Test Drive (The Bachelor #1) (7 page)

BOOK: Test Drive (The Bachelor #1)
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I was furious, beyond words. She rubbed my shoulder, and I laid my head back on the bench. I was starting to feel dehydrated and sun burnt. I wanted to leave. I got off the bench and turned around to face her. I wanted to find a way to say nicely that I was ready to head out. Apparently the park didn't close until eleven and it was only four, so another seven hours of gut wrenching pain did not sound pleasant.

"Hey, I am kind of hungry. Are you ready to get out of here?" I stretched one arm behind my head to scratch my neck.

She seemed to take the hint and rose off the bench. We walked arm in arm to the gate passing one last ride. I felt the tug on my arm, and I knew she was hinting that we try the "slingshot." I know, right? The name alone tells you that it’s not a good idea. They strap you into a seat and literally slingshot you into the air. "No way," I muttered, tugging her in the other direction. Thankfully, she didn’t even ask. I was trying get over the feeling of resentment generating in me. I mean, other than the water hammer to my nuts, I had lived. But could I handle being taunted or pushed every time she wanted me to do something I wasn't comfortable with?

We headed to a local steakhouse, which gave me a chance to cool off. By the time we were seated I was relaxed again. She had been on edge too, and I hated feeling like jerk. "Hey Jen, I am sorry about earlier. I was just in a lot of, umm, pain," I said, readjusting my pants.

She reached for my hand and squeezed it. "No, I'm sorry. I can get carried away sometimes. I'm a jerk, sorry." She seemed genuine and that further eased my fears.

She bit into her garden panini, and I cut up my twelve ounce steak. The conversation began to flow again, and she told me about all her adventures and what she still wanted to do. She asked about what I wanted to do, and honestly, it was none of the same things.

I wanted to travel, preferably by train or car, to visit landmarks and museums, and she wanted to jump out of planes and deep-sea dive. She still seemed interested in what I wanted, but I was still worried about whether she would be happy if I only
supported
her in her adventures but did not
accompany
her on them.

We drove home right as the sun was setting. We had the windows down, blasting country music. She was singing along with her feet hanging out the window. She laid her head on my arm, and I quickly wrapped my arm around her.

The drive home went surprisingly fast, so when we pulled up at her studio I didn't really know how to end the night. Turning into the parking lot of her yoga studio, I slid the car into an empty space near the back. The parking lot was still bustling, even after dark people were entering the gym in crowds. I turned to my beautiful passenger and said, "Thanks for the trip, I had a good time. And you looked amazing in that swimsuit." I flashed a wide grin not able to hide my excitement.

"Yeah." She smiled. "You said that a few times" She was still holding tightly to my arm when she laid a long lingering kiss on me. She splayed her fingers on my neck and gently pulled herself over the shifter and onto my lap.

She tasted like the mint-flavored gum she had popped in her mouth a few minutes before, and I had no doubt that she had planned all this from the moment she got in the car. I liked it, but I wondered if under that adventurous carefree attitude, if she didn't have some sort of motive behind it all.

Maybe I was just looking for reasons to doubt her. After all, she didn't know about my money or my parents company, so what did she stand to gain? I had planned to tell the girls more about who I was after our third date
if
we managed to make it for three dates.

I snapped out of my thoughts and realized that we had stopped kissing. She had moved down my neck and was slipping her hands under my shirt. She hadn't taken the time to change fully; she had only put on a short bright red cloth cover-up shirt instead.

I ran my hand up one smooth silky thigh, and she moaned into my throat. She was arching her back and moving her hips over my jeans, and I grew tense. It’s not like I didn't want her because I did, but I wasn't feeling it with her. She was gorgeous and sexy, but something was off, and I wasn't ready to take this on in a crowded parking lot where she worked. Sounds ridiculous, right?

She leaned back and lifted up her cover up and the goods that came spilling out just about changed my mind.

Jenna smiled as I admired her perfect body. My hands slid up the inside of her thighs. This chick had more toned lean muscle than I had ever encountered, and there was a part of me, a growing part of me, that wanted to see how tight she could squeeze. Jenna reached down for my pants, and I almost let it happen.

"Jenna, wait." I wanted to kick myself for what I was about to do. I could only see the shadows walking by the car as the windows had already fogged up. It wasn't exactly a mystery as to what was happening. Jenna leaned back against the steering wheel and gave me a confused look.

"What's wrong?" she said. Her voice was so raspy, and she was still breathing hard from the adrenaline.

"I don't have any protection." It was the first thing that came to my mind. It was also a lie, but she didn't need to know that.

She looked pissed. "Okay then." She climbed off my lap leaving me with a sudden chill. She grabbed her stuff and reached for the door. "So I guess I'll see you later." I could see her eyes roll from the other side of the car, and it was really annoying.

"Whoa there! What's wrong?" I had made up my mind up already, but I needed this confirmation.

"I don't know. I thought we were having a good time and now you are just blowing me off?" Her frustration showed in her posture and her attitude. "You know what, it's whatever. I don't have time to
talk
you into to having a good time." The way she emphasized the 'talk' part sounded like she was referring to my fear of heights. Big mistake!

"All right, well, have a nice day." I started the car and put it into gear. She huffed once more before storming out of the car and slamming the door shut.

"Wow, maybe they should teach anger management with the yoga classes," I said to myself as I spun the wheel leaving the parking lot.

"Next!"

 

 

 

 

I WAS NOT A FAN OF
early mornings, but being up to go to work every morning had ruined my ability to sleep in.
Thanks Dad!
My parents were expecting me for lunch this fine Sunday morning.

