Overdrive (Santa Lena Sizzles series Book 3)

by Jessa York

  Audrey had a point, even though this time she was wrong. “You weren’t there, Audrey. He was very clear that he was finished with me. With us.” My breath caught on the last two words.

  “Of course, that’s what he said. Men say stupid stuff all the time that they don’t mean in order to save face. You think he was pleased that you saw where he was raised?”

  “I don’t care,” I said defensively. “It didn’t make me think less of him to know he grew up in a trailer park.” I huffed, stuffing some bean sprouts into my mouth.

  “But it matters to him, girlfriend. Anything that makes you take pity on a man takes away his power. Men don’t want to be pitied.” Hmm. That actually made some sense.

  “I agree with the pity party. Men can’t stand it if you feel sorry for them. Makes them feel like less of a man. It’s stupid. I mean, you can’t exactly help where you were born. But for men it matters,” Riley added. “My advice would be to take your walking papers and run. Dude has issues about his childhood, and that’s always a pain in the ass to deal with. Take this as your get out of jail free card and leave this all behind. There’s plenty of fish in the sea, Vivienne. You’re a hot girl. You’ll find someone better.”

  There were plenty of fish in the sea for Riley. One sultry look and she could have any man on his knees begging her to spend the rest of her life with him. Not saying I was suffering for male companionship, but I’d never connected with anyone like this before. In all of my other relationships, I stuck around and waited for that something special to show up, but it never did. With Jason, that something special was there right from the moment we met. We automatically clicked, like we’d known each other forever.

  “Riley, what a horrible thing to say. They got back together once. They can do it again. Just because someone has a bad past, doesn’t mean they are incapable of having a meaningful relationship,” Harper said with tears in her eyes. “So, because I chose a terrible first husband, it means I shouldn’t get a second chance?” Those tears now spilled down her face.

  Riley looked up at Harper and pulled her in for a hug. “Of course, it doesn’t, sweetie. I’m sorry. I wasn’t thinking.” Riley rubbed her back. “You deserved your second chance more than anyone.”

  “I did. And Vivienne deserves another second chance, too. She did something stupid, but she asked him to forgive her and he should. It’s not like she was the one getting all handsy with an elementary school librarian.” As soon as Harper said it, her hands covered her mouth.

  My eyes narrowed on her. “How do you know she’s a librarian?” I asked, not missing a beat. I’d accepted Jason’s explanation, but that didn’t mean I suddenly trusted Perky Teacher/librarian. Harper peered over at Audrey with wide eyes.

  “Oh, fine. You’ll find out anyway. After you told Harper about your situation on the phone, the boys and I paid a visit to that school to check things out in case we decided to move into that area.” Audrey gave her rather weak answer.

  I tilted my head to the side. “You live in one of the best neighborhoods in town. Why would you move to a struggling community?”

  Murray and Audrey lived in a beautiful, brand new home that they had custom built for them. No way in hell were they thinking of moving. Certainly not to a poor end of town.

  Her eyes were big as saucers. She was caught. “You never know what could happen, and it never hurts to check out other schools to see what they offer.”

  “They stalked the teacher. We had to know what you were up against,” Harper spilled.

  “Jesus, Harper, you’d make a hell of an informant,” Riley muttered into her egg foo young.

  “Well, it’s true. If she was a threat, we had to find out what kind so we’d know how to deal with her.” Yikes, and Jason thought I was a stalker.

  “What’d you find out?” Don’t judge. I was being offered intel on a woman who clearly was trying to make the moves on my man—my ex-man. There was no female in the world who could resist that tasty morsel.

  “She’s cute and tiny. I’ll give her that. But you got curves and valleys. Sweetheart, your guy clearly likes curves over cute. You got nuthin’ to worry about,” Audrey offered her two cents while still fighting with her chopsticks, rice falling everywhere.

  “I need more information than that,” I told Audrey, eyes begging for something, desperate for any small bit of knowledge.

