Page 6 of Intertwined Hearts

I was mad at myself. I felt so needy. No woman had ever made me feel like this before. What about her had my mind so mangled, like it was wrapped around a telephone pole?

I tossed back another shot. Connor was filling our glasses almost as fast as we downed them. At this rate, we’d all be hammered completely out of our minds in no time.

“Whoa, we need to slow down some,” I said. I think we all noticed Jeff wasn’t drinking with us, but we never said anything about it. He was smart. He was doing the right thing.

I checked my phone twice more. I had no idea why. It didn’t chime or vibrate. I knew there wasn’t a message. But I so badly wanted there to be.

“Ready for another?” Conner asked. I was stewing as I held my glass in the air toward him. We’d been in the room for a couple hours, and I still hadn’t heard from Jackie. I was trying to hold it together, but I could tell by the side-eyed glances from Sandy every now and then that I wasn’t doing such a good job hiding my feelings.

I stood and walked over near the window, looking out at the view of the pool. I tossed the cinnamon beverage back into my throat and swallowed it down just as I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket. My heart thundered when I pulled the phone out and saw it was her. Jackie wasn’t able to see me tonight, and I could only think she’d been dodging me. My tongue-slip of nearly mentioning my ex had to be partly to blame.Fuck!

Chapter 5

Hunter

I may have truly fucked up on day number one.

Sophia. My fucking ex.

We had broken up over a month ago, yet I made the stupid mistake of nearly mentioning her.

The more I thought back on that relationship, the more I found myself wondering how I managed to stay with her for an entire year. Being attracted to her in the beginning was an easy one to figure out. She was gorgeous, a busty blonde who loved line dancing and country music. She had eyes as blue as the Caribbean Sea, and she made sure to sink her hooks in me that very first night when we got back to her place.

My parents thought she was perfect, from the description I’d given them of her. At first, I felt the same. But it didn’t take long for my mind to begin changing. The plan for her to meet my parents never came to fruition. She would have been perfect if she didn’t talk. Ever. Well, maybe not quite that bad, but she was close.

She had been careful not to speak much in public. Maybe she knew to just keep her mouth shut and look beautiful.

The first sign that there was trouble in paradise was the day we were driving to see her family and she told me she had grown up in the capital. I realized right then that there were certain things she should have learned that she hadn’t, andifshe had, she failed to retain that information. She didn’t even know Helena was the capital of her own home state of Montana. That turned into an argument for the ages. I let her try to convince me for several minutes that Billings was the capital before I pulled the correct information up on Google to shut her up. She barely spoke to me the rest of the weekend.

Sophia was very beautiful, and she loved sex, but she wasn’t a great conversationalist, and she didn’t know much about trivia, movies, music, or anything that would help us communicate and grow. The intellect just wasn’t there. I realized our relationship was based mostly on the physical. I’m a man as much as any other, but there has to be more to a long-term relationship than sex.

“Ready for another?” Connor asked, breaking me free from my thoughts of my ex. I had to find a way to put her behind me once and for all.

“Yeah, hit me again.” I held my glass out for the refill from Connor, gulped it down, said my good-nights, and turned in.

****

I woke up with renewed vigor. Today, there was no way I wouldn’t see Jackie. This was going to be an awesome day, I knew it.

The physical attraction I felt toward Jackie was intense and immediate. Tall and thin, yet shapely in all the right places – she was impossible to resist. Her skin was perfect. It looked smooth-as-silk and was a vibrant sun-kissed tan color. Her lips were perfect, pink half-moons, and her almond-shaped brown eyes were begging me to stare into them forever. They were such beautiful, deep, brown pools. That first night, I fought my desire to stroke my hand down her face, pull her to me, and let my lips explore hers.

But the attraction was far deeper than just a physical one.She was intelligent. That night we spent talking and half-ass watching movies was the best conversation I’d had with a female in a long time, other than my mom. Jackie was so knowledgeable about sports, trivia, movies, and history. We had just scratched the surface of what we had in common. I really needed to get to know Jackie. I felt like I had to make it my business to get to know her or my life would never be complete, no matter what I did or whom I met.

I knew it wasn’t right to compare Sophia and Jackie.The two of them were light years apart. Opposite ends of the spectrum, for sure. And I may not have been inclined to do it if my break-up hadn’t still been a fresh, openwound.

I was still trying to understand exactly what had happened that caused the final argument between Sophia and me. I guess, deep down, it didn’t matter. What’s done is done. I was stunned and relieved to be away from her. Everything happens for a reason.

The reason I was recently single became clearer the day I met the most perfect-looking woman under the most unexpected circumstances in the most unanticipated place. She instantly made my head spin, like I needed an exorcism.

I let out a lengthy sigh. It was a habit I had when I felt like I’d done something incredibly stupid. I had nearly spoken my ex’s name while conversing with Jackie. I was ecstatic I had caught myself before her name had fully rolled off my tongue.I think that could have put me in the record book for beingthe ass-clown of datingas a result of finding the dumbest thing to talk about with the girl you’re trying to go out with. But I was confident Jackie had caught my slip. I could only hope I hadn’t messed this up so soon.

Chapter 6

Jackie

The morning of Nikki’s wedding was hectic, as expected. We made it to the Rusty Pelican with plenty of time to spare, which was amazing.

When Nikki put on her gown, she looked like an angel. My best friend was happier than ever. She was having a tough time stopping the tears from flowing, but we all knew they were tears of joy. She was getting ready to marry the man of her dreams. Despite his flaws, he had won her heart and had given his to her as well.

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