Jack & Jilted by Cathy Yardley Read Free Book Online Page B

reached out and tugged her into a semihug next to him.
    “I’m not a big planner. Things work out or not, and you do the best you can. You’re probably right—you’re better off that he broke it off now instead of later, but you’d be a hell of a lot better off if he’d left before your damned wedding day.”
    She nodded against his shoulder, and he could feel the hot tears soaking through the material of his T-shirt.
    “And you can rationalize all you want if you think it makes you feel better,” he said, “but I don’t think it really does. I think you’re just trying to slap it into a box, pretend it’s all cool and move forward. But I don’t think that’s really healthy.”
    She pulled away from him to stare into his eyes, her whole face frowning fiercely. “What’s the point in screaming and crying about it? That gets you nowhere. There’s no point in getting aggravated over elements you can’t control.”
    “Are you kidding?” Jack said, bewildered.
    “No,” she said. “I’ve got a million things to take care of. I thought I’d take this break, get a clear head. I’m figuring out what happened with Gerald so I can move on and not be bogged down.”
    “Honey, if you can make that very statement and be free and clear of the whole episode…” Jack shook his head. “You’re in the wrong line of work. You could be making a bundle teaching people how to get over their problems in twenty-four hours.”
    “You’re making fun of me,” she said, some snap in her voice to match the amber spark in her eyes.
    “No,” he said, then shrugged. “Well, maybe a little. The thing is, you’ve still got those feelings, and they’re not going to go away just because they don’t fit into that neat plan of yours.”
    “So what exactly are you suggesting?”
    “I’m not suggesting anything,” he said, putting his hands up defensively against that steel-tipped stare of hers. “I’m just saying…”
    “That I’m full of it?”
    He had to admit he liked her better angry than sad. He had dealt with plenty of angry women. And it was a nice change—ordinarily, the women he dealt with were angry because he was the one who had screwed up royally. “No, that logic and reason are great—most of the time. But sometimes you’ve got to just feel things. Ride with it.” He grinned. “Do something stupid and foolish that makes no sense, because it’ll help you feel better.”
    “Like what? Get drunk to the point of alcohol poisoning? Run up my credit cards? Shoot Gerald?”
    “Well, not completely stupid,” he amended. “And preferably nothing destructive—to yourself or to other people. But small stupidities can go a long way. Don’t poison yourself, but get good and ripped. Don’t max out your cards, but buy something you’ve always wanted. Don’t shoot anybody….” He thought about it. “But you could always put a dead fish in his hubcap. In fact, I could help you with that when we get back.”
    She stared at him, wide-eyed in disbelief.
    Oh, crap. Now I’ve done it. He fully expected her to either smack him or insist that he turn the boat around and take her home. Maybe both. In that order.
    Instead she slowly smiled, almost as if she weren’t even aware of it. “My family,” she said, “would not understand you at all.”
    “I get that a lot,” he said. “Why don’t you eat something?”
    He started to reach for the tray but was stopped when she put a hand on his cheek, gently forcing him to look at her.
    “I don’t understand you, either,” she said softly, and that lopsided smile of hers pierced him like a bullet. “All I know is you have this amazing gift of making me feel better. Thank you, Jack.”
    And with that, she pressed a tiny kiss on the low part of his cheek.
    It was completely innocent and, in his experience, completely rare. Which might have been why it had such a brutally strong impact on him. He felt lust, pure and simple, flood through him. He suddenly