Slow Hands (16 page)

“Not Jake, I know,” said his baby sister. “He’s a doll. I think it’s having sisters. In my opinion, every woman should end up with a man who had sisters. They drain all the assholeness out of him while he’s growing up and make him learn to treat a woman right.”

Maddy chuckled. “There’s no denying your brother is a perfect gentleman.” Pursing her lips, she added, “And you know, come to think of it,
my
ex was an only child.”

“You see?” Jenny exclaimed, throwing her hands up in the air. “So is Toby.”

Toby being he of the great assholeness.

But Jake was more interested in hearing about Maddy’s ex. This was the first time she’d mentioned him, though he’d strongly suspected the guy’s actions left some major damage.

Had he been a lover? Fiancé? He couldn’t even contemplate the idea that someone else might have actually put a wedding ring on her beautiful finger and then let her get away.

Jenny was fine, already showing more interest in the car than in the boyfriend who would be texting her and asking for forgiveness within a few hours, he was quite sure. He wanted to know more about Maddy. “So, tell me more about this ex.”

“Oh-ho, haven’t gotten that far in the relationship, huh? Just sex talk, no ex-talk?”

“It’s been a long time since I’ve threatened your life,” Jake said, not even turning around to glare at his sister. His words were menacing enough. “Now be quiet or I’ll call Heather and Blair and sic them on you tonight.”

Jenny stiffened, definitely fearing the combined threat of their two older sisters, complete busybodies, both of them. “Sorry. Go ahead, Maddy.”

“Go ahead with what?” she asked, obviously distracted by the sibling bickering. With only one sister—and a snooty, pretentious, pushy one at that, judging by what he’d heard about her—Jake doubted Maddy had much experience with the playfully cutthroat world of sibling disputes.

“The ex. What was he, a cheat?” Jenny asked.

Jake didn’t scold her, because that was exactly the question he wanted to ask, but hadn’t dared to.

Maddy sighed softly. “Oh, yes. Oliver was most definitely a cheat.”

Jenny gasped. “Oh, God, did he cheat on you with a
dude?
”

That startled a shocked laugh out of their driver. “No, why on earth would you ask that?”

“Well, come on, I mean,
Oliver?
Only a parent who’s just
begging
for a gay son would come up with that name!”

Jake snorted, quickly hiding his laughter when Maddy swept a sidelong glance his way. Her tiny frown told him she’d seen his amusement.

“Well, as far as I know, he confined his cheating to snow bunnies and cocktail waitresses.”

“But you’re so hot. Why would any guy do that?”

Maddy shifted in her seat, as always, not accepting that she was a beautiful, desirable woman. “He liked tall, rail-thin, leggy blondes.”

“Then it sounds to me like he should have been with an albino greyhound,” Jake snapped, completely despising the unknown Oliver. “Because he’s only fit to be with his own kind…dogs.”

“I totally agree. You are so much better than that,” Jenny said, whether out of loyalty to Maddy because she was with Jake, or because she liked her—or her car—or simply out of a go-girl-all-men-suck attitude.

Maybe all of the above.

“I think it was a combination of immaturity, selfishness and greed,” Maddy admitted, her voice low, almost as if she was speaking to herself. “I am sure he liked my connections and my family money more than me.”

“She’s rich?” Jenny piped in.

“Shut up, Jen.”

His sister shut up.

“But he was a spoiled rich kid who took what he wanted when he wanted it. While he very briefly thought he wanted me, he obviously changed his mind and moved on…without clueing me in.”

“How’d you find out?”

Jake hadn’t asked, Jenny had. Again he did not tell her to shut up, because he wanted to know the answer. He couldn’t possibly have asked—he was too busy keeping his jaw clamped shut and his body tightly pressed against the passenger seat, so damned furious at the lousy prick who’d hurt Maddy he couldn’t even speak.

