Page 52 of Finding Happily Ever After
The fact that she hadn’t done anything didn’t matter. Not to anyone but her, and Natalie swore that she wouldn’t open her legs for anyone. Until it mattered. Untilhemattered.
And she had.
Or so she’d thought.
“Natalie?”
Jason’s voice broke through her thoughts. She lifted her head.
“You were off an hour ago. You going home?”
Home?There was really no other place to go, not that she wanted to tell Jason that. But if she went home, she’d be alone with her thoughts and so far they hadn’t gotten her anywhere. She’d contemplated calling Sarah, but the doctor’s office she worked at didn’t close for another hour or so, and she didn’t want to bother her at work.
“Yes,” she said after a moment. “I probably am.”
Jason gave her a strange look, as if he were about to ask more about it, but then his smile was back. “I also wanted to let you know that the first class went well this afternoon.”
Class?
Oh. It was Tuesday. Of course. After her humiliating morning at Aiden’s house, Natalie had spent most of Sunday burying her head in her pillow and feeling sorry for herself, but she managed to pull it out long enough to text Jason and ask him to take over the first wilderness first-aid class that she’d committed to teaching to Aiden’s Outdoor Ed class later that week.
She’d totally forgotten.
Natalie managed to put what she hoped was a genuine smile on her face. “I hope it went well,” she said. “And I really do appreciate you taking it over for me. You’re probably better suited to it anyway.” For so many reasons. The least of which was the fact that Jason grew up in the mountains and had far superior experience than Natalie when it came to the subject. She really had no business teaching the class to a group of high school kids.
“I appreciate your vote of confidence.” He smiled. “And I was wondering if you wanted to grab a drink and maybe I could recap where I left off. So, you know, you’ll know where things are at for class on Thursday.”
“Wait. What?”
Jason ducked his head down and shrugged a little. “Sorry if I’m being a bit presumptuous, but I guess I just assumed since you wanted me to take today’s class and…well… I know you were sort of dating Aiden, but if you’re not now, then maybe—”
“No.” She interrupted him with a wave of a hand. It was true she definitely didn’t want to talk about those particular details with Jason, but there were more pressing matters. “Thursday? What do you mean? I thought you were taking the class.”
He pressed his lips together and shook his head in a quick apology. “Sorry. I have to take my mother into the city Thursday for an appointment and the other classes don’t line up either. I was scheduled before—”
“So you can’t teach the class?”
He shook his head again. “No. I didn’t realize you wanted me to take it completely.”
But if Jason couldn’t do it, and the chief wanted to make it aclub,she’d have to do it. And then she’d have to see Aiden…and in ahigh school,of all places. She groaned, and only belatedly realized she’d done it out loud.
“I am sorry, Nat.” He waited a beat. “How about that beer?”
Natalie hadn’t shown up to teach the class.
It had been three days since their disastrousmorning after. Three days that he’d stewed and played the events over and over in his head.
Was there something he could have done differently?
Absolutely.
There wassomuch he could have done differently. Like, everything.
He was still upset. But damn, he missed Natalie. A lot.
More than once, Aiden had picked up his phone to text her or call her, just so he could hear her voice and they could figure everything out and hopefully…what?
Move on? Get past it? Pretend it didn’t happen?
