Hard To Leave (The Hard Series Book 3) Read online

  She shook her head, smiling as the bartender placed her fresh margarita in front of her. She brought it to her lips and licked a bit of salt off the rim, causing my dick to stir. Just as she was about to respond, I felt a hand clasp my shoulder and kill the mood.

  “Hey, pal,” Caden said, interrupting the progress I was making. He had the worst fucking timing in the world. “I thought maybe you got lost. I was about to start a search party for you.”

  “I’m just going to be a few more minutes.” I sent him a pleading look and prayed he wouldn’t kill my chance with her.

  He cleared his throat and tilted his head to our table. Both Olivia and Mila were staring at me and not looking too happy. Caden leaned into my ear. “Don’t fucking cockblock me tonight. I’m going to be on the road for the next two weeks. I need this pussy tonight.”

  I closed my eyes, suddenly hating my cousin. “I’m sorry. I’m here with some friends, and I should get back to my table.” Okay, it was a lie, so sue me. There was no way I was telling her I was here on a date with someone else.

  “Oh,” she said, seeming a little disappointed but quickly recovered as she addressed Caden. “That’s okay. Hi, I’m Chloe. This is my friend, Carly.”

  Caden gave her an appreciative once-over, his eyes lingering a bit longer than I liked. “Nice to meet you both,” he said, using that voice that I was all too familiar with. It was his ‘I’m interested’ voice. We would be having a chat later.

  I shoved my hands into my pants pockets, wishing I didn’t have to leave. “I really wish I could stay and hang out with you. Can I at least get your number?” I asked, not wanting this conversation to end without there being a way for me to get in touch with her. I pulled my phone out, ready to program her number.

  “Jack, dude. We’ve got ladies waiting.” Caden jerked his head sideways toward our table. Chloe followed his trail.

  She gasped. “Oh my God; you’re on a date!” She straightened up, pinning me with a gaze that said what the fuck. My cousin was dead.

  “I’m sorry. I wish I wasn’t,” I said, hanging onto her stare, not wanting to break our connection. I wanted her to believe me, but there was no way I was going to be able to walk away without looking like a total douche. I knew she already thought I was a player, and this certainly didn’t help my case.

  She waved her hand in the air like we were pesky mosquitoes and immediately dismissed us. “Please don’t let me keep you.” She turned to my cousin and forced a smile that I knew was fake. “It was nice meeting you, Caden.” She shot me an icy stare that had my balls shivering up. “Mr. Jenson, enjoy your evening.”

  She turned around in her stool like she couldn’t get away from me fast enough. Our moment was gone. I didn’t get her number, and I was going to kick my cousin’s ass later when we got home.

  Chapter 3

  Chloe

  “So, let me get this straight,” Kristen said, throwing her pen on the counter. “He hit on you when he was on a date?” She let out a loud laugh but caught herself. “Like, with another woman.”

  I kept my back to hers while I continued to roll the silverware into the white napkins. “Yup,” I said, trying to distract myself and not let on how much it bothered me that I didn’t follow my instincts about him.

  “Damn, if that doesn’t scream man-whore, then I don’t know what does.” Her voice softened as she added extra sugar to her coffee. “I’m sorry, Chloe. I kind of pushed him on you when he came in here.”

  “Please, I might have had a tiny,” I stopped and inched my fingers to demonstrate how small it was, “moment of weakness, but thank God it was so short lived.”

  The bell over the door chimed, and Kristen’s eyes grew wide with surprise. “Um, it’s a good thing you feel that way because he just walked in,” she whispered quietly.

  My body stiffened, and then my back went completely straight. Slowly, I turned around as he gave me a small wave. I rolled my eyes and looked at Kristen. “Do not let him sit in my section. I’m going to busy myself in the back. Let me know when he’s gone.”

  I hurried to the storage room behind the kitchen, trying to get as far away from the dining room and Jack as possible.

  I grabbed a pair of scissors and started cutting into the cardboard boxes that were just delivered. I unpacked the new salt and pepper shakers one by one and tried to ignore the buzz of excitement that was coursing through my nerves.

