Sprinkled with Love

His tone grew softer and more cajoling. “I want to talk to you.”

Hadn’t he gotten the hint that she didn’t want to talk to him when she never picked up his calls and failed to return his voicemails? Then again, Glenn was always all about Glenn, and he didn’t understand that others might not like him as much as he liked himself. What had she ever seen in him? It totally escaped her now.

Jillian closed her laptop. “We don’t have anything to discuss.”

“Yes, we do.” He sighed. “I’m sorry. All right?”

He thought that was going to make up for dumping her in public? They’d been dining at the time. Luckily, it had been in Bozeman. Yet, the restaurant had been packed and Glenn hadn’t been discreet.

He’d wanted her to drop everything to go on a promotional shoot with him. He’d told her in no uncertain terms that he was tired of coming in a distant second to her outlandish dreams of being a business owner. At least now he could see Tangled Charms with his own eyes—see that she’d succeeded as a business owner.

“Is there something I can show you?” she asked, pretending he was nothing more than a customer—a less than welcome customer.

“What?” It took him a second to figure out what she was up to. “Come on, Jilly. Won’t you give me a chance? I’m here after all. And I know you need a date.”

“You what?”

“I ran into your mother. She mentioned something about you being invited to a wedding.”

“And she asked you to take me?” Please say it wasn’t so. Surely her own mother wouldn’t turn against her. Would she?

“No. She didn’t ask. But I can take a hint.”

Take a hint? Or make up an excuse to see her? Jillian really wanted to believe that he took advantage of her mother’s ramblings in order to insinuate himself back into her life.

At that point, the door chimed. Suzanna returned from her dentist appointment. And right behind her were a couple of ladies who were good friends with Carol Bingley. Which meant everything that was said between her and Glenn would become the subject of town gossip. And that was the very last thing Jillian needed right now. When people spoke of her, she wanted them taking her seriously and talking highly of her business pursuit. She did not want them talking about how she’d been dumped by this movie-star-wannabe.

“Come on, Jilly. Have some coffee with me? We can discuss this wedding.” Glenn looked at her as though she couldn’t possibly turn down such an offer.

It was so tempting to tell him exactly what he could do with his offer, but she glanced at the two older ladies who were not even trying to hide the fact they were eavesdropping. Jillian inwardly groaned. Why were so many people interested in her social life?

It’d be the same way at the wedding. She imagined all of the pitying looks from her married relatives—the same looks she’d received at a prior wedding. Seriously, didn’t they hear that this was a new age where women didn’t have to marry by the age of eighteen? She wasn’t an old maid. She just hadn’t found the right guy and she was starting to think that her Mr. Right didn’t exist.

And then she realized that instead of fighting Glenn’s advances maybe she should take a different approach. She could go out with him one more time—to the wedding. It might not be the sort of date he was hoping for and it might end abruptly, but he owed her.

By having Glenn escort her to the wedding, she’d be putting off the inevitable. Somehow that didn’t sound so bad. But could she really spend an entire evening with him in such a romantic setting?

She turned to Suzanna, who’d just stepped out of the office. “Could you handle the shop for a few minutes?

”

Suzanna didn’t smile. Her gaze moved from Jillian to Glenn and then back again. Jillian knew Suzanna didn’t like Glenn, but she was too much of a lady to tell him to his face what she really thought of him.

Jillian, wanting to speak to Glenn in private, glanced back at Suzanna and then nodded over her shoulder at their audience. The light of dawning flashed in Suzanna’s eyes.

“Sure. I’ve got it.” Suzanna moved to greet their customers.

Jillian rushed to grab her coat. Luckily, the Java Café was just a couple of doors down. She’d get a to-go cup and be out of there in a couple of minutes. Just long enough for her to address the idea of going to the wedding together.

*

Have patience.

That’s what the doctor had told Avery when he’d gone in for a checkup. The swelling in his knee was decreasing and the bruising was starting to fade to a greenish color. Avery wanted to hear that he’d make a miraculous recovery, but the doctor said it would take time.

Avery checked his phone for the tenth time that morning. Still no missed calls and no text messages.

Have patience. The doctor’s words echoed in his mind. It appeared that advice applied to a number of facets of Avery’s life.