“Yes, hog wash,” he repeated with a good natured grin. “I don’t wanna hear it. A person can’t have a gift like that and keep it to themselves.”
“But—”
“Singing,” he demanded.
“We’ll see.” A nervous laugh escaped my lips. I tried to think of a way to ease into my next topic and get away from this me-singing business. “So Jessie might stop in again later.”
“Really? That’s cool. I guess I’ll be seeing a lot more of her now that you’re here,” he said nonchalantly as he counted the opening register.
“Yeah, probably.” I grabbed the cutting board and dug into some lemons. Forging on, I asked, “That’s a good thing, right? You guys seemed pretty, um . . . friendly the other night.”
He looked at me briefly, and I thought I saw adoration flash across his eyes, but he quickly replaced it with something noncommittal. “Yeah, they don’t come any sweeter than Jessie girl. That girl can have whatever she wants from me.”
“Were you guys ever an item?”
“Nah, we’re just friends.” He acted like none of it mattered to him, but I could tell by the nervous tic in his neck I had touched a nerve.
I glanced at him out of the corner of my eye. “That’s a shame. I’m pretty sure she likes you, and you guys would probably be good together.”
“Oh, yeah, well, I uh . . . like her, too. But I don’t date my friends.” He pushed the drawer in and walked away, dismissing the conversation.
A short while later, random bar-goers were scattered on stools, playing pool and throwing darts. I dragged a damp rag along the bar and glanced over at the door, wondering if Blake would show again. I shouldn’t care . . .
But I did.
Shortly after, Jessie and Sandra, toting a guy who must have been Jeremy, strutted in. “Hey, chickadee.” Sandra beamed, gesturing toward her new man. “This is Jeremy. Jeremy, this is Eva.”
“Nice to meet you, Jeremy,” I yelled over the music, extending my hand over the bar.
“Likewise.” He smiled a friendly smile that made his eyes shine. He was on the shorter side, five-nine possibly, with choppy, sandy brown hair, and hazel eyes.
“You’ve got a gem on your hands. Take care of her so I don’t have to hunt your ass down,” I warned playfully.
“Duly noted. No worries. Your girl is safe with me.” He wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her close to his side while she stared at him in awe.
“So, where’s Rick?” Jessie cut in, her eyes searching the area.
“He stepped away for a sec. He’ll be right back.” I eyed her warily, unsure whether or not I should broach the conversation we needed to have. “Hey, Jes?”
“Yeah,” she said, still not focusing her eyes on me. The girl had it bad.
“Does he know how you feel? I mean, have you ever told him?”
Jessie looked at me. “No, not directly, but the signs are all there. I know he knows.”
“Okay, because I kind of asked about you guys in passing, and he says he would do anything for you, but that he doesn’t date his friends. He seemed pretty adamant about it, Jes.” I reached out a sympathetic hand and covered hers. “I know you two would probably make a cute couple, but maybe it’s not in the cards. I mean, Rick’s an awesome guy, don’t get me wrong, but I can tell you really like him and I just don’t want to see you get hurt.”
“I know. I get that.” Her lips dipped in a frown and she looked away. “I just can’t get him out of my head and he always acts like he feels the same way. Just when I think I can move past it, I see him again and it starts all over. I just don’t see what the big deal is.” Her gaze scudded to the right as Rick resumed his place behind the bar. Conversation over.
“Hey, Princess,” he called over to Jessie, a huge smile on his face.
“Hi,” she answered, giving him a shy smile.
Princess? Really? I wondered if he had lovie names for all of his so-called friends. No wonder she thought she had a chance. He stretched across the bar and placed his lips flush against her cheek, making her blush.
Friend my ass.
He wanted her as bad as she wanted him, and he was messing with her head, acting like he didn’t. I tapped my fingers on the bar and made a mental note to get to the bottom of that.
After a couple hours spent laughing and playing pool, Sandra and Jeremy remained lip-locked in a corner. He caressed her face and played with her hair. She had such a big heart and a lot of love to share. I was glad she had found someone, but I couldn’t help the pang of jealousy.