  Keeping busy was just what I needed. What I didn’t need was for Jack to flash me that lady-killer smile, the one that got my attention last night. It shouldn’t have bothered me so much that he was on a date and it only irritated me even more that it did.

  I should have just let go, and put aside my confusing feelings. Instead, I did the last thing I should have done. I went home and stalked his Facebook page. I was pathetic. As it turned out, his profile was private, so I didn’t get to uncover too much while snooping. However, his Twitter account was a whole other story. And looking him up online ended up being a BIG mistake.

  I knew nothing about Twitter. You might as well just speak to me in a different language. I was so excited to stumble upon his account that I accidentally clicked a button and started following him. Between my lack of Twitter knowledge and the number of drinks I consumed last night, I couldn’t figure out how to unfollow him. And based on how many times a day he tweets, he probably got the notification before I even had a chance to log out of my account. An account I didn’t even use.

  My morning would have been a lot less stressful if I had just stayed off the internet last night.

  It didn’t take long for Kristen to find me. “Here,” she said, holding out her hand. “He wanted me to give this to you.”

  My eyes narrowed, and I stopped and stared at what looked like a business card. “Whatever the hell it is, I don’t want it.”

  She placed her black painted fingernails on her hip. “Aren’t you even curious as to what it is?” she asked.

  I was curious as hell, but I wasn’t going to admit it. All I knew was that the mere sight of that man had me running in the other direction.

  “Nope.” I shook my head back and forth like a child refusing to eat her vegetables.

  “Liar.” She practically shoved the card in my face. “It has his personal cell on the back. For what it’s worth, I think he really likes you.” Her gaze got all gooey.

  I stood up and dusted off my shorts. Yes, I felt a connection to him, but I couldn’t ignore all the warning signs.

  “Seriously? He’s a player. What happened to him being a man-whore?”

  She shrugged her shoulders. It was obvious she had changed her mind about him. “He can be very persuasive. I can see how you had a moment of weakness.

  She really needed to work on her “guy-dar.” She was too easily persuaded. I waved her off. “Well, if he’s so great, then by all means, keep his number for yourself.”

  “I would if I thought I had a chance. He seems pretty determined to get to you. I think he really likes you.”

  I scoffed. “He doesn’t even know me. We’ve talked for like fifteen minutes, tops. He’s like a child who doesn’t like being told no.”

  “Well, maybe you should go tell him no yourself.” Her gray eyes challenged me. “That is if you think you’ve got enough bullets to keep shooting him down.”

  My head cocked to the side. Challenge accepted. I snatched the paper card out of her hands and stormed toward the dining room. The heels of my shoes smacked across the tile floor, clicking loudly like a woman on a mission. There was no need to pretend that this was anything more than it wasn’t.

  I wasn’t going to let him get to me. I wasn’t going to let him flirt with me. I would kindly tell him that I wasn’t interested and send him on his merry little way.

  I ran my hands down my wrinkled shirt, thanks to my iron shitting the bed this morning, and smooth down my hair. My patience was hanging on by a thread, but as soon as my eyes landed on Jack, I blinked and took a minute to admire
him.

  Damn it!

  My first thought was, Why did he have to go and look so damn sexy? He was wearing a long sleeve, black Henley that was so tight I could see the shape of his toned muscles underneath, and a pair of light blue designer jeans that looked like they were designed just to torture me.

  He grinned as I approached. “I’m sorry, but I can’t accept this.” I stuck my arm out, trying to give him back the small business card.

  He took a sip of his coffee and studied me. “Why’s that?”

  “Because I don’t date customers. I apologize if I had you thinking otherwise.”

  He looked at me as if he could see right through my bullshit. “Fine, then I’ll stop eating here. Now I’m not a customer. Problem solved.”

  I closed my eyes. I didn’t need his playfulness this morning. Not when I was trying hard to stay composed and in control.

  “I’m sorry Jack, but I don’t want your number. You seem like a nice guy and all, but my answer is still no.”

  I told myself that this was for the best, but by the way his eyes raked over me, it didn’t feel that way at all.

