She’d do all of that.
But first, she just stood there in her silent apartment, replaying the way Maddox had looked at her, her face cracked wide open and showing all her fear and wanting, but still choosing this anyway.
Eventually, she pushed off the door and padded to the kitchen, starting her daily morning ritual. The coffee maker gurgled and hissed, filling Jade’s apartment with a smell that usually brought comfort and signaled routine. This morning, though, it just meant time passing.
Jade stood at the counter in her tank top and slacks, watching the dark liquid drip into the pot. Her hair was still loose around her shoulders, and she needed to pull it back, finish getting dressed, and become Professional Jade who had her life together.
Instead, she was trying to figure out how to tell her mentor that she’d slept with a client.
Not trying to figure out if she should call Carla; that wasn’t even a question. Carla had been her supervisor at the VA and encouraged her to take this contract position in Phoenix Ridge. She’d become much more than just a professional mentor over the years. Jade deeply respected her and her no-bullshit approach, even when it was uncomfortable.
Which made the conversation she needed to have significantly harder.
I slept with Maddox Shaw. Too blunt.
Something happened last night that we need to discuss.Too vague and evasive.
I crossed a professional boundary.It was technically accurate but felt like she was minimizing it.
Her phone buzzed on the counter, and Jade leaned over to look at it. A text from Carla:“Lunch today? Usual spot?”
Jade stared at the message. Carla always had an uncanny sense of timing, but Jade was grateful she didn’t have to text first.
She picked up her phone and typed back,“Yes. Need to talk about something. 12:30?”
Carla’s response came immediately. “I’ll be there.”
Jade grabbed a clean mug from the cabinet and poured her coffee, trying to not think about the fact she had about four hours to figure out how the hell to explain herself and say this out loud.
By noon, Jade had made it through two client appointments on autopilot and finished her post-session notes. She left the police building and drove to Honey and Hearth, a small cafe off Main Street where she and Carla usually met.
Honey and Hearth Cafe always smelled like something sweet was baking in the oven, mingling with the herbal notes of tea steeping on the counter. Warm, golden light radiated across the room from copper lanterns hanging from the rafters, each one lit with a soft amber bulb that made the whole place look like it was breathing. It wasn’t big—six tables if you counted the one that wobbled—but it felt safe and tucked away, the kind of spot where you could have a private conversation without half the town overhearing.
Carla was already there when Jade arrived, sitting at a corner table with her signature forest green cardigan draped over the back of her chair and a cup of tea steaming in front of her. Her gray hair was pulled back in a low ponytail, and her readingglasses hung from a chain around her neck. She looked up when Jade approached, and her expression shifted immediately from casual to assessing, her brows knitting.
“That bad?” Carla asked.
“Worse.” Jade sank into the chair across from her. “I slept with a client.”
To Carla’s credit, she didn’t flinch, just took a slow sip of her tea and set the cup down carefully. “Tell me.”
Jade told her about Maddox’s referral for mandatory therapy, the wellness committee, and the coffee shop conversation where something undeniable had passed between them. Her voice softened slightly when she talked about yesterday’s therapy session when Maddox had finally opened up about Titan, and finally, last night when Maddox had shown up at her door.
“She came to you,” Carla said when Jade finished. “After she processed the session, not immediately after?”
“Yes.”
“And you’re certain this wasn’t just transference?”
Jade had been asking herself the same question all morning. “As certain as I can be. We talked, and she distinguished between trusting me as a therapist and her feelings for…this.”
Carla nodded slowly, her fingers tracing the rim of her teacup. “And how doyoufeel about her?”
The question landed heavily between them, and Jade looked down at her own untouched coffee that had gone lukewarm. “Terrified. My ex told me I was too much. That I was too intense, too invested in my work, too…everything. And now here I am, feeling things for someone who’s been my client, someone with massive walls who’s barely starting to let anyone in.”
“That doesn’t answer my question.”
Jade met Carla’s eyes. Her mentor’s gaze was steady and kind, but it didn’t let her hide. She always had a way of cuttingto the heart of the situation and holding people accountable. “I think I could fall for her,” she admitted quietly. “I think maybe I already am.”
