Page 13 of Time for Change

“He’s dumb. Ignore him,” I grumble, taking another drink of Coke.

She chuckles and reaches over, gently patting Caden’s shoulder. “He’s not dumb. A manwhore, yes, but not dumb.”

I bark out a laugh as Caden stares wide-eyed at Marla. “That was cold. True, but a frosty response, Miss Marla.”

She shakes her head, smiling. “You know I love you, Caden. Someday, some woman is going to knock you on your playboy ass. I can’t wait to see it happen.”

His mouth falls open. “Bite your tongue.”

That makes her laugh loudly. “You think you’re immune to love, but even you can’t hide from Cupid.”

“Let’s get back to making Jack uncomfortable, shall we? What can you tell us about Stevie?” he asks, waggling his eyebrows.

She glances around, making sure no one can overhear her. “Well, I can’t really tell you anything at all, except she’s new to town, having just moved here a couple of weeks ago, and doesn’t have any family here.”

“Interesting,” Caden says. “Is she single?”

“Jesus, Caden,” I grumble, wishing I could crawl under the table.

“I’m not certain, but I think so. She hasn’t talked about a boyfriend, but she also seems pretty quiet and private, so I suppose it’s possible.”

“Hmm,” he murmurs, taking a sip of his drink.

Marla leans in. “She seems pretty young though.”

“How young? Are we talking jail time here, Marla? I don’t want to have to visit my friend in the slammer.”

I’m a little interested in this answer myself, so I keep quiet while Marla answers.

“Not certain exactly, but she’s not allowed behind the bar, which means she’s under twenty-one. Somewhere between nineteen and twenty would be my guess.”

My heart sinks a bit. Not that I was seriously interested in asking her out, but that seems like too big of an age difference to even consider. I’m a father with a four- and nine-year-old.

“Here you go,” Stevie says as she approaches our booth with two plates of food.

“Stevie, this is Jack and Caden. Don’t believe anything this one says,” Marla states, nodding toward my friend and earning a laugh.

“It’s nice to meet you both,” she states, offering a polite smile. But I don’t miss the way her eyes linger a few extra seconds my way before she takes a step back. “I’ll let you guys enjoy your meal. Can I get you anything else?”

My friend opens his mouth, and something tells me he’s about to say something he shouldn’t, which is why I quickly blurt out, “We’re good. Thank you.”

“We’ll leave you be. Good to see you both,” Marla says as she turns to check on another table.

Stevie hangs just a few seconds longer, her stunning light brown eyes drawing me in like a moth to a flame. “I’ll check on you again in a few minutes,” she says softly before stepping aside and moving to the next table. I don’t miss, however, her glancing back over at me when she reaches her destination.

“She’s interested. You’d be an idiot not to talk to her.”

I pick up a fry and take a bite. When I’m done chewing, I say, “She’s young.”

He shrugs, picking up his burger and taking a hearty mouthful. After swallowing, he says, “So? She’s legal.”

I narrow my eyes at him. “That’s not exactly a strong selling point. I have kids.”

“Again…so?”

I turn my attention to my burger and take a few bites, all while mulling over the fact I haven’t actually been on a date in a year, and it didn’t exactly go well. Besides my three short-lived dates with Nicole Jones a year ago, there was a singular date with Alyssa a month later. She worked at the supermarket and after several instances of her flirting with me while ringingup my groceries, I decided to invite her for coffee. I realized something was off very early when she kept checking her phone throughout coffee, and every time I tried to engage her in conversation, she seemed distracted. Turned out, she was using our date to make her ex jealous, posting several social media status updates with her location. He showed up at the coffee shop and created a scene, insisting he still loved her and wanted her back.

I’d say her plan worked.

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