  She placed her chopsticks down on my bed. I hoped the grease wouldn’t stain my duvet too badly. “Look, she’s young. Only been teaching a few years, but people really love her. She’s got a way of dealing with the kids who are behind and making them excited to learn.”

  Great. She was a regular Mary Poppins, except tiny, young, and cute.

  Audrey kept going. “No boyfriend that anyone at the school knows about, but one of the secretaries said she thinks little Miss Perky Pants definitely has a crush on your driver. However, your man has not given her the green light, and he’s been reading to her class for over a year now. The secretary said he must not be interested because Miss Perky has given him all kinds of signals with no response.”

  My shoulders instantly relaxed. For the first time in days, I was able to take a deep breath. I knew it meant nothing because Jason was free to date whatever perky women he wanted to—that thought made my stomach knot up again—but I liked that he appeared to have no interest in that particular perky woman.

  “She also lives on the east side in an okay condo. Her student loan is current, but it’ll take her about ninety years to pay it off with what she brings home. The old, blue Honda Accord she drives is on its last legs, but her hot neighbor keeps it running on a wing and a prayer. She must love daisies and roses because there’s a shitload of them planted all over the place. I’ve got the address if you feel like going for a drive,” Riley added, raising an eyebrow in a less than subtle invitation.

  “What the heck? How did you get all this information?” I asked, nearly choking on my lemon chicken.

  “That stuff’s not hard to find out, Vivienne,” Riley replied.

  “Not hard to find out? The only things you didn’t tell me were her birthday and what color her kitchen sink is,” I said, shocked but also awed she was able to find out all of this information.

  “May eleventh, and if I had to guess on the sink, I’d say a small, original to the house stainless steel. Plain Jane.” Well, there you had it.

  “I’m up for a drive. Who’s all comin’?” Audrey said, a mischievous smile crossing her face. The other two immediately raised their hands.

  33

  Vivienne

  “I’m pretty sure this is illegal,” Harper whispered as we sat in Audrey’s sleek, red 4Runner.

  “Relax. It’s only illegal if you get caught,” Riley breathed out in quiet laughter. We all turned to her with wide eyes. “Kidding. Sitting in your car on a street is not illegal. Now, if you got out of your car and say—walked around her property, snooped in her windows, and stomped on her daisies, different story.”

  “Oh my gosh, nobody is leaving this car,” Harper loud-whispered at us, leaning over Audrey’s seat to push the door locks, like that would magically keep everyone in the car.

  “I can’t say it isn’t tempting. It’s really dark outside, too,” I said, transfixed on Perky Librarian’s house. Once Riley said she had her address, I knew I wouldn’t be able to resist the chance to check out her place. It was weird, but I had to do it.

  “We aren’t going,” Harper screeched again, trying her best to talk some sense into me.

  “You know, I think I saw my dog run into her backyard,” Audrey said, bailing out of the car.

  “You don’t even have a dog. Get back here, right now,” Harper said as she too vacated the car. Riley and I looked at each other, shrugged, and then took off to join them.

  “Daisies are the stupidest flower. What the hell is her problem with planting them everywhere?” Audrey said, scowling at the happy flowers, bobbing all around as we passed by more clumps of th
em beside Perky Librarian’s house. “No class, I tell you. This woman has no class, planting these dumb flowers everywhere. Why couldn’t she add a tulip or a hydrangea? Now those are classy flowers, right, Riley?”

  Riley turned, glaring at her. “Do you think perhaps we could not use our real names when we’re busy stalking someone?”

  “Ohhhhh, okay. Gotcha. Code names. I’ll be Jessie. Could be a girl’s name or a boy’s name, so it’ll confuse ’em.”

  “Oh my God, I think she’s in the kitchen,” I whispered, stepping on a rock beside the house to get a better look. “She’s baking something—muffins?” I said, as my heart stopped, thinking that she was baking them for Jason. It looked like she had cookies sitting on racks, cooling. “Son of a bitch. I think she made chocolate chip cookies, too.”

