Page 31 of The Usual Family Mayhem

“You underestimate my ability to deflect and ignore.” Then the rest slipped out. I didn’t mean to say it, but yeah. “Maybe you’d be in a better mood if you’d had a better date last night.”

My comment hung out there.

He started laughing. Not a little guffaw or a giggle. A full-throated, lead-with-his-chest laugh.

So annoying.

Enough of this. “I’m going to get another muffin.”

“Wait a second.” He put his hand on my arm and stopped me from getting up. “Don’t run away.”

“I never run.”

“You’ve made that clear.” He looked at his hand then his fingers slid off my arm. “Why do you care if I date?”

I did care. So much, and being in the same city only intensified my caring. “Don’t be ridiculous.”

My phone buzzed. Because I didn’t want to look at Jackson’s smug face, I checked it. Bad idea. The name flashing on the screen made what was left of my muffin-induced good mood shrivel.

Jackson took a peek. “Who’s Micah?”

I answered Jackson without thinking. “My boss.”

“I thought his name was Michael.”

“It’s a long story.”Hold up.“How do you know his name?”

Jackson leaned back, crossing one leg over the other at his ankles. He looked relaxed. Unfazed. Very cute in his jeans and polo shirt.

“I told you I checked out your company.”

I ignored that before but not now. Time to circle back to that topic. “Why?”

“Honestly?” He glanced away for a second then looked at me again. “Because I worry about you.”

“You worry.” I turned the words over in my head. He sounded like my keeper, or worse, a brother. That was not how I thought of him at all.

He exhaled nice and loud, as if to say he was taking back control of the conversation. “We have three topics up in the air and seem to be spinning in circles. We need to handle one at a time. You answer then I’ll answer then we’ll see where we are. Very easy.”

That sounded reasonable but we could blow this without much effort. Simple things tended to go sideways when we talked.

My cell buzzed again. I meant to give it a quick look then tuck it back under my leg and ignore it while I verbally dug around in Jackson’s private life. The text message stopped me.

“Oh, shit.”Shit. Shit. Shit.

He frowned. “Not the response I expected.”

Panic raced through me. I stood up then sat back down.Blinked a few times hoping the message would disappear. I swear the font got bigger.

“Hey, are you okay?” Jackson’s hand went around my shoulder and his voice turned soft. “Did something bad happen?”

“Terrible. The worst, actually.”

“What is it?”

I could barely say the words. “My boss is doing something that will make my life impossible.”

Coming to town. He wanted to meet Gram and Celia.

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