  “Is this because of last night?”

  “Kind of,” I told him honestly. “I’m not your type of girl.”

  “Really? What exactly is my type?” he asked, knowing I didn’t have the guts to answer him.

  “I didn’t mean for it to come out that way.” His stare was taunting me to the point of weakness, and all I wanted to do was shake off these unwanted feelings. “I don’t know what your type is, but I know it’s not me.”

  Jack Jenson was nothing more than a rich playboy. As charming as he was, I had nothing to offer him, and as far as I was concerned, I was doing us both a favor.

  After watching him last night at the bar, I couldn’t help but feel a pang of jealousy in my stomach every time I glanced over at his date. I wanted to ask him if he went home with her or if he planned on seeing her again. Which was crazy, because I barely knew him. We weren’t friends. Hell, I had only met him twice, but there was a connection there that I couldn’t deny. And it bugged me that I spent the whole night thinking about him when he was giving his time to someone else.

  He sat back in his seat—his broad chest and thick biceps practically took up the entire space. “Why don’t you let me be the judge of that?”

  “I’m sorry, the answer is still no.” He watched me closely. My body felt trapped in a strange limbo. I was torn between giving in and running as far away from this man as I could. “Kristen can take your order if you still want to stay.” I forced a smile and walked away to get ready for my shift.

  This was for the best, I reminded myself.

  By the time I made it to my locker, I was perplexed. Jack made me nervous. My life needed too much focus and structure to let a man like Jack Jenson rattle it. He probably swept through bedrooms like Santa dropped presents off on Christmas Eve. He was all about the challenge. Men like him only wanted things they couldn’t have. If I were a little younger, with less responsibility, I might have entertained the idea. But that wasn’t my reality.

  I was a twenty-six-year-old single mom, with a seven-year-old son, working at a diner in a small town. My free time consisted of cooking, cleaning, and helping Tanner with school work. Jack, on the other hand, had the world at his fingertips. He probably treated it as his own personal playground.

  When I walked back out into the dining room, I should have felt relief when I saw that he was gone. Yet, a sense of sadness swept over me. I wondered if I would ever see him again.

  My feet moved on autopilot for the next eight hours as I greeted customers and delivered food. I found myself looking at the door every time someone would walk through.

  I brought the change to my last customer. “Thank you. Enjoy the rest of your day.”

  I walked over to the counter and reached for my purse, pulling out my phone. My hands flew over the keyboard, letting Donna know that I would be on my way to pick up Tanner. She was a neighbor who lived on the end of my street and offered to watch him while I worked. It helped that her son Anthony was the same age.

  I pushed open the door and walked across the parking lot and stopped dead in my tracks.

  Jack was leaning against a Jeep Wrangler that probably cost more than I made in two years. He had his hands shoved in the front pockets of his jeans, and his long legs stretched out in front of him like he didn’t have a care in the world. I bet he never had a moment in his life where he doubted how he looked. Unlike me who stood there staring at him in my wrinkled uniform after coming off an eight-hour shift.

  He pushed himself off the jeep. “Hey there.”

  “Hello again.” I tried to keep my voice neutral. My heart, however, was thundering in my chest. His blue eyes held mine, almost willing me to look away.

  “I’m sorry if you got the wrong impression of me at the bar last night.” I kept my eyes trained on his. Surely he understood flirting with a woman while out on a date with another was not only rude and disrespectful to both women, but a douchebag thing to do.

  I played with the strap of my purse around my shoulder, needing something to focus on. “Your personal life is your business, Jack.”

  “If I had known that you were going to be there, I would have shown up by myself. ”

  He winked as if that was supposed to make me feel better.

  “Jack, I’m flattered, really, but I’m not sure what you want from me.” I looked across the parking lot as the breeze whipped my hair around. The clouds were rolling in with the tide, reminding me that I really needed to get home.

  “I’ll tell you what I want. I want to take you out. I’ll even make a deal with you. If you agree to go out with me, and if it’s as terrible as you think it will be, I’ll never step foot in that restaurant again.”

