Page 47 of About that Fling (The Can’t Have Hearts Club #2)

“Well, congratulations.” Shawn gestured toward the front counter. “I hope you two got your order in already. They just told me I’m looking at a two-hour wait. I should know better than to come here on a holiday weekend to fight the dinner crowd.”

“Here, have a breadstick,” Mia said, thrusting one at him. “We ordered way too many.” She looked at Jenna with an unspoken question, both about the breadstick and the empty chair at their table.

“Please, help yourself,” Jenna said, nudging the whole basket at him and nodding at Mia. Her ex-fiancé wasn’t what Jenna considered a party, but Mia had said she wanted people around her. If nothing else, Shawn was nice to look at, and Mia seemed like she could use the visual distraction.

Mia smiled, reading Jenna’s nonverbal affirmation. “Shawn, do you want to join us for pizza? Assuming Jenna’s okay with it. We were hungry when we placed the order, so we may or may not have ordered enough for a small developing nation. I feel like having company right now, so you’ll do nicely.”

Jenna nodded in agreement, so Shawn pulled out the empty chair. “In that case, I accept.” He looked at Jenna. “You sure you’re okay with this?”

“Absolutely. The more, the merrier.”

She watched as Shawn eased into the chair and set his phone on the table. He poked at the screen a few times in case the world had ended in the two minutes since he last checked it. He frowned, scrolled a few times, smiled, then poked some more.

Jenna looked at Mia and rolled her eyes, but Mia just smiled and shrugged.

“So, Jenna,” Shawn said, turning his attention back to the real live humans at the table. “You still seeing that guy?”

Mia cocked her head and gave Jenna an apprising look. “What guy?”

“The guy she hustled out of here to meet up with last time we were here.” He looked pleased with himself for remembering. “Said she owed him an apology for something.”

Beneath the table, Jenna gave Mia’s shin a light tap. At least, she thought it was Mia.

Shawn frowned. “Why’d you just kick me?”

“I didn’t—I—you want some ranch dip?”

“No thank you,” Shawn said, looking down at the breadsticks. “I’ll stick with the marinara. So you’re not seeing anyone right now?”

Seeming to sense Jenna’s need for rescue, Mia jumped in. “Oh, that guy. Yeah, he’s hot .” Mia bit into her breadstick. “How about you, Shawn? You seeing anyone?”

“Nope, no one special. Gotta admit, it’s crossed my mind a time or two that Jenna and I could get back together.”

Jenna bit down on a breadstick, chomping off a bite that was much bigger than she could handle.

She chewed hard, wondering if choking to death might be preferable to this conversation.

“Uh, that’s sweet, Shawn. I don’t think that’s going to happen, though.

There’s something a little uncomfortable about reconnecting with an ex, you know? ”

“Tell me about it,” Mia muttered, dunking her breadstick in the marinara. “I’ve been working with mine, and I’ve gotta tell you, it’s awkward as hell.”

Shawn laughed. “More awkward than having pizza with one?”

“I’ll defer to Jenna on that.” Mia sighed and bit into her breadstick. “You know in hindsight, I should have taken him up on his offer to turn down the contract.”

Jenna gulped down the last of her root beer, and wished for a meteor to fall on the table and end this conversation.

The meteor came in the form of two extra-large pizzas.

“One sausage and pepperoni with olives, one veggie-licious with prosciutto?”

“Right here,” Jenna said, gathering up a pile of napkins to make room on their table. She shot the server a grateful look, wondering if she’d ever been so happy at the sight of a pizza.

“Need any parmesan or hot pepper?”

“Both, please.”

Mia reached up to take the stack of plates the waitress offered under the assumption the huge quantity of cheese and meat was intended to feed a dozen people instead of a pregnant newlywed, her guilt-ridden friend, and the friend’s unsuspecting ex.

“God, this looks amazing,” Shawn said. “You’re sure you don’t mind if I join you?”

“Does it look like there’s going to be any shortage of food here?” Mia reached for a slice. “If you want, you can share your pizza with us whenever it gets here. Might as well enjoy this one while it’s hot.”

“Thanks, ladies.” Shawn frowned. “Hey, isn’t that your Aunt Gertie?”

Jenna jerked her head up and blinked. It did indeed look like Gertie, weaving her way through the crowd with her white hair rustling in the breeze from the overhead fans. She seemed to be scanning the room for someone, or maybe an empty table. There were none in sight.

Jenna looked back at Mia. “I thought you just texted to ask what she was up to.”

“I did,” she said, glancing at her phone. “She never responded. I didn’t even tell her where we were.”

Shawn stood up. “Want me to wave her down?”

“Yeah, she looks a little lost.”

He stood—all six feet three inches of him—and waved his arms in the air. “Gertrude? Aunt Gertie! Over here!”

