Jenna could tell he was naturally friendly. Setting aside she did not want to be rude to a customer, she did not want to be mean to someone like him. She smiled in return as she awkwardly pointed at her nametag. That only gave Michael the perfect excuse to stare at her breasts again and she instantly regretted doing it.
Pointedly ignoring him, she told Harrison, “It’s nice to officially meet you.”
If she had to be subjected to this she figured she might as well make the best of it. And he was extending a friendly thread, after all. She turned around and headed to the kitchen to place the order, amicably greeting the morning’s chefs. She got on well with pretty much all her co-workers but it was only Mac who she’d consider something more of a friend. Carly came in second but she figured it was mostly because she’d worked with her more than with any other server. Besides, Carly was quite the social butterfly and didn’t have many qualms about speaking her mind. Sometimes it was a bit much but, overall, Jenna found it likable.
Not having another table to wait on and not wanting to be around the two young men more than she absolutely had to, Jenna hung around near the kitchen until her order was up.
“Hiding out, I see,” Carly laughed as she piled hot plates on the large tray she held. She clicked her tongue in mock disapproval before disappearing.
Jenna was hiding out, at least she sort of was. The chef dinged the bell and she walked over to place the two identical plates of food on the tray she’d gotten from the tray spot. She gripped the edges and drew in a deep breath, mouth curling into a smile, before walking back out. She noticed a family of four had just been seated in her section. She cursed under her breath at first but then realized they were the perfect excuse to escape the table at which Harrison and Michael sat. She placed the plates in front of them and asked, “Is there anything else I can get for you at the moment?”
Michael looked up at her with his smirk and she felt her cheeks burn. He had not even tried to hide the fact he’d checked her out, yet again, before responding, “Looks good.” He poked one of the eggs with his fork but hadn’t torn his eyes off her.
“Great,” she told him with a sarcastic smile. She knew exactly what he was doing only because she was all too familiar with the type of guy he was. What was throwing her for a loop was his interest in her. Jenna was no longer self-conscious about being a thick woman with voluptuous curves but playboys like Michael usually looked at women who looked more like Carly– only with larger breasts. The idea of him being one of those playboys who said things like, “I don’t discriminate” left a sour taste in her mouth.
She turned on her heel, tucking the tray under her arm, to walk over and greet the customer who had just been seated in her section. As she was talking to them she noticed a middle-aged couple come in and be seated in her section as well so before inputting the drink order from the family, she took the opportunity to greet them as well. The inflow of people was steadily growing and she was silently thankful for being busier now. She was kept so occupied it came as a surprise when Michael and Harrison left. She saw their table empty. She picked up the signed receipt and stuffed it in her apron before continuing to work.
The rest of her shift went by quickly and without a hitch. Every customer was pleasant and most were very easy to work with. Hardly any of them had complicated orders either. Carly left an hour before she did so there had not been time to talk about her experience with Harrison or wonder how it was Carly had previously seen a photograph of Michael. It was not until she was settling everything that she saw a note on the back of Harrison’s receipt. “I don’t know many people in this town so thanks for being a friendly face!” She smiled. He was quite chipper and as she walked back home she could not help but wonder if she’d see him again.
Chapter Three
It was Wednesday late afternoon when Jenna was jogging through her favorite park and the music playing through her almost made her miss the sound of a man shouting out, “Jenna!”
She slowed and turned to her left. There stood Harrison, holding his daughter’s hand and grinning widely as he waved at her with his free hand. Jenna smiled and took off her earphones, walking over to them.
“Hello,” she said awkwardly.
“This is my daughter, Fay,” he said as he ruffled the little girl’s hair. She made a face of protest before fixing her eyes on Jenna as if sizing her up.
Jenna crouched down and beamed. “She’s so cute,” she chimed. The little girl broke into a smile and extended her hand.
“Sorry to interrupt your run,” Harrison apologized. “We came for a walk and now we’re waiting for Fay’s mom to pick us up on her way home from work.”