  The kitchen was actually very sweet and kitschy. White and red checkered tablecloth, tiny red tile backsplash, and white cupboards with red accents all over the rest of the kitchen. Shit, she even had a red KitchenAid mixer. This chick meant business. No wonder she had no money to fix her car.

  “Let’s go around the back. We’ll be able to see better,” Audrey suggested, not waiting for permission.

  “No, stay here. We’ve gone far enough,” Harper lectured her as she followed her to the backyard. I gave in, heading their way when I heard a splash and Audrey scream.

  “Ah.” Oh crap, she’d fallen into something, something wet—a pond? She was on her hands and knees, so it wasn’t too deep. I hoped she was all right, but I was more concerned for any fish swimming in there. Lily pads floated around her. It would have been hilarious if we hadn’t been there for nefarious reasons. Actually, it was pretty funny anyway.

  “Run,” Riley yelled.

  We all turned to run, but our efforts were in vain. “I’m stuck. Damn, I can’t get my foot out of here,” Audrey said.

  “Shit, shit, shit,” Riley chanted, scurrying back to help our fallen friend. Instead of running off, Harper and I just stood there, hoping she’d free Audrey quickly.

  “What’s going on out here?” a sweet voice called from the back door as a brightness shone over the entire yard. We were caught. My heart raced and I nearly screamed.

  “My friend saw her dog come back here, but then she fell into your water display. We’re really sorry about the mess. Jessie here will reimburse you for whatever damage she caused,” Riley said with a silky, confident voice.

  “Oh no, let me help,” Perky Teacher said, tiptoeing on the perfect, lush lawn to assist the liars. God, she really was cute. Waves of red hair draped over her shoulders, shining like fire in the spotlight of the backyard. She had on tight yoga shorts and a yoga bra that showed off her perfectly toned body.

  “Chelsea? Is that you?” Harper asked, her head cocked quizzically to the side.

  “Harper?”

  “I thought that was you,” Harper said, a strained smile emerging. “Um, how are you?”

  Perky Teacher laughed. “Good. How’s Ava? We missed her at class last week.” Ava was Jack’s daughter from a previous relationship. Harper bonded almost instantly with the little girl. Well, after she and Jack ironed out a few things.

  Jack had kept Ava’s existence a secret from Harper during the first part of their relationship. When Harper found out about Ava, let’s just say she was none too pleased that the big, handsome idiot had kept secrets from her. They worked it out, though, and now everyone was golden.

  “She had a stomach thing, so we kept her home.”

  “Aw, poor little girl. Hope she’s better,” Perky Teacher said in a cute, high-pitched octave. They talked for a bit about Ava’s gym class. Apparently, Perky Teacher was also a gymnastics teacher. Spare me. Even her name was perfect.

  After moving a few rocks, then helping her set the water feature back up again, Perky Teacher insisted we come in so Audrey/Jessie could get her foot treated. “No, really, I feel awful. Your foot looks terrible. Let me at least wrap it up for you. I just made a batch of cookies and they’re delicious.”

  We introduced ourselves, real names and all, then followed the Perfect, Perky Teacher back into her house. Good Lord, I was going to hell for this. I stared at Riley with my mouth open, waiting for some words of wisdom.

  “Chill out and follow along,” she ordered into my ear as I passed by her.

  A few minutes later, Harper whispered, “This is crazy,” as we sat in Chelsea’s kitchen.

  “Crazy smart if you ask me,” Audrey said. “Now we get a front row seat to what Vivienne’s up against.” Cookie crumbs fell willy-nilly as she chomped into a delicious chocolate chip cookie.

  These were better than mine. Shit. It was all I could do to stop myself from asking her how she got them so moist. Maybe if I ate a few more I’d figure it out.

  “Jessie, can you come into the living room? The light is better here,” Chelsea called from the other room. “Feel free to bring in the baking.”

  Audrey’s eyes widened. “You heard the lady,” she said, scooping the plate of cookies and muffins up, carrying it with her as she hobbled away.

  “This is so wrong. We shouldn’t be here,” I said to Riley and Harper.

