Daniels & Smith. 
How about you?”  Well, shit.  Now, I was thinking about
him
and I did
not want to be thinking about a Mr. Rylan Daniels right now, but my mind was
drifting.

“JEN!”  Emily’s voice shocked me
back to reality.  “Oh, um I work for Sullivan & Jackson so I guess we’re
rivals, huh?”

“Well, I think I can handle
leaving work at work.  How about you?”  He was right.   It didn’t really matter
anyway.

“Yes, please!  I don’t want to
think about work right now anyway.”  I smiled and took a sip of my wine.  I
wasn’t even going to mention Rylan Daniels because that would start a whole
conversation that I did not want to have at the moment.

Jack winked at me and quietly
said, “Good answer.”  That little maneuver sent a delicious shiver through me. 
My night might turn out to be a really, really good night after all.

We made small talk through dinner
and then left to go out to a club for a while to hear a local band.  I had
originally thought I would make some excuse to go home after dinner, but I had
such a nice time with Jack that I was more than happy to spend a little more
time with him. 

He put his hand in the small of
my back to guide me as we entered the club and I couldn’t help but to close my
eyes for a second and soak up the feeling.  I hadn’t really gone out on a
real
date in a while….not since Cole, who happened to be married,
unbeknownst to me.  That left some deep scars in me that left me feeling really
stupid for not figuring him out.  I mean, hell….we dated for damn near a year.

“Hey, want anything from the
bar?”  Jack was leaning into my back and talking so close that I could feel his
lips graze my ear.  I couldn’t help but to flinch and I felt him smile.  I
leaned back slightly against him…..pure instinct, I’m sure…..and turned my head
a little.

“Maybe just some water for now,
please.”  I needed a clear head for the rest of the night.

His hand came around the side of
my waist, but stopped before reaching all the way around.  “Okay, but I really
don’t want to move from where I am right now.” 

I laughed and shook my head at
him, still looking at him over my shoulder.  “Is that right?”

“Um, hell yeah!  I’m standing
here with a beautiful girl so close I can almost feel her every curve and the
last thing I want to do is walk away from her.”  That made me laugh even though
I was feeling the same way.

“Nice one!  Okay, slick….forget
the water….for now.”  At that, his hand made its way to the front of my waist
and he pulled me a little further against him.

“Slick? Really?”  He still had
his mouth very close to my ear.

“Yeah, sounds good for you since
so far tonight you’re saying and doing all the right things.  Makes me think you’re
up to something.”  I hoped I didn’t offend him, but I needed to put it out
there that I was not some stupid little naïve girl.

“Well, all I want is to stay
right where I am and enjoy hanging out with you, Jen.  That okay?”  His voice
sounded a little harder, like he was pissed.

I felt bad, so I turned to faced
him.  His hand never left my waist as I spun around to see his handsome,
concerned eyes staring at me.  I reached up and cupped his face, not feeling
the least bit awkward about it.  “Hey, I didn’t mean to offend you.  I’m
sorry.  You’ve been nothing but a perfect gentleman tonight and I am having a
wonderful time.”

His grip on me tightened and his
other hand join the one on my lower back.  He was staring at my face,
especially my lips.  “Thank you.  I’m having an amazing time with you too,
Jen.” 

He had a small smile on his face
and I found myself staring at his mouth.  Damn.

“Jen?”  Jack whispered, still
staring at me.

“Yeah?”

“I need to kiss you.  May I?” 
Oh, dear lord.  Those words did funny things to me.

A slow smile crept across my face
and he had one to match.  “Yeah.”  I whispered as he leaned in and ever so
gently swept his lips across mine.  It was the sweetest, softest kiss and I
wanted more, but he pulled his head back and whispered “Thank you” then quickly
turned me around to face out to the crowd leaving my waist locked in this arms.

I didn’t know what to think.  I
felt confused, maybe even a little disappointed and was glad he couldn’t see my
face.  The wheels in my mind were running full steam with doubt, anger, regret
and a whole host of ‘baggage’ issues that continued to tie me up in knots.  I
made a move to loosen his grip from me so that I could stand beside him, but he
didn’t budge.  “Where are you going?”  He asked into my ear. 

I wanted to say ‘stop playing
your bullshit games with me and get the hell off’ but thought better of it.  I
mean, he didn’t ask to make out with me or sleep with me.  He asked for a kiss
and that is what he got.  I was being stupid and now I needed to say something
normal and appear unaffected.