Maddy glanced into the rearview mirror, seeming to meet his sister’s eyes. “He went on a ski trip and I decided to ‘surprise’ him by coming up to join him. He was surprised all right.”

“Eww! Did you walk in when they were…”

“Jenny,” Jake snapped, “that’s a little too personal.”

“Sorry. Man, I’m ready to run out of hope altogether. If it can happen to you, it can totally happen to anyone.”

The Maddy he’d met a few weeks ago—the hard, brittle one—probably would have nodded in agreement. The cool woman he’d walked with to the park, who’d slammed the very idea of lasting love as being a fantasy might have warned his baby sister about being cautious, staying slightly separate from anyone to avoid getting hurt.

Instead, she surprised him. “You know, looking back, it was just as well. He definitely wasn’t the man for me.”

Ah, progress. At least she was conceding there might exist such a creature—a man for her.

“And I know it wasn’t my fault and that not every man would behave that way. It was his own weakness of character.”

“Well, duh!”

“So I’ve finally come to the point where I can let it go and forget about him.” Then, grunting she added, “Which is fine, except for the fact that he is still in my social circle, and I do see him once in a while.”

“Is he going to be at the wedding?” Jake asked, already relishing the prospect.

“God, I should hope not. My father would lose his mind. I think he was more furious about what Oliver did than I was. And if Dad didn’t clean the floor with him, Tabitha would eviscerate him with a salad fork.” Glancing again at Jenny in the mirror, she explained, “My older sister is getting married on Saturday and Jake is escorting me.”

“You an escort to a rich wedding, huh?” Jenny snorted, opening her mouth to say something else.

Fearing it might be something along the lines of, “What are you going to wear, your paramedic uniform?” he quickly interrupted. “Maybe Maddy will return the favor and come with me to Blair’s.”

“Ugh. Don’t remind me. Have you seen the bridesmaid dresses she finally decided on?” Sticking her index finger into her mouth and making retching noises, the twenty-year-old made her opinion of them clear. Then she asked Maddy, “Are you a bridesmaid?”

“Yes.”

“Did your sister pick out the monkey-butt-ugliest dresses in the store? Talk about hideous—ruffled and frilly baby’s-ass-peach things. They look more like something I would have worn to my third birthday party.”

Soft, lyrical laughter spilled from Maddy’s mouth. “No, actually the dress I’m wearing is beautiful…for someone built like Tabby.”

“Meaning?”

“Meaning I’m going to have to duct tape myself to fit into it
and
to hold it up. I haven’t worn a strapless, backless dress since I reached puberty.”

“That sister of yours…” Jake muttered.

“Hey, it’s her wedding,” Maddy said with a shrug. “I honestly don’t care, and it is a very pretty dress. I’ll just try not to breathe. And I definitely won’t be bending over. It’s far too revealing for someone with my, um, figure.”

Hmm…he could hardly wait to see it. What might be demure on one of those stick-thin, leggy blondes her ex had so desired would be downright sinful on a woman like Maddy. How any man could have preferred anyone else when he’d had this woman in his life, he simply had no idea.

Men who cheated pissed him off as a matter of principle. But one who’d cheated on
her?
Well, this sonofabitch Oliver was just lucky he wasn’t coming to the wedding.

“I bet you’ll look totally wicked,” Jenny said. “While I’m going to look like Dora the Explorer in her party dress.”

“Totally wicked,” Jake murmured, already smiling at the thought.

“No comments, you.”

In the backseat, Jenny stopped talking, and began to avidly stare down at the cell phone in her hand. The texting must have commenced. Knowing his sister was fully occupied now, Jake still kept his voice low. “I’ll be happy to keep an eye on you, make sure everything stays in place.”

“Mmm, hmm,” Maddy said, sotto voce, watching his sister in the backseat.

“She wouldn’t notice if a tidal wave came off the lake unless it filled the car and took that stupid phone out of her hands.”