My mom loved making lunch on Sundays for whoever might show up. The menu was always divine, and I was looking forward to a home cooked meal. It’s not like I had a long drive to get to the dinner table, I did live in the same house. The reason for the invitation was that for the last nine Sundays I had other plans with Camille. She always planned for us to be out of town exploring the country on weekends, which is another reason I couldn’t make it to work on time most days. I was recovering from the boozy all-nighters.

I came down to lunch wearing a pair of cargo shorts and a tank top. The meal she was already working on smelled delicious. The house smelled like lemon and blueberry.

I rounded the corner to the dining room, and I could hear voices. I stopped for a moment to listen. "Mrs. Sloane, is there anything I can help you with?" The voice sounded familiar, but I couldn’t quite place it.

"No dear, but thank you. Why don’t you have a seat and tell me how things are at the office?" My mother’s sugary sweet voice had a hint of curiosity in it. I stood waiting in the hall, skimming the conversation to see whom it was and if my name would come up. Okay, I was eavesdropping.

"Actually it is all going very smoothly. The employee evaluations are being handled by Drew, and from what I have heard, he has been very thorough." She sounded impressed, whoever she was. I stood there like a little schoolgirl grinning over my success. "He has even covered some of the more
personal
issues with the ladies’ room." She let out a small giggle.

"Is that so?" my mother responded. "Andrew has always been very diplomatic. I am pleased to see that he has found his niche. I will be there for the meeting on Tuesday, and I look forward to seeing his presentation."
Thanks, Mom, no pressure.
I heard footsteps coming, and I couldn’t risk being caught listening.

I rounded the corner and greeted my mother. "Mom, this smells amazing!" I couldn’t see our guest’s face, but from the back I saw shoulder length dirty blonde hair hanging over lightly tanned smooth skin. She had a small frame, and she was wearing a flowing summer dress with a floral print rippling along the layers. Her tiny feet donned flip-flop style shoes that complemented her long legs. Very feminine. I tried to picture who in our office looked like that, but I fell flat. Most of our staff wore colorless suits and heels.

"Andrew! Thank you for coming. Will you grab that cake out of the oven for me?"

"Putting me to work already, huh?" I joked. My mother was nothing like my father’s cold exterior. She was happy to move out of the business world and explore other hobbies like cooking and dinner parties. I chanced a look at our guest from my new angle, and I was stunned.

Beth
! She didn’t look the same out of her white collared shirts and ponytail attire. I don’t believe I had ever noticed how beautiful she was. I stood staring for a moment before she shyly looked away. I went back to retrieving the cake out of the oven.

"Andrew, Beth and I were just talking about how well you have done with this project," my mother prodded.

"Oh?" I arched my eyebrows in Beth’s direction. She gave me a halfcocked smile and turned her attention to my mother.

"Yes, she was telling me what a wonderful job you are doing. I very much am looking forward to seeing your presentation. Are you finished with it?"

That was my mother’s version of checking up on me. She never outright asked, but she was the master of beating around the bush to get to the point. "Yes, actually I completed it on Friday. There are a few points to cover, and I plan to fine tune it all on Monday." I gave her a few moments to let it sink in, and I moved on to the next non-work related topic. "What is this delicious cake?"

"Oh! I saw a new recipe on one of those food shows. It’s a lemon pound cake, and I have a fresh blueberry sauce to go on it."

"Damn, that sounds good."

"Andrew! Language!" my mother hissed. Beth let out a giggle, and I shrugged off the lashing. I let the hot vapors stream into my nostrils, dying to taste it, but my mother would have my head if I touched it before dessert.

I snooped around in the kitchen trying to find out what else we were having. I could see some kind of fish with nuts on it roasting in the oven, and of course macaroni salad was in the fridge.

My mom set some cups and silverware on the counter behind me. "Son, can you and Beth go set the table for me; the table on the sunporch preferably? It’s a beautiful day out."

I grabbed the plates, and Beth stood to get the napkins and silverware. We walked to the sun porch in silence with only the sticky flop of her shoes and the silverware clanging together.

We entered the all glass sunporch, and I put the off-white china on the neatly made table. My mother changed the table decorations weekly, and this time she had small purple tea light candles surrounding a bouquet of brightly colored summer flowers. Beth started neatly folding the napkins, and I spread out the plates and cups at each setting. The sun was blaring in on one side of the room, and I immediately went to shut the shades.

"Does your mother do this every Sunday?"

"Yeah actually. It is kind of her
thing
now that she doesn’t come to the office as much." I busied myself at the table. She only had four place settings, and I knew my dad would be down eventually.
Great.

"I meant what I told your mom. I think you are doing a wonderful job." Her voice was sweet, and it was definitely a change not to hear her ordering me around. I nodded and she kept going. "I saw some of those requests, and well they are pretty out there. I couldn’t imagine
you
being up for that."

"What do you mean?" I said, sounding more defensive than necessary.

"Well, just some of those things seemed . . . personal." Her cheeks had flushed as she mindlessly adjusted a set of silverware next to the gold-rimmed colored plates.

"I like to think that I can be objective and serious when the time calls for it." I didn’t know whether she was insulting me or trying to flatter me. I decided to give her the benefit of the doubt in the name of hospitality today. I didn’t like seeing her squirm over her doubt of my character. Besides, I hadn’t given her much reason to have faith in my work until now.

My mother broke the awkwardness when she brought in the steaming hot fish fillet and set it on the table. "Would you two mind helping me bring the other dishes?" Beth scurried back to the kitchen before I even had a chance to respond.

I jogged back into the kitchen and tried to make peace over the conversation. "Look, I get it. I have been a jerk at work. I guess I didn’t see how important my role in the company is so, yeah, I am trying to turn all that around." I leaned forward on the counter, and she turned to face me. "Thank you for noticing."

BOOK: Test Drive (The Bachelor #1)
5.88Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

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