Gertie turned and blinked, then smiled. She began weaving her way toward them, threading past tables packed with families and frat boys devouring fragrant masses of meat and cheese. Jenna watched her aunt’s progress, not sure why she felt a faint sense of unease.

“Hello, sweetheart!” Gertie said, fluffing her hair as she arrived at the edge of their table. “What a surprise seeing you here! I thought the two of you went to Gerlake.”

“Change of plans,” Mia said, biting off a piece of pizza and fanning her mouth. “Pull up a chair and join us. We ordered plenty.”

Shawn jumped up, vacating his seat. “Here, take mine. I see an extra one right over there.”

“I really shouldn’t,” Gert said. “I have a man friend who’s parking the car and?—”

“I see two free chairs right over there.” Shawn was already en route to the table. “I’ll grab ‘em both.”

“Please join us,” Mia urged. “We’ve got plenty of space, and there aren’t exactly tons of free tables tonight.”

Gert looked uneasy, darting a quick glance at Jenna. “They told me up front it’s a two-hour wait to be seated, but I really don’t think?—”

“Please,” Jenna begged, dropping her voice. “I feel weird having dinner with my ex and my hormonal, pregnant bestie. Like we’re some kind of awkward throuple.”

Mia laughed, but Gert looked unsure. “All right,” she said slowly a Shawn came back with two extra chairs.

Mia and Jenna moved over, making room for Gertie and her date in the space between Jenna and Shawn.

With everyone seated, Shawn sat back down and picked up his phone.

Jenna picked up her wine and took a tentative sip, not wanting to overindulge with this much potential for awkward tension at the table.

“I can’t wait to meet your gentleman friend, Gertie,” Mia said, swallowing her bite of pizza. “Is this the guy who went to Cornell?”

“Oh—well yes, he did, but it’s not Arthur. My date is Adam.”

Mia blinked. “What?”

“Adam.” Gertie frowned, glancing at Jenna. “Oh, dear, I’m sorry. We can find a different table if this is going to be a problem.”

“No, it’s okay,” Mia said, reaching for her root beer. “If Jenna can handle eating pizza with her ex, I can do the same.”

Jenna bit her lip and looked at Shawn, who appeared to be engrossed in either a stock trade or a game of Angry Birds. It was tough to tell.

“You’re sure it’s okay?” Gert asked, looking from Mia to Jenna and back again. “I can just put our names on the list. I told Adam I’d find us a place by the time he parked the car, but we can wait. Or go someplace else. I really don’t want to cause trouble.”

“I’m a big girl, Gertie,” Mia said. “Besides, I feel like I owe Adam an apology for some things I said earlier. This is my opportunity to make nice.”

“In that case, we accept the invitation,” Gertie said. “I’m going to run over to the bar to order some drinks. Any idea what Adam likes?

Mia shrugged. “He’s not very experimental. Probably a Bud Light or something.”

Jenna took another sip of her wine and pushed it aside, wishing the waitress would bring a glass of water. Shawn was smiling and nodding, pretending to follow the conversation while his thumbs fluttered over the screen. Jenna cut her eyes to Mia, who was watching Shawn with a bemused expression.

“Isn’t this what the whole relationship was like?” Mia murmured under her breath.

“Pretty much,” Jenna murmured back.

“I see some things never change.”

“Sure they do. Isn’t that the latest iPhone? They didn’t have those when we broke up.”

“You’re right, I stand corrected.”

Jenna leaned closer, not that there was much risk of Shawn overhearing or lifting his gaze from the phone. “Which is worse,” she whispered. “The ex who changes everything about himself after you split, or the one who doesn’t change a damn thing?”

“I’ll get back to you on that one.” Mia reached for another piece of pizza.

Gertie returned to the table and set down two mugs of beer. “I hope one of these is what Adam likes.”

“I’m sure it’ll be fine,” Mia said.

Jenna bit her lip and glanced toward the front of the restaurant.

As if on cue, Adam appeared in the doorway, his dark hair tousled and windblown.

His shirtsleeves were rolled up, too, but seeing his forearms made Jenna shiver in a way Shawn’s didn’t.

Adam was scanning the room, and Jenna sat breathless as his gaze moved from table to table, looking for Gertie.

The instant his eyes locked with Jenna’s, she felt a surge of static. He felt it, too, she could see by the way he stepped back, then moved toward her in slow motion, wading through a sea of bodies and noise and clatter.

“Ladies,” he said, nodding at Jenna, then Mia. “This is a surprise.”

“Adam.” Jenna took a deep breath, half of her wishing the ground would swallow her up, while the other half fought the urge to throw herself into his arms. “Uh, good to see you again.”

Shawn glanced up from his phone, then stood and extended a hand. “Hey, I’m Shawn. You’re Gertie’s boyfriend?”