  “I would have thought you’d be more concerned about Jessie’s lost dog,” Riley questioned with a grin, one eyebrow raised.

  We followed Audrey into the living room just as the front door swung open. In strode a tall, dark, and handsome man. His entire physique screamed GQ cover.

  “Well, ain’t you a tall drink of water?” Audrey said, clearly stating what the rest of us were thinking. A cocky smile spread over Mr. GQ’s face.

  “Chelsea, everything all right? I heard some commotion. Thought I’d come over and check on you.”

  “We’re fine, Chad. Thanks.” She made introductions, during which Chad made a point of shaking our hands.

  “Okay if I steal a few?” he said, pointing to the baking.

  “Pfft, you don’t have to ask,” Chelsea said, motioning her hand toward the plate on the coffee table.

  They made small talk, during which I decided to wander around her living room. There was a wall with photos that drew my attention. The frames were all different, giving it a surprisingly cool vibe.

  Chelsea’s hair stood out. It wasn’t hard to spot her in the photos. She was an adorable kid in the photos with the people I assumed were her parents. The pictures changed near the middle of the collection. She stood or posed with a man. Maybe an uncle?

  Farther down, my heart stopped. It was Jason, his arm around her neck. They looked at each other with love and joy in their hearts. My knees weakened. Those cookies soured in my stomach.

  “Vivienne, what’s wrong? We were asking you a…holy crap. Is that Jason?” Riley said, removing the frame from the wall.

  “Oh, do you know my cousin, Jason?” Chelsea said, gazing up from wrapping Audrey’s foot.

  “Cousin,” I whispered, holding onto Riley for support. That bastard could have told me that Perky Teacher was his cousin. What an ass.

  Jason

  I’d been lazing around, not accomplishing much of anything except staring at the ever-blank white screen of death again. Since I broke up with Vivienne—again—I hadn’t been able to write a fucking word—again. Just like last time.

  This was supposed to have the opposite effect.

  I should be creating great works in record speed without her distractions. Her curvy, luscious, gorgeous distractions. No, I didn’t only miss her body, I missed everything about her. I missed talking to her, laughing with her. Fuck, I hadn’t laughed since she left.

  Slouched over on my futon, I commenced running my hands through my hair.

  “You think she’ll show up?” Eddie said. He was a perceptive son-of-a-bitch. I’d give him that. But even I gave up hoping that Vivienne would appear out of thin air. I was horrible to her. My words were brutal. No chick was going to come back for more of that. My point was made and she’d accepted it.

  I wished she hadn’t. I hoped she w
ould have stayed and fought for us at least a bit. But instead, she gave up right away and left.

  “No, man. She’s gone. We had words after she followed me...”

  “You mean after she stalked you? Fuck, bro, nobody needs that scary ass shit from a woman. My advice? Lock up your bunnies and keep working on your novel.”

  That was the thing. My bunnies were just fine. There’d been no phone calls or texts, no surprise visits. Vivienne was done. “She didn’t exactly stalk me. I mean, she did, but it was kind of by accident.”

  “You making excuses for her now?”

  Damn right I was. I’d had time to cool off and mull over what she’d said. That first night, I was too livid to hear her accuse me of cheating, then that she followed me to that godforsaken place while I delivered booze and takeout to my mom. How fucking humiliating could you get?

  It was bad enough that she saw where I lived now. I never wanted her to see where I came from. Not Vivienne. I’d spent most of my life hiding my reality from people. For good reason. Just imagining what Vivienne must’ve thought seeing my childhood home—where I lived for years—that was just too fuckin’ much. No way I could process that and the cheating accusations all at the same time.

  Fuck that hurt, having her think I would even consider being with another woman when I was with her. Vivienne’s everything I ever wanted in a woman…more actually. I didn’t think a woman like her existed, and then when I was lucky enough to find her and she was clearly into me, I blew it.

  Like she’d want to have a baby with some trailer trash loser who had to borrow money from her. I couldn’t even look after myself. How was I supposed to take care of a family?

  34

  Vivienne