Cinderella Screwed Me Over

Chapter Eighteen

It’s pretty impressive what you can get done when you have a Friday night to yourself. I ran three miles, mopped my floors, put the finishing touches on a couple of proposals, and took a trip to the bookstore. Luckily, I didn’t run into an old boyfriend or have to hide in the erotica section.

What’s devastating about getting so much done on a Friday night, is it makes you feel like a loser. The rest of the world was out there celebrating the start of the weekend, while I sat by myself on my couch, wondering what I should do next.

Admittedly, I started to feel the tiniest bit sorry for myself. I know, it’s not very Independent Woman thinking of me. It’s not like I needed a guy. But someone to hang out with would be nice.

Nadine was with her Help From Cupid matchup, Steph and Anthony were having dinner with Steph’s parents, and Jake was working.

I guess I should’ve gone to the ranch for the night.

It’s too late now. Mom will be getting ready for bed by the time I show up.

I’m not much of a phone-talker, but when I get bored enough, I start calling everyone I know to say hi. Half the time I regret it around minute three and then spend the rest of the time trying to figure out how to nicely end the call.

If I was going to shoot the breeze with someone, though, Drew was my first choice. I picked up my phone and dialed his number. After four rings, it rolled over to his voice mail. Mom didn’t answer, either. I scrolled up and down through my contacts—mostly work associates. Then I saw Jake’s name. Calling for no reason was such a relationship-y thing.

Don’t do it.

I set my phone down on my coffee table and sat back on my couch. Looking for something to keep me busy, I picked up the remote and searched through the onscreen guide. Three times.

I had a staring contest with my phone for about a minute—that thing didn’t blink once. I picked it off the coffee table, scrolled down to Jake’s number, and pushed the call button.

What am I going to say if he picks up?

Back in high school, this was the point I would’ve realized my mistake and hung up; nowadays, technology didn’t let you chicken out. Already, my number was going to be on his phone, showing the exact time I called.

What am I going to say if it goes to voice mail?

“Hey, gorgeous,” Jake said.

My heart went all fluttery on me. “Hey. Are you busy right now?”

I smacked my forehead with the palm of my hand. Of course he’s busy, stupid. He’s at work.

“For you, I’m sure I can find a few minutes.”

The pressure to come up with something to say sent me into panic mode. Work was boring, I hadn’t done anything today worth mentioning, and my mind scrambled for something—anything—to say to him.

“Guess who came into Blue tonight for dinner,” Jake said.

“If I missed Christian Bale, I’m going to be so upset.”

He laughed. “Close. The Crabtrees. Mrs. Crabtree asked about you, so I told her you’d finally broken down and gone out with me. She hugged me, then lectured me on being a gentleman and treating you right. She’s surprisingly scary for an older lady.”

Picturing Mrs. Crabtree and Jake having that conversation made me smile. “It’s nice to know she’s got my back.”

“Yeah, with those bar fights you get into, you need all the extra help you can get.”

And just like that, we eased into an effortless conversation that surpassed my normal three-minute mark.

…

When my phone rang Saturday morning, I fumbled around for a few minutes before finding it. Drew.

I hit the accept button and put the phone up to my ear. “You better be dying.”

“Good morning to you, too,” Drew said, his voice way too chipper. “I’m coming down. Now, get out of bed. You’re sleeping the day away.”

I squinted at my alarm clock until the red digits sharpened enough I could read them. “Eight o’ clock is not sleeping the day away.”

“I’ve been up for two hours. I’ve checked on the horses, made sure the newborn calves have sucked, and doctored a few cows. What’ve you done?”

“I’ve been coming up with a plan to power the world using smiles and laughter,” I said. “Beat that.”

“One of the calves crapped on me when I picked him up and took him to the barn, and I thought that was a good bullshit story. But I think yours is even more full of crap.”

I laughed. “I’m too tired to come up with a response to that. I’m sure I’ll think of a good one by the time you get here.”

“Okay. It’ll probably be about ten.”

“See you in a while, then.” I hung up and put a pillow over my head, hoping to catch a few more minutes of sleep before having to start my day.

By the time Drew made it down, I was not only ready, but also feeling ahead of the game thanks to all the work I’d done last night. As he and I settled onto the couch, I asked, “Isn’t this the second Saturday in a row you’ve spent with the redhead?”

“Her name is Lisa, and yes it is.” He kicked off his shoes and stuck his feet on my coffee table. I’d given up on asking him not to. “We actually met in Broomfield on Wednesday, too. And we’ve been talking on the phone.”

“You hate talking on the phone.”

Drew shrugged. “I usually do.” A slow smile spread across his face. “But I’ve been talking to Lisa for at least an hour every night.”

“Does Michelle know she’s already been replaced?”

“Michelle went a little crazy. She kept coming to the house and yelling at me. She told me I was a loser who still lived at home and went on and on about how stupid I was. So then I was like, ‘If I’m a loser, why do you want me?’ Then she cried and begged me to take her back.” Drew shook his head. “Finally I just had to tell her, making sure I jabbed hard enough for her to get the point, that we were over and there was no chance of ever getting back together. Then she went all Fatal Attraction on me.”

“She boiled your bunny?”

“She keyed my truck.”

I shook my head. “You sure know how to pick them.”

“Lisa’s different, though.”

“Until you dump her and you learn how crazy she really is.” If there was a mentally unstable girl, Drew was drawn to her. For about two to three months.

“She won’t. In fact, she’ll probably dump me, and I’ll be the one who calls her at all hours of the day, begging for a second chance.” Drew leaned forward, propping his forearms on his knees. “So what’s going on with you?”

“I’m kind of dating this guy. Keeping it light, that kind of thing. Oh, and I got one of Anthony’s friends punched in the face while we were at a bar.”

“And you say I’m trouble.” Drew nudged me with his elbow. “Tell me about the fight. You get any hits in?”

“I wish.” I told Drew the story, then grabbed my phone off the table and showed him the picture of Karl’s black eye. “His job is about peacefully resolving things, and he had to walk in looking like this.”

“But this isn’t the guy you’re dating?”

I shook my head. “No, this guy’s just a… I guess he’s a friend now.”

“So when do I get to meet your boyfriend? I’ve got to see if he’s good enough. That’s a brother’s job, you know.”

I set my phone down. “One, he’s not my boyfriend. And two, you and Devin seem to think it’s your job to torture my boyfriends.”

“That’s ’cause you always date city boys who can’t take a joke. I don’t think you’ve had a decent boyfriend yet. Except Gil, and that was forever ago.”

“Thanks for rubbing it in, jerkface.” I scooted to the edge of the couch. “Let’s go get something to eat, I’m starving.”

Drew took his feet off my coffee table and slipped on his shoes. “After, let’s go to the mall and you can help me pick out a shirt. Just nothing too prissy. I want to impress Lisa, not have her question my sexuality.”

I stared at Drew, thinking I must have misheard him. “You’re going to let me pick out a shirt for you? Hmm. Maybe there really is something different about this girl.”

“Damn straight.”

My phone rang. “I bet that’s the devil, calling to tell me he’s freezing his ass off.”

It wasn’t actually Lucifer. Just a charming guy with devilish good looks, calling to ask me what I was doing tomorrow night.