“Aw, that’s sweet,” Jenna remarked as she straightened up. Looking right at Harrison’s face at such close proximity she really wondered how young he was when Fay had been born. Jenna thought he looked even younger than her. “So you moved here recently?”
“Indeed,” he responded. “Tara, that’s Fay’s mom, was offered a promotion but the catch was to transfer here. We talked it over and went for it! I knew Michael from college way back when and he actually is thinking of offering me a contract job.” Harrison chuckled and ruffled the hair at the back of his head. “Look at me goin’ on and on about my life when all you did was ask if I just moved here. I know you were just gettin’ a run in. Sorry ‘bout that!”
“Not at all!” Jenna assured. “I read your note so I figured why not be a friendly face?”
There was the sound of a honk and Fay started clapping and jumping up and down. “Mommy is here! Daddy, mommy is here! Let’s go! Let’s go!” She tugged at his hand impatiently, eyes not moving from off her mother’s car.
“I’ll let you get going then,” Jenna told him before stepping aside and readying her earphones to slip them back on.
“We’ll see you ‘round!”
Jenna nodded and took off to continue her jog, chancing a glance back to see the little girl climbing excitedly in the car and Harrison greeting Tara with a sweet peck on the lips. They really did look like a happy little family. She finished up her jog and walked back home to hop in the shower, thinking of the string of bad relationships in her past.
“It’s not like I’m sad or jealous,” she told Kelly over the phone after her shower. “I’m just curious, you know?”
“Curious how that sort of love is? Yeah, I get you. He seems like a nice guy. Maybe you inadvertently made a new friend,” Kelly said.
“Maybe,” Jenna replied. “It’s weird to me that someone like Harrison is friends or whatever with someone like that Michael guy,” she thought aloud.
“What Michael guy?” Kelly sounded… off. It was like something had come to mind and she was wondering about it but Jenna was confused as to what it had to do with Michael.
“He was this guy Harrison was with at breakfast yesterday. Seemed like a jerk,” she said.
“How did he look, Jen?”
Jenna pulled her head away from the phone to look at the screen for a second as if that would clear up the questions now running through her mind. Then she thought back on how Carly had mentioned something about Michael looking familiar. Was the same thing happening now with Kelly? Was Michael someone of note? If he was, she could already feel the disdain boiling up in her chest. The idea of him being an arrogant jerk who, on top of it all, was actually a noteworthy person made her think he was even worse than she’d already judged him to be.
“I don’t know. I tried not to pay too much attention to him,” she finally said.
“Jenna, come on, you have to remember something!”
“He looked tall and had dark brown hair. I can’t remember his eyes,” she trailed off. She’d made it a point to avoid eye contact with the man. Kelly sighed exasperatedly.
“Are you going to the bachelorette auction?”
Jenna’s mind blanked; that had sure been an abrupt change in conversation.
“Yes,” she responded tersely. “And before you badger me again
, I’ll do it.”
Kelly squealed excitedly.
“Yeah, yeah,” Jenna said, not amused.
“Well, guess we’ll find out then if the Michael I’m thinking of is the one you saw!”
“What?” Jenna’s mouth went slack.
“Michael Black is going to be there, and it’s a good thing he is. He’s only one of the wealthiest men in our age range and, well, in general. It’ll be great for the cause.”
“But it won’t be great for me,” Jenna thought begrudgingly.
Chapter Four
It was Friday morning but Jenna wasn’t relaxing in the park on her day off like she would have liked. Instead, she was holed up in her bedroom sitting on the floor in front of her closet trying to figure out what to wear in a few hours to the bachelorette auction. More than ever she found herself deeply regretting giving into Kelly’s pestering her to be on the auction block. But it was too late to drop out now and she would never want to let her best friend down. Just then, Jenna’s doorbell rang. She climbed off the floor and trudged over, not bothering to check who was on the other side before yanking it open.
“Surprise!” Kelly held up a large bag from a major department store, shaking it.