“Then I guess you’d better tell me where I’m going,” Maddy murmured, nodding toward the sign as they entered the campus of the university Jenny attended. “Which one is her dorm?”

Jake pointed to a nearby building, and by the time they’d parked outside it, Jenny had a big grin on her face. Whatever Toby-the-asshole had said in his text messages had obviously mollified her. She’d forgiven him.

Until next week.

They got out to say goodbye to his little sister, who gave both of them enthusiastic bear hugs for coming to her rescue. Maddy, who didn’t seem the type to appreciate being hugged by a complete stranger, still had a smile on her face as they got back in the car to leave.

“I like her.”

“She liked you, too.”

“I don’t ever remember being that young and energetic.”

“I disagree. You seemed like an energetic powerhouse the other night. And that day on the boat. And the night of the baseball game…”

Maddy, who hadn’t seemed to be the type to even know what teasing was a few weeks ago, gave it right back to him. “Well, I fear my batteries might have run completely dry. It’s going to take something pretty spectacular to charge them again.”

He was up for the job. “Good. Then let’s head back to your place and I’ll do everything I can to…spark a charge.”

“Are you saying you want to plug something in?”

Jake barked a quick laugh. “You do know you’re teasing me, right? That this is called banter. You’re flirting with me and you’re not talking in that snooty voice you used to use. And thank God you’re not or calling me
porcine
for fantasizing about you in that bridesmaid dress.”

She didn’t respond at first, merely appearing to think about his words. He wondered if he should have said anything at all. The changes coming over Maddy were visible to him—maybe they hadn’t been to her.

Maybe she hadn’t yet acknowledged, even in her own mind, that she was opening up to him. Trusting him. Letting down her guard and being the woman he’d sensed was there, beneath the surface, all along.

From her warmth toward his sister, her men-suck commiseration, her bridesmaid talk, her openness about her bad breakup, hell, even accepting a hug without the slightest wince, Maddy was as unlike the woman he’d spoken with in her office that day as he was unlike…well, the gigolo she’d taken him for.

Maybe it’s time to end this
. It was definitely something to consider.

“I suppose I should thank you,” she said softly. “I’ve been pretty cold and hard since the…incident…with Oliver.” Nibbling lightly on her bottom lip, she added, “I wasn’t always the ice queen.”

Jake reached over and touched her cheek, lightly, briefly. “You were
never
really the ice queen.”

Maddy nodded, still pensive, serious. Maybe even thinking some of the same things he’d been thinking. If she continued to think that way, she might very well be ready to hear what it was he had to tell her.

Soon. Hopefully very soon.

“You know…” he said, changing the subject to the other one that was foremost on his mind. “Thinking of you in that bridesmaid dress you were talking about has suddenly got me anxious for a preview. Let’s go back to your place so you can model it for me.” He made no attempt to disguise his wolfish tone or true, lustful intentions.

“What about dinner?”

Jake merely leaned back in the seat, stretching his long legs out as far as he could in the small car. “I suddenly prefer to dine in. Do you have anything…appetizing at your place?”

“Are we bantering again?”

“I think we are. Bantering, flirting, exchanging innuendo.”

“Well then.” She appeared to think about it, tapping the tip of her finger on her cheek. “Hmm. I believe there are still a few Lemonheads and some popcorn…”

“Or?”

“Or you
could
just dine on me.”

Exactly the kind of dinner he had in mind.

“But first, we’ve got to clear something up, mister. You haven’t cashed that check I gave you.” She sounded accusing.

“You peeking in my wallet again?”

“I do manage a bank, you know.”

Oh. Right.

“You’d better not even be
thinking
of trying to tear it up or hand it back to me at the end of our thirty days.”

“Maddy, come on, I don’t need your money.”

“Tough,” she snapped. “We had a deal, so you cash it. Do whatever you want with the money, invest it, pay Jenny’s tuition, give it to charity for all I care. But fair’s fair.” Her lips curved up the tiniest bit. “I’m not a welsher.”