Page 53 of Playoff
“Client stuff.”
“Is that a polite way to say you can’t talk about it?”
“Not really. But it’s kind of boring.”
“I’m interested. A burden shared is halved, or something, right?”
She leaned against the side. “Mrs. Garvin, one of my clients, passed away a bit ago.”
“The bourbon client?”
Our eyes caught as we both remembered that first meeting. Her cheeks flushed before she looked away. “Yeah. Her son was in today.”
“And he was an asshole?”
“Kind of. His mother carefully curated a portfolio of ethical but profitable investments, and he’s going to flip everything over to whatever has the greatest ROI.”
She sounded disappointed, but it wasn’t like most people didn’t have that same motivation. It was what had made my parents successful. Which probably affected Jess, after what happened to her family, and contributed to what she was doing now with her clients.
The doors opened on my floor, but I hit the button to keep them open. “You said your brother is out, right?”
She nodded.
“I just got a new vehicle. Want to take a ride, clear your head?”
She stared at me.
Yeah, this wasn’t my smartest idea, but I wanted to make her smile again. “No one has to know. Thought you might like a distraction, and I’d like to try it out when I’m not stuck in rush-hour traffic.”
She was going to say no. Under her wool trench coat, she was wearing a brown suit, looking respectable and proper, not like the woman who’d slept with me without knowing my name. The disappointment I felt was all out of proportion to her turning down this offer. Nothing was going to happen, not ever again.
Then her shoulders straightened. “Sure. Why not?”
Not exactly a ringing endorsement, but she looked a little less beaten down. There was a smile tipping up one corner of her mouth. Inside was someone playful, a woman who didn’t get to come out much.
I reminded myself nothing could happen. I wasn’t going to have sex in my new car in February in Toronto. And there was the whole family enemy thing.
“I’ll meet you down on parking level 3 in…ten minutes?”
She looked down at her clothes. “Give me twenty.”
I stepped out of the elevator, a smirk on my face. As the doors slid closed I said, “It’s a date.”
Chapter 23
Something you didn’t do
Jess
* * *
I should have said no. I had no good reason to go riding in a car with Alek Denbrowski. There was Justin, who would never understand. My parents, and how they’d respond if they ever found out. I had things to do. But it had been a depressing day and I didn’t want to spend the evening by myself in the condo.
I could have called the PAC women, but after five years of living with Justin, I knew how rarely the guys were home during the season for evenings that didn’t involve a game or some kind of team event. None of my friends had been dating for very long, and they could use the time with their guys. Especially when I was going to be a poor companion.
Den— No, Alek was probably going to regret asking me. I didn’t know why he’d made the suggestion. Maybe it was just that he was new to the city and didn’t want to hit up another bar and find a hookup.
I flinched as the brush in my hand jerked hard against a knot in my hair. I checked the time and tossed the brush on the bathroom counter. I’d changed into jeans and a cashmere sweater that wasn’t too heavy for riding in a car but was also warm if we got out at some point. A jacket and gloves and my boots and I was ready to leave.
