A House Divided by Donna Hill

Author:Donna Hill [Hill, Donna]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Kensington
Published: 2017-05-03T04:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 15

Jackson figured he was taking a risk by inviting Zoie to the place where they’d met. His hope was that maybe, surrounded by the good memories, they could find their way back. He wasn’t naïve enough to believe that Z would miss the irony of his choice, but he hoped she would see it as his clumsy way of saying he was sorry for being an asshole and letting her go in the first place. But, with Zoie, anything was possible.

She did say that she didn’t have much in the way of clothing, so he toned down his usual suit and tie to black denim and a fitted black T-shirt. He considered a sport jacket but decided against it.

* * *

Driving over to Le Grille, he had a serious bout of nerves, as though he was going on a first date with the high school prom queen. His palms were damp, and his stomach was in a knot. The first thing on his agenda when he hit the restaurant was to get a quick drink.

He pulled up on the street next to Le Grille, then drove behind the building to the parking lot in back. When he’d walked around front, he checked the time. He was ten minutes early. Rather than stand outside and look as anxious as he felt, he went in and headed to the bar. He ordered a Jack Daniel’s straight up and slowly began to unwind while he listened to the live band.

As he sipped his drink, his thoughts ran through a montage of outcomes for the evening. Knowing Zoie the way he did, the night could go in a variety of directions. She could be indifferent, or she could be open to possibilities. His goal was to lay everything on the table, up to and including his relationship with Lena—well, now the lack of one. He needed Zoie to understand that while he was committed to Lena, he could not betray her trust.

“You started without me.”

Jackson turned on the barstool to see Zoie standing behind him. Seeing her in all her lushness sent a jolt of electricity through his system. Even in a pair of jeans and a T-shirt she was fine.

“Hey.” He stood and without thinking went to kiss her on the cheek, but she turned her head at the last second, and their lips met instead.

Zoie smiled, walked around him, and eased onto the stool next to him. She placed her purse on the bar. “Jack Daniel’s?” she asked knowingly.

“You remembered.”

“I remember a lot of things, Jax.”

“Not all bad.”

“No. You’re right. Not everything that I remember about us was bad.”

“I hope you don’t mind that I picked Le Grille.”

She laughed lightly. “If nothing else, Jax, you’re transparent.”

When she looked at him, the light caught her eyes, and they seemed to actually sparkle. This was the Zoie he wanted to remember. The one who laughed and teased and was so totally unaware of how crazy sexy she was.

“You want to order something or get a table?”

“Let’s get a table.

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