Page 67 of Love & Other Disasters

“What look?” Violet tried to appear innocent and sip her wine.

“Uh-huh,” he said, smiling. “Don’t tell me.”

She had no intention of telling him.

“You might find this hard to believe, but I’m getting to know you well enough to recognize when your mind has gone in the gutter.”

“Not true,” Violet scoffed. He was right, but she’d never admit it.

“Do you like a lot of cheese?” he asked.

Now she could polish off a vat of melted cheese and nacho chips, but she shrugged. “I’m vegan.”

J.P. laughed. “You wouldn’t last a day.”

“A whole day? That’s generous.” Violet sipped her wine.

“I’d say an hour, but that felt rude.”

“Accurate. I’d eat gummy bears, and it’d be over.”

“Gummy bears aren’t vegan?”

“The gelatin in them isn’t.”

“Who knew?” he returned his attention to the food.

“Everyone,” she replied, taking the bottle of wine to the table.

J.P. stirred the sauce. Violet moved into the other room carrying the wine. It was a shame that she hadn’t patched things up with her mom and sister. They ate dinner every Sunday together as a family, and he didn’t know people still did that anymore. It was charming, and he liked that she came from a close family, even if they drove each other crazy.

After years of not living in the same state with any of his family, they weren’t remotely close. He hadn’t even seen his last two nieces in person. It wasn’t his place to talk her into forgiving Jill. There were genuine issues going on between them that he didn’t discount. But, Violet would regret it if they didn’t work things out.

He didn’t like it when Violet was upset. She deflected with humor more than he’d realized. She wielded it like a shield against uncomfortable emotions, at least with him. The timer on the stove sounded, and he removed the chicken. He smiled that his cooking dinner surprised her; it was a talent of his she hadn’t seen coming. He’d cooked for women a couple of times, but only to show off. With Violet, it was more of wanting to show her the domestic side of him, not the flashy car or the suits. Those things didn’t impress her. She had no interest in his status or money. She wanted a man with depth and character. He hoped he had enough of those to keep her interested in a guy like him.

J.P. tasted each of the components he placed on the plate. He wouldn’t win competing against chefs, but it was good, if he said so himself. He carried the plates to the table and found Violet on the couch staring at her phone.

“Dinner’s ready,” he said. She jumped, looking up from her phone across the room at him. “Didn’t mean to startle you. Everything okay?”

“Didn’t hear you walk in,” she said. “Jill texted.”

“That’s good,” he replied.

“It was a middle finger emoji, but that’s more than I was getting. It’s a start.”

Was that serious or sarcasm? “Did you respond?”

“No,” she replied, standing and coming toward him. Braless under her pink shirt, he couldn’t help where his eyes landed. “Because it would start and argument, and I’m tired.”

J.P. tore his eyes from her breasts. “I get it.”

“If she’d texted ‘hi’ or something else non-antagonistic, then sure, I’d try. But she’s still acting like a spoiled brat. I’m not the one that got us both arrested.”

“Technically, just questioned,” he said.

“I was interrogated, stuck in a jail cell, and handcuffed to a bench; not sure how that doesn’t qualify.”

The police questioned not interrogated her and handcuffed because she wouldn’t stop hitting Jill, not that he blamed her.

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