Page 66 of Playing A Risk
“Thanks.” She takes a step back. “What do you want, Jami?”
“Can I have a minute of your time?”
“You’re already taking one. Say what you need to say so I can get back to my date.”
Yeah, she’s still furious with me. That means I better get straight to the point.
“Look, I know you and Dori think what I did around my son and ex is unforgivable, but there’s a reason I kept the information from Dori.”
Melanie rolls her eyes and folds her arms across her chest. “You’re wasting my time. If you don’t figure out something better to give me, I’m walking away.”
I give a few quick nods, showing her I’m taking her seriously. “Is there any way I can talk to Dori about this before you? She needs to hear it from me.”
“No shit, Sherlock. You should’ve done that months ago.” Mel peeks over her shoulder, then turns back to me. “Hurry up, Jami. My date’s on his way over here.”
I scan around her but don’t see anyone except Jonah coming toward us. He’s standing before us in seconds.
“Jamison. My dad said you were here.” He places his glass on the table we’re standing by. “Where’s your date, Isabella? I’d love to say Happy Holidays.”
“What? You brought her here?” Melanie’s eyes bulge. She twists to Jonah. “I told you she’s bad news. If you can’t see that she’s working some scheme now, I don’t know what it will take to convince you.”
“Calm down, baby girl. I never said I didn’t believe you. All I said was, let’s wait to see what she’s up to.” He slides his arm around Mel’s waist and pulls her close.
He kisses her cheek and then faces me. Their interaction is out of context and has me frozen in confusion. I blink to take it in.
Melanie and Jonah?
Since when?
I shuffle back a couple of steps. “Wait. Are you two each other’s dates?”
Jonah juts out his chin. “Don’t be so surprised, Jamison. You had your chance. Oh, wait. That’s right, you couldn’t date her because of the other interests you have.”
“Jami, if you’ll excuse us, I’d like to share a dance with Jonah. You and I aren’t getting anywhere, anyway. Have a good rest of your night.”
She takes Jonah’s hand and begins to stroll away, but she turns back to me. “Isabella? Really? I thought you had better taste than that.”
They stride away, holding hands, and blend in with the rest of the crowd in seconds. I don’t have time to recover from the shock. The bizarre interactions continue to hit—one after another, like bombs going off on a battleground.
Douglas Aldridge joins me at my side. “Jamison. Happy Holidays.”
“Good evening, Douglas,” I say in a daze.
“Any plans for the small break we have before the app launches?” He shakes his glass and the ice clinks against the side.
“Um…yeah. I’m having dinner with a friend. You?” I try to focus on him but can’t help scanning around him.
If Mel’s here, Dori’s here, and I’m going to find her. It’s just a matter of when.
Douglas follows my gaze for a minute. “I’m celebratingwith Ava and the rest of my family. If I remember correctly, you’ve met my daughter?”
“I have. We had dinner not too long ago.”
“She did mention that. Now that she and Hunter have broken up, there’s room for her to meet someone new. Maybe someone like you.”
I stop searching for Dori, and my stomach tightens.
Ava and Hunter broke up?