  He smiled, looking pleased with himself.

  “I hope you’re not in sales because that’s the worst pitch I’ve ever heard.” I laughed, and he followed along with me.

  “I promise you, I’ve got other skills that will impress you.”

  I sucked in a breath.

  My eyes searched the heavens above, asking for a sign. He was slowly finding cracks and making his way through my walls. He was making me feel things I knew I shouldn’t be. I’ve had many men flirt with me, but I never let them get to me. What was so different about him?

  My phone rang, interrupting our conversation like God had tried to answer my prayers. My face lit up when I saw Tanner’s number flash across the screen. He had a little Tracfone so he could reach me when he needed to. “Hey honey, I’m on my way home.”

  “Okay, Mom. I just wanted you to know that Donna made us chocolate chip cookies but said I couldn’t eat them until after dinner. So I just wanted you to hurry home.” I smiled, picturing his sweet little face. He was probably siting at the kitchen counter starting at the plate of cookies trying to figure out a way to sneak one when no one was looking.

  “I’m on my way. Love you.”

  I could hear the excitement in his voice when he said into the phone, “Love you, too, Mom.” And then he hung up, leaving a goofy grin on my face.

  “I sure do hope that was Grandma calling.”

  “That was Tanner.” I paused. “My son.”

  His head jerked back just like I thought it would. “Your son?” he asked in disbelief.

  “Yes. Now, do you see why this won’t work?”

  He looked confused. “What are you talking about?”

  “Us.” I sighed

  Being a single mom was hard and lonely at times, but my son’s needs came before anything else. If this were a perfect world, and if I were available, I would have said yes to Jack in a heartbeat. But my life was anything but perfect. Our timing just wasn’t right.

  He pressed his lips together. He looked like he had a million questions on the tip of his tongue. “Are you separated? Going through a divorce?”

  “No.” I swallowed nervously and looked away.


  “Then what’s the problem?”

  “The problem is…” I paused, willing the words to fall from my mouth. There were a million reasons why this wasn’t a good idea. I just couldn’t think of one.

  A smirk played on his lips. He knew he had me at that moment. I tried to peel my eyes away from his, but it was useless. I considered everything that could go wrong. Then I reminded myself that this was just one date. There didn’t have to be any expectations. We didn’t have to make any promises.

  Just enjoy each other’s company for one night.

  “Fine,” I said, hoping I could remember how to have a good time. My life had been so wrapped up in work and raising my son that I wanted one night to unwind and have fun. If anyone could give me that, it was Jack. “One date.”

  He cocked his head to the side. His eyes shined with playfulness. “I’ll think about it.”

  “Are you always this big of a pain in the ass?” I asked, breaking out into a full-blown smile.

  “We haven’t even had our first date yet, and you’re already talking about my ass.”

  The grin on my face dimmed when he took a step toward me. My heart beat loudly in my chest. Jack from a distance was charming; Jack up close was intoxicating.

  My hand shook as he handed me his cell phone. He was so close, it was almost impossible to think straight. I nervously programmed my number into his phone. I could feel his gaze on me as I looked down to the ground and handed it back to him.

  His strong fingers reached under my chin and lifted it to meet his eyes. “Thank you for giving me a chance. I promise you won’t regret it.”

  And with that, he turned and stepped into his big off-roader and drove away.

  Once I got in my little Maxima, I banged my head on the steering wheel. Reentering the dating world would be a hell of a lot easier if I hadn’t been single for so long. As much as I wanted to get my feet wet again, I was afraid of what would happen if I wasn’t ready.

  Something told me Jack Jenson was not the kind of guy I wanted to test the waters with. In fact, he was the exact opposite. I needed someone stable and a little bit more mature. Not that I was being judgy because he was handsome, charming, and financially well off. I’m sure he had a stable career, but the problem was, he seemed to have too much free time on his hands. He screamed I’m a good time only. Let’s have fun and fuck so I can show you how good I am and we’ll go our separate ways. And if I was lucky enough, maybe I’d get a booty call whenever he passed through town.