Page 22 of The Last Love Story
“Hi,” she whispers.
I let out a heavy laugh. “Hi. Not the way I wanted our first meeting to go.”
She smiles at me. “Me either. But you’ve officially passed my vibe check. Thank you. I could’ve handled it, but men standing up to other men who pull that shit matters. When men say it’s not okay and ostracize other men for doing it, that makes a difference.”
I look at her sincerely. “No one should ever have to feel uncomfortable getting a drink or doing anything else. And especially here at a romance con?—”
“I know. This is a safe space, and he’s a predator in it. Even if it doesn’t happen today, eventually karma will get him.” She breathes out and shakes her body like she’s shaking it all off. Then she looks over at the bar. “Can I get another drink? That one feels tainted now.”
The bartender gives an understanding nod. “No problem.”
“Put it on my room tab. 428. And I’ll have a… watermelon mojito.”
The bartender nods. “If you want to have a seat, someone will bring those over.”
“Does that extend to outside too?” Jade asks, eyeing the doors out onto the stone terrace.
“Sure thing.”
“Thanks,” she says.
I offer her my arm. “Shall we?”
She laughs a little. “Yes.”
“Anyway,that’s how I got started publishing. I might never have done it without that support from my dad.”
“I’ll have to remember to thank Papa Jackson if I ever get to meet him. It would be a crime for your books not to have made it into the world.”
Her cheeks heat, like they have every single time I’ve given her a compliment tonight. It’s clear she’s not great at taking them, which is all the more reason I’m going to shower her with them. She deserves to hear them and believe them so she knows how amazing she is. Even more so in person. And her voice… I’ve been fixated on how beautiful it is since that one little voice note she sent me. Now that we’re here together, I could listen to her talk all night.
“I’m sure he’ll love the nickname.”
“I’m assuming you two are close, then?”
“Definitely. We’ve been each other’s rocks for a long time. It’s always a safe space with us. I’m lucky to have that. What about you? Close with your parents?”
She shifts in the chair and tucks her legs up, making sure her dress covers everything. I’ve lost track of how long we’ve been sitting here. We’ve had drinks, appetizers, and dinner, talking the whole time. Everything I enjoyed about talking with Jade over the past couple of weeks is amplified now in her company.
I drag my teeth over my bottom lip and shake my head. “No. We have very different views on life, and having a close relationship with them would be impossible without a lot of toxicity, so I keep things more at arm’s length.”
Mom’s been plenty pissed at me since I told her I was moving. But other than a dinner at their house that I suffered through every couple of weeks, we don’t have any connection tying us together.
“I’m sorry to hear that,” Jade says, her voice gentle and sincere.
I shrug. “I’m used to it. I compartmentalized a lot of my parents’ behavior. It wasn’t until I moved home that I noticed it. Which is probably why I’m moving again. Speaking of which, I’ve been meaning to ask you, do you live in New York? I assumed so since most of your stories are set there.”
“Yeah. A tiny little two-stoplight town called Woods Junction. Most of my stories are based on surrounding towns, but my very first series of interconnected standalones are set in a town just like it.”
“But not the Marianos?” I ask.
She laughs. “Nope.”
“You know… if you need any beta readers for book eight, I volunteer as tribute. I’ll sign an NDA. Whatever you want.”
She stares at me for a long moment. “I might take you up on that.” Then she sighs. “It really depends if you’re comfortable reading it without knowing when you’ll get book nine.”
My brow furrows at the hitch in her voice. She doesn’t work with a publisher as far as I know, so there shouldn’t be anyone stepping in to say she can’t release something.
