Other than discovering that my new boyfriend’s loaded, I thought dinner went pretty well.I breathe a big sigh of relief when I reach the car.The air’s brisk, but the night’s relatively young, and we’re done with the meet and greet.
“See, that wasn’t so bad,” Jack says.
“It went a lot better than I thought.”And Sam’s advice wasn’t too bad, either.“I liked them.”
“They loved you.”He lifts his phone.“Group chat’s blowing up with photos they snapped, and they’re singing your praises.”
I should text Sam and Natalie.I rummage around in my purse, but I can’t find my phone.“Shoot.I think I left my phone back there in my chair.”
“Oh?”Jack was climbing in the car, but he straightens.“Let’s head back.”
I wave him off.“No, no, I’ll just run and grab it.”I toss my purse into the car and stand up again.“I’ll be right back.Get the car heater running.”I shiver.
He rolls his eyes.“It’s not even cold.”
“Agree to disagree.”
He’s laughing as I jog away.I’ve barely gone through the dining room when the waiter waves me down.“I thought you might want this.”He hands me my phone.
“How’d you know it was mine?”
“There’s a sparkly bald eagle on the back?”He shrugs.“Kind of screams American.That, and it was in your chair.”
It’s not actually a sparkly bald eagle—it’s a sparkly owl, but I suppose when your kid orders a bedazzled phone cover off Etsy, you get what you get.“Thanks.”
I’m almost back out the door when I hear my name.
“Vanessa?”
I spin around.
There’s an older woman—maybe mid-fifties—wearing a wide-belted maxi dress that flows around her cute boots.“You are Vanessa, aren’t you?”She smiles, revealing tiny crows’ feet at the corner of her deep-set blue eyes.
She reminds me of someone, but I can’t quite...
“I’ve heard a lot about you.I’m Jack’s mother.”
My brain hits pause.Hismother?Did he tell her we were coming here?Oh, no.This is definitely more than I expected to deal with in one night.
“I’ve been waiting for him to introduce us, but so far...”She shrugs.“I saw you out with his friends earlier, and I wondered.”She steps closer, her head tilting.
“Oh.”Great.One word.I’ve managed to say a single word.
“I wish I could say it was nice to meet you,” she whispers, now standing quite close to me in the entry area of Foley’s.“But one glance at you tells me what Jack was hiding.You’re much,mucholder than he is, aren’t you?That’s why he hasn’t introduced us yet.If you know anything about his past, you know he’s already dealt with more than his share of women who aren’t right for him.”
My knees shake.
My palms are sweating.
I still can’t manage to say a single thing.
“Why don’t you do us both a big favor and end this mess before it ruins his life all over again.”She looks me over from my feet to my head, then she shakes her head and tsks.“Why such a smart, sensible man can’t choose a good woman to save his life, I will never know.”She pivots on her lovely boot heel, and she disappears back into the dining room, dismissing me.
For the second time in ten seconds.
5
Samantha