“Come in,” Jenna said, stepping aside. “What’s this about?”
“Well,” Jenna started as she pulled out a sleek box from the bag, “I thought you might like something new to wear tonight.”
She placed the box on Jenna’s coffee table and pushed it toward her, large grin on her face. Jenna hesitated for a moment before carefully pulling off the lid to check out what Kelly had picked for her. It was a turquoise and black dress with lace which, even at first glance, looked quite sexy in a tasteful way. It was not the type of dress Jenna typically wore but, then again, how often was she part of a bachelorette auction?
“Try it on,” Kelly said excitedly with quick, little claps.
Jenna stood up and walked to her bedroom to get changed, not having the heart to disappoint her bright-eyed best friend; not to mention she didn’t have a clue what to wear in the first place. The dress, which had just an hourglass turquoise colored fabric on the front and lace elsewhere, looked stunning. The sweetheart neckline did wonders to show off her very large, round breasts and it was overall just a very sexy, flattering look. If she’d seen the dress at the store she wouldn’t have even thought of trying it on; but she had to admit it was quite perfect on her and even more so for the event. She walked out of the bedroom and as soon as Kelly laid eyes on her, she gasped.
“You look amazing, Jen. I’m serious. You look like a bombshell.”
Kelly stood up and walked over to Jenna for a closer look, making her blush lightly. She could not think of a time she’d ever been described as a bombshell; for all the confidence she had, that word was not exactly what came to mind when considering her very thick and voluptuous figure. She always thought that word was reserved for the thin and leggy ladies of the world that walked the runways or at least looked like they should. Kelly continued to fawn over her as she went into overdrive, suggesting how to do her hair and what jewelry to wear before rushing off to get ready and head to the venue.
Hours later, Jenna tried her best not to suddenly feel self-conscious just moments before she was to walk on the stage to be auctioned off. Thankfully, Kelly was able to meet her for a moment before it started.
“Show that confidence I know you have,” Kelly mumbled. “You look drop-dead.”
Jenna took a deep breath and shut her eyes, recalling her reflection in the mirror once she’d put on the dress and gotten all done up. She had to admit she certainly did look great– she just needed to keep that confidence for the duration of the night.
“Oh! Before we start let’s take a peek to see if the Michael you met is Michael Black!”
Jenna sighed. She knew there was no point in arguing with Kelly so she just nodded and allowed herself to be dragged off to the corner from which they could sneak a peek. Jenna scanned the room carefully, noting how full the crowd was. Then she spotted Michael. She groaned and turned to look at Kelly unhappily.
“Oh my gosh! It’s him, isn’t it?” Kelly was practically glowing.
Jenna groaned again and nodded in his direction as she said, “That’s the jerk.”
“Shhh! You have to be careful what you say here.” Kelly paused and tapped her lip, obviously debating whether or not to tell Jenna what was on her mind. “I know you don’t like him much but you’ve barely met him and, well, he is a pretty big deal. He’s quite successful, well know, and would you believe he’s actually a bi-”
“Ladies, come! Come! Jenna please take your place back in line and Kelly please announce the start of the auction!”
With that, Jenna’s stomach twisted in nerves and she completely pushed aside any thought on what Kelly had just told her. She did not even stop to ponder what Kelly had been on the verge of letting her know before they were interrupted. As she got closer and closer to joining Kelly up on the stage she wondered who would bid for her, for how much, and what kind of person he would be. It was not until she felt like she was thrust in the bright spotlight and her eyes finally made Michael out that it dawned on her he could potentially be a bidder.
And then it happened in such a flurry she couldn’t even keep up. She could much less make any sense of it. She didn’t know how she wound up backstage with Kelly patting her on the back, both sympathetically and excitedly, saying, “Michael Black!”
Before she knew it, she was escorted by Kelly herself to sit at Michael’s table. The only sense of comfort, aside from the fact her best friend was able to sit beside her, was that Harrison was at the table as well.
