Page 9 of Plain Jade

Chapter Three

Several Weeks Later

Jade couldn’t stop thinking about the man who had saved her life. He was driving her crazy, and she knew he hadn’t done it on purpose. It wasn’t like he had gone out of his way to be … memorable. Far from it. He’d been mean and rude, and he’d treated her like a child. Yet, she couldn’t get him out of her head.

The following day at work, Lucille had wanted to know what happened. Jade didn’t like lying, but she also didn’t want to divulge and risk getting her mystery man into trouble, so she lied. She said that she’d fallen and hit her head, and it was no big deal.

Jade had checked beneath the bandage and had even changed it. She figured they were the kind of stiches that dissolved. He hadn’t given her any instructions to go to the hospital. So, she cleaned it, and kept it covered until it didn’t seem to need it.

Her bangs were able to cover it the past couple of days.

Business was slow at the moment. Everyone was waiting for several cosmetic brands to unleash their new season, so she stood in the shop, keeping everything looking clean. One or two customers stopped by. Regulars that had a set routine.

They were nice to her, said good morning, asked if she was okay. She had been shocked that the first week with the bandage, it had gotten a little too much attention. She just kept saying she tripped and it was a nasty fall.

Now, it was back to the status quo.

Even her boss had moved on.

Standing behind the counter, with the shop fully stocked, the back room clean, and the place sparkling, Jade tried not to think about the man who had saved her. She hadn’t gone back to that alley, or to that bar either. She had kept to herself.

She had also deleted all the dating apps and anything to do with dating and the opposite sex. Jade had learned her lesson.

She never dawdled on her way home, but walked with purpose. She’d also invested in some pepper spray. She kept a can in her bag at all times, and there was also one in her coat pocket, ready. Whenever she left work, she always kept her hand on it, just in case. There was no way she would be caught off guard again.

During lunchtimes, she stayed in the store, eating in the back, away from all the products. With the dark nights taking a grip, she went from work to her apartment, only changing her routine if she needed to go to the grocery store.

Her life had gotten even more boring, and she had even been tempted before the attack to go to some nighttime classes. She wasn’t sure what she was going to study—anything and everything.

Another day came and went of her daydreaming about a man whose name she didn’t know. It was driving her crazy, but she knew she was never going to see him again. She stood with Lucille, who was talking about her husband’s antics. She liked her boss, but they were not close. Lucille was always talking about her family and her kids. She had a very active social life. Jade had gotten used to nodding, smiling, and doing the occasionalahs where appropriate.

They said their goodbyes, and once again, hand on the pepper spray, she worked with speed, making sure to only take the busy streets and keeping as far from the alleyways as possible. She didn’t even dare look down the streets.

By the time she made it back to her apartment, she was out of breath, and her hands shook as she let herself into her apartment.

She had to keep telling herself she wasn’t afraid. She closed the door and locked it. She had been tempted to go and pick up a couple more locks, but she had avoided that by telling herself she was fine.

The locks back in place, she let go of the pepper spray, put her bag on the single hook, as well as her jacket, and then stepped through her apartment, going straight to her kitchen. She was hungry. On her way into the kitchen, Jade stopped. Something didn’t feel right.

Glancing around her small apartment, she frowned and then reached for the light, turning it on, and then pressing a hand to her chest.

Her mystery man, the one that had saved her, was sitting in her chair.

“What the hell? You nearly gave me a heart attack!” She couldn’t believe he had snuck into her apartment. This was insane. She felt happy and terrified at the same time.

“You’re not having a heart attack,” he said.

She shook her head. “It’s a figure of speech. What are you doing here?” She was glad to see him, there was no doubt about that, but also a little shocked.

For weeks she had been wanting to see him. In every spare moment, she had been thinking about him, wondering who he was.

“I came to see you.”

“Why?” she asked. She tried not to cringe and wasn’t sure if she succeeded or not, but then she just stared at him and waited.

He got out of the chair and moved toward her.

Jade didn’t move. She kept still and waited.

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