Page 17 of The Making of Marnie Jones

How she was going to regret sending Jake on his way yet again, she wasn’t sure, and was about to give voice to her doubts when the man himself stepped through the door.

His gaze focused on the women.

She relented a bit and offered up a small smile to him.

He returned the overture, heading in her direction.

Marnie hissed under her breath, “We need to talk, though.”

“About the boundaries of employee/boss relations.” Loriana quipped the words, also under her breath. “Because I’ll admit I stepped over the line.”

Jake stepping up to the counter saved her from Marnie’s biting reply. Although his grin was sexy and sure, his eyes held hesitation. She’d put that doubt there, yet she refused to feel guilty about it. He was the one who kept pushing—even when she’d clearly made up her mind. Still, her heart skipped a beat.

“It’s a cloudy day, but still beautiful.” He gestured toward the large window facing out over the main street. “Might I borrow Marnie for a picnic?” He was addressing Loriana but watching Marnie intently.

“I suppose this is where I go and get my bag.” Marnie’s tone was droll, but she doubted either Loriana or Jake was going to comment. Without waiting for a response, she walked into the back room. Since they were going for a picnic, she didn’t need her bag, but she did need her sunglasses. Once they were firmly in place, she returned to the circulation desk.

Jake was chuckling and Loriana was blushing.

Marnie did a double take because she’d never seen her boss blush before.

“I was telling Loriana her husband is a lucky man.” His expression was open, a sincere smile on his face.

Mitch was, but Marnie wasn’t sure she liked Jake flirting with her boss. “I’ll be back in half an hour.” Her tone was sharper than she’d intended, but her boss annoyed her.

“An hour.” Loriana’s blithe correction was said as she placed more books on the trolley.

Before Marnie could object, her boss made a beeline toward a patron at one of the computer stations who seemed to have trouble. “I need to see to this before curse words are spoken.” Loriana didn’t wait for a reply.

“Are you okay about going to lunch?” For the first time, Jake sounded uncertain. He twirled the arm of his sunglasses, then used the edge of his shirt to wipe them.

“If I said I wasn’t, what then?” Her voice was clipped and tight, her chest feeling constricted.

“I’ll apologize and leave.”

Even though he couldn’t see it, she rolled her eyes. “Let’s get this over with.” Without waiting for a reply, she headed for the door. Once she was outside, a gust of wind hit her. When she looked overhead, clouds moved in from the west. “I’m not sure you’re going to get your hour.”

“I’ll take whatever I can get.” He pointed to his rental. “Let me get the food from the car.”

“I’ll grab a table.” She nodded at the little park across the way. Again, she didn’t wait for him to speak, just took off at a brisk pace. She winced at her rudeness. How to deal with the way he kept her off-kilter? No clue. Instead of giving in to the panic, she sat at a table, the wind at her back. The day was still warm, the breeze and clouds only bringing the temperature down by a few degrees. Late June in what forecasters were saying was going to be an unusually hot summer. Not just for British Columbia, but for Toronto as well. There was no logical reason for her curiosity, but she’d checked Toronto’s weather.

Jake joined her with a couple of bags from Fifties. “I didn’t want to guess.” He grinned. “I figured I couldn’t go wrong with the best burgers in Mission City.”

“You even brought the chocolate shakes.” His consideration shouldn’t touch her. He could’ve taken her to Fifties, but he seemed to respect her desire not to be overheard. The park they sat in was pretty enough, but seldom used. Whatever confrontation was about to take place, they’d be guaranteed privacy.

Pulling her burger and fries from the bag, she was about to take her first bite when he pointed to her sunglasses. “It’s pretty cloudy today.”

“I can’t go out in the sun without my dark glasses.” Should she open up, be vulnerable to him?Damn. Deep breath. “Probably a psychosomatic reaction from being held captive in a boarded-up basement for seven years. Sunlight overwhelms me. My house has sheers across the windows. I love the sun and fear it at the same time.”

His sharp inhale caught her off guard. Maybe being brutally honest wasn’t the right tactic. Wanting to move things along, she took that first bite. It tasted good, of course, but it took a bit of work to swallow. “I expected to see you over the weekend.”

“Disappointed?”

“Surprised.” Being honest might get her in trouble, but she probably owed him that much.

He met her gaze. “I stepped over the line when I came to your house the other day, and I probably stepped over the line when I came to your work, but at least that’s public. I couldn’t have come to your place anyway because I was back in Toronto, speaking to Olivia’s doctors, and trying to figure out what’ll happen next. I took the red-eye home Friday night and caught the red-eye back this morning.”

Because of her.

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