“Tanner mentioned his mom remarried and his stepdad is nice.”
Jade reached over and grabbed a piece of the sliced red pepper. “I’ve never met the stepdad, but that woman deserves all the happiness after what she endured. Same with you. I want to see you happy and I think Tanner is perfect for you.”
Melanie set the knife down and glanced up from her phone. “Tanner and I aren’t . . . we aren’t . . . well, shit. I don’t even know how to finish that.”
“Exactly.” Jade laughed. “This may have all started with physical, but you feel something for him.”
“Of course I do,” Melanie argued. “I’m having his child.”
Jade leaned across the island, holding her gaze steady. “You know that’s not what I meant. You feel something for him. Had you not gotten pregnant, would you have seen him again?”
Melanie wanted to deny it, but in all honesty, she wasn’t sure she could’ve stayed away. Tanner tugged at something deep inside her. The strong, powerful man was sexy and intriguing and he continued to prove to her that he wasn’t like her ex, that he respected her and he wanted to show her how she should be treated.
Everything about him had her wanting to discover more.
“You don’t need to answer.” Jade took a crunchy bite of the pepper. “I’ll let that subject drop for now.”
“I’m sure we’ll revisit it before the night is over,” Melanie muttered.
“Maybe, but let’s discuss what you’re making, because my stomach is growling.”
Melanie smiled and shifted her phone around for Jade to see. “I thought this up the other night when I couldn’t sleep. Tell me what you think.”
Jade read over the notes before sliding the phone back across the island. “I think I want the first bite the second it comes out of the oven.”
Melanie went to pull a baking sheet from the cabinet. “I love how you and Olivia always want to be my test dummies.”
“And I love how she’s gone now so it’s all mine.”
Melanie put everything together and slid the pan into the oven. After wiping her hands on a dish towel, she pulled a glass from the cabinet. She smiled at the outline of a plane and the words Pilots: Looking down on people since 1903.
When Olivia had come ba
ck home after her father passed, she’d made several changes in an attempt to sell the house and push her past behind her. But she’d kept most of her father’s things, including the humorous dishes and several T-shirts with snarky pilot humor.
Melanie filled her glass with a smoothie concoction she’d made earlier.
“Care for some?” she asked, holding up the pitcher.
Jade shook her head. “I’m saving room for what you just put in the oven.”
“Want to talk about Atlanta?”
With a slight jerk, Jade tipped her head and narrowed her eyes. “My issue with Atlanta or yours?”
“Yours.”
“Not really.” Jade blew out a long sigh, tapped her fingers on the counter, then shook her head with a humorless laugh. “What have you heard?”
“I didn’t hear anything,” Melanie stated. “But you’ve acted a little strange the past few days.”
“How can you say that when you’ve barely seen me? I’ve been out with Brad nearly every night.”
Melanie took a drink of her fruit smoothie. “That’s my point. You hide from other people, but you’ve never steered clear of me or Livie.”
“It’s nothing major. I was offered my job back with a hefty bonus, but after the humiliation I endured and then to have my loyalty and reputation smeared, I think I’ll find another route to take.”
Jade had gone through too much emotional turmoil in her career over the last year and a half. She’d been a victim of sexual harassment by one of the partners in the firm, and then when she attempted to come forward, he’d denied all claims, stating it was Jade who had harassed him.