Fake It Till You Bake It(50)
“That’s the sweetest thing I’ve ever heard,” Jada said.
His mom nodded. “I’ve never been prouder of him than I was at that moment. I knew what kind of man he was destined to be, and he’s done nothing but prove me right. He’s been taking care of his family and friends ever since, including opening this store because it’s what his friends wanted and needed.” She glanced down at their entwined hands, then stood. “Well, I think we’ve monopolized enough of your time.”
Donovan walked his mom and sisters to the door. At the entrance, Sandra stopped and patted him on the cheek. “I found out what I came to find out.”
His eyebrows lifted. “Which was?”
His mom touched his arm, her voice and face going serious. “If Jada is good for you. She is. She has a good sense of humor and cares about you. Makes you think about something other than your contract negotiation and shop sales. There is more to life than money. Don’t let her get away.”
With unerring accuracy, Donovan zeroed in on the woman in question. She was standing at the counter, laughing at something Ella had said, her whole body involved in the endeavor, head thrown back, shoulders shaking. Holding back wasn’t Jada’s way. His lips quirked. For good or bad. She’d certainly turned his world on its head. Maybe that wasn’t such a bad thing.
Chapter Fourteen
What the hell? Donovan wasn’t sure his jaw could be picked up. It had to be permanently cemented to the ground.
When he’d agreed to hosting events to bring in new business, he’d had no idea that would lead to pearls, dildos, vibrators, and fake penises hanging on the Sugar Blitz walls. Jada. This new decor had her fingerprints all over it.
Where was she?
He about-faced and headed to the kitchen, where he’d last seen her.
On his way, Donovan paused outside the supply closet. Light spilled from under the closed door. He cocked his ear toward the door. Maybe someone was inside, but he didn’t hear anything. Nicholas had probably forgotten to turn off the light. But Donovan paid the bills around here. There would be no wasted energy on his watch.
He grabbed the key from his office, unlocked the door, stepped inside, and felt along the wall for the light switch as the door shut behind him. His fingers had closed around the switch when a flash of movement flickered in his periphery. Donovan turned, peering into the room.
Jada was huddled in the back corner, looking for all the world like she was trying to disappear into the red brick wall behind her.
He frowned, moving closer to her, unable to stop himself, a fate that was becoming all too familiar to him. “What are you doing in here? Are you okay?”
She stepped away from the wall, lifting her stubborn chin, clearly determined to give a convincing performance. She threw a defiant look his way. “Yes.”
Too bad her voice quavered.
Worry and concern urged him closer. “For some reason, I don’t believe you. Are you hiding?”
She lifted her chin higher. “Of course I’m not hiding.”
He glanced around the room. “So you were looking for something?”
“Yep.” Quintessential Jada, always determined to brazen her way out of any situation.
He gave her the look that always sent pro athletes scurrying for cover. “Then what are you looking for?”
Her throat muscles worked up and down before she swung her gaze wildly around the room. “Um … sugar.”
“It’s right there.” He pointed to the shelf containing bags upon bags of sugar.
“Oh, thanks.” She tried to move around him, but he stopped her with a hand on her arm. She sucked in a breath at the light touch but didn’t pull away. Good, because he didn’t want to let go. But he made himself, his fingers sliding across her soft skin until he grasped nothing but air.
He peered deep into her eyes. “What’s going on?”
She shook her head, averting her gaze, obviously still unsure telling him was the right course of action.
“We could walk out of here without talking about it. Or you could use the sanctity of the supply closet to unburden yourself.”
That brought a small smile to her lips. “What happens in the supply closet stays in the supply closet?”
He spoke straight from his heart. “Absolutely. You can tell me anything.”
* * *
Jada opened her mouth to tell him it was nothing. But the look on his face stopped her. Like he cared and was ready to slay dragons for her. When was the last time anyone had looked at her like that? “Well, it’s just that I got to thinking about how the next event, my next event is starting in less than an hour, and what if it’s not successful?”
A vee appeared between his eyebrows. “The book club meeting was a success.”
Jada was already shaking her head. “That was a last-minute thing, so I didn’t have much time to let the nerves and what-ifs eat me alive. This is different. I’ve been planning this for a week.”
This was a bachelorette party/sexuality seminar for a professor from a local university, who apparently had a million friends, who were all set to descend on Sugar Blitz in thirty minutes. The professor, a frequent customer of Sugar Blitz, wanted to combine the shenanigans of a bachelorette party with a pseudo-conference designed to make sure her friends and loved ones were fully attuned to their own sexuality, and Jada had been tasked with making sure that happened.