“Sam. Come on.”
“You heard me. Call a fucking Uber. Or call one of your buddies to pick you up.”
Jesse turns off the engine, opens the door, and jumps down. When his feet land on the ground, I watch him grab for the door to keep himself steady.
Maybe Colette’s right.
“Dude.” I grumble. “You know better than to get behind the wheel.”
Ignoring me, Jesse looks down at Colette, and in a soft voice asks the question I’ve wanted to ask as well. “What happened, Colette? Who got killed?”
She lifts her head and looks at Jesse. “My brother. My twin.”
Her brother? She had a twin brother? “Oh, baby girl…” I pull her in even tighter. “I’m so sorry.” And I am. She’s crying hard now, and I can’t figure out what to do about it. I know I want to get her alone, though.
“Colette, honey. I’m so sorry.”
“Me, too, Sam. Me, too.”
I hold her close as Jesse uses his phone to, hopefully, call for a ride. When he’s done, He slips the phone into his pocket. “Car is five minutes away.”
Colette pulls away and looks at Jesse. “Thank you. I’m sorry I sounded like a crazy person but…”
“No worries.” Jesse shrugs. “I should’ve known better.”
“What’s going on out here?” I turn to see Mom approach.
“Jesse’s getting a ride to his next social event and I’m walking Colette home. Can you keep an eye on things for a bit?”
“Sure thing.” She eyes Jesse. “You be safe, Jesse.”
“I will.” Jesse lowers his head like he’s embarrassed. He should be.
Placing my hand on her back, I guide her in the direction of her front door. “Colette?” We both turn. It’s Jesse.
“I’m sorry, Colette. About your brother and about that.” He points at his truck. “You were right. I wasn’t thinkin’.” He steps closer. “Swear to you, I’ll never do that again.” He leans in closer. “Swear.”
“Thanks, Jesse.” Colette’s voice has regained some strength. “I appreciate that.”
“No problem, babe.”
I growl at his use of the term of endearment, one only I can use on my girl. “Fuck off, Jesse.”
He cracks into laughter. “Later.” We watch as he hops into the Uber, which is a compact car. He barely fits, but that’s not my problem. “I’ll get my truck in the morning.”
“Sounds good.”
Chapter Thirty
Slumber Party
I’ve ruined the party. The first time I meet Sam’s family, I make a damn scene. I’m not sure which part I’m most embarrassed about, the conversation with his mom about Sam and me and children or my reaction to Jesse getting behind the wheel of his truck.
No.
I’m not embarrassed about stopping Jesse. And honestly, I’m not sure why I reacted the way I did. It’s not like Jesse looked anything like Chris, it’s just that he reminded me of him. Chris was funny and had a way of putting people at ease. So does Jesse. So when I saw him trip and fall, I found myself keeping an eye on him. That’s when I saw him drinking out of a flask periodically throughout the day.
“You want to watch something?” Sam steps into my house behind me.
