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“If you need anything else, just yell,” I said.
He picked his cup back up and saluted me with it, not taking his eyes from his computer.
Well then.
It was time to make some tips.
So, belatedly, I set about doing that.
ELEVEN
“LOVE STORY”
(TAYLOR SWIFT)
That evening, I was in the kitchen at SC, pulling big sheets of plastic wrap from industrial-size boxes to cover my fresh-from-the-oven pigs in a blanket, when Jessie stuck her head in from the staff room.
“Javi’s outside,” she told me.
I got happy warm all over and smiled at her.
“When you go out, can you tell him I’ll be right there?” I requested.
Eric appeared out of the shadows at her back. He was her ride that evening.
He was wearing a very un-Eric-like scowl.
Javi and I could have taken her home to the Oasis, and I offered this, but apparently, Eric didn’t want Javi’s bodyguard attention split in two, so he nixed this idea.
Inner caveman indeed.
It was gas wasted, but if he wanted to be assured his woman was covered, who was I to argue?
“Will do. See you at the Oasis,” she said and ducked out, Eric disappearing with her after giving me a chin lift.
Yeah.
Totally caveman.
I quickly finished up with the pigs, covering the plastic in foil in an effort to keep them a modicum of warm before I hurried to grab my bag from my locker, back I went to the kitchen for the platter, then I headed out.
Javi hadn’t dropped the groceries for me to make them. When I texted what I needed, he texted that he was “on something” and couldn’t get away, so Cody was going to drop the stuff.
Cody did.
He didn’t seem happy about it, but he did.
I ducked into the kitchen forty-five minutes ago to do my duty for the Oasis meet.
And now I was walking out the door, balancing my platter, watching Javi jumping down from his truck that was idling just outside.
“Hey,” I greeted when I got to him.
He took the platter from me, opened the back door to the cab, placed it on the floor, closed the back door to the cab, hooked an arm around me, hauling me flush against his body.
He dropped his head, kissed me dizzy, lifted his head and replied, “Hey.”
My toes were curled, my legs were trembling, and I was thinking maybe I was that girl who jumped into her feelings instead of being careful. That girl who lived her life doing what felt good, understanding there might be consequences, but willing to take the risk.