“Hey, there, Jenna!” He placed his arm around Tara and said, “This is my girlfriend, Tara. Our little Fay is with a babysitter for the night.”
“It’s lovely to meet you,” Jenna said politely.
“You must be our new friend!” Tara grinned widely, showing she was every bit as chipper and friendly as Harrison.
“That’s awfully nice of you,” she said shyly. She never minded making new friends but she hardly thought she’d interacted enough with Harrison to be considered one.
“Maybe we can actually plan something one of these days,” Harrison proposed with a laugh, Tara nodding enthusiastically in agreement. Jenna smiled somewhat nervously but she nodded as well. She glanced nervously at Michael, who had been pretty much staring at her the entire time without saying a word.
“Excuse me, but I think I was the winning bidder at this table,” he announced.
Everyone at the table laughed, except Jenna. She turned away from him and willed herself not to show signs of annoyance or embarrassment. She could feel Kelly carefully studying her and practically reading her mind. She could almost hear Kelly telling her to be open minded and actually give the guy a chance. But that was when Michael suddenly leaned in so close she froze, eyes wide.
“Listen,” he muttered in her ear so only she could hear. “How about I propose something? Let’s talk tonight, here, with everyone present and if you find you don’t want to go on that winner’s day out with me, then I’ll drop it. Simple as that.”
Jenna turned to look at him incredulously. Of course she didn’t think he was doing it to be nice or considerate; she saw this as him being full of himself in at least two ways. To begin, he was just showing how easily he could give away money all under the guise of being a man who cared about a worthy cause. Another thing was he probably thought so highly of himself he had no doubt she would want to see him again. Jenna was determined not to give him that satisfaction but she nodded anyway and told him it was a deal.
“Well, well,” he said with a smirk. It was the same smirk he’d worn at the restaurant, the very one that had immediately made her detest him. Jenna swallowed but did not reply; she’d agreed to talk to him for the night and she decided to try her best to channel Kelly’s energy. “Looks like we are having a treat tonight after all.”
Jenna snapped to look at him, taken aback by the statement. What, exactly, was he insinuating? Whatever it was, he’d just reaffirmed everything she’d already been thinking as a result of his proposal. He subtly cocked his head as he appraised her, gaze lingering on her chest. Jenna scoffed. There was a limit to how much of a chance she’d give him but she saw no reason to have to put up with his crass insinuations or lingering gazes.
“So you’ve met little Fay,” he said, catching her off guard. Jenna nodded slowly. “She’s darling, isn’t she? She calls me ‘Mr. Black’ even though I never asked her to. I think she just likes calling me that for some reason.”
Jenna thought she should have found it charming for him to talk about Fay but she could only think it was a play he usually ran on women and, moreover, she could not help but think he was still doing an awful lot of talking about himself. Still, she decided to run with it. A deal was a deal, after all, and she’d struck one up with both him and her best friend.
“I’ve only met her briefly but, yes, she is darling.”
“I’ve actually told little Fay we are on first name basis but she always just giggles.” Michael laughed, catching Harrison’s eye and making him chuckle. It started a brief but spirited conversation about Fay, one that Jenna actually found entertaining.
“She always protests saying she doesn’t know what I mean,” Michael said, going back to the way Fay called him ‘Mr. Black’ even though he’d told her they were on a first name basis.
“She always says she can’t ask us or else it’s cheating,” Tara giggled fondly.
“At least she’s honest,” Kelly piped in before excusing herself to get back to work.
“So, Jenna, it was a surprise to see you up there tonight,” Harrison said.
“Blame it on Kelly,” she muttered shyly.
“I wouldn’t say blame is the right word,” Michael opined, smug as ever.
Jenna turned to look at him with a small, very forced smile. She could see right through everything he was saying and doing but when their eyes met she had the distinct feeling he knew she was not falling for any lines. She thought he might have even known she didn’t like him.
Romance: My Stepbrother's Plaything Page 29