Not Quite Dating(50)

Yeah, he had. But this was Jessie they were talking about.
“I’m going to forget we ever had this conversation.”
“Just trying to help.”
“Well, next time…don’t!” Jack hung up and tossed the phone on the counter.


Katelyn watched her brother wobble to the bathroom while talking on his cell phone. She waited until she heard the sound of water before reaching for her phone. She’d learned more of Jack’s story than he could possibly remember.
Arriving near midnight, Katie had found Jack sprawled on his sofa, moaning about his life. It took her hours to decipher it, but when she did, she knew she had to help.
Her brother was bonkers over this Jessie he had called out to repeatedly. From what Katie could tell, her brother had decided to find true love by keeping the truth of his wealth from the single mom. Then when the chips fell, the wise woman refused his proposal for fear he’d leave her when he decided to follow his dreams.
He even drove his old beat-up pickup truck he’d had since he was sixteen. No wonder Jessie said no.
“She thinks I’m a w-waiter, here at the hotel,” he’d said last night once Katie got him going. “A temporary holiday waiter.”
Katie wanted to reason with him, but knew he wouldn’t remember much, if any, of their conversation in the morning.
Jack had even showed her a picture he’d taken with his phone of Jessie and her son. The expression on Jessie’s face was one of pure devotion. Her son, Danny, had a beaming smile for the camera.
Katie had taken the time to jot down a few phone numbers he’d put in his phone. For later use, she’d told herself, justifying her invasion of his privacy.
But she knew better than to push a man. Her father was just as stubborn as Jack was, or maybe it was the other way around. Still, the two men had one very big thing in common. When they fell in love, they did it all the way. No second time around for either of them. Watching her father pine for her absentee mother for years had made Katie hate her mother more and more.
Katie wouldn’t allow her brother similar years of pain.
He was in a tight spot and needed to think.
He needed his little sister to watch his back until he could come up with his own way of fixing the problem.
Sure, Katie could call this Jessie lady up and tell her the truth about her brother, but who knows how that would go? If it went south, Katie and Jack’s relationship would be strained more than it was.
She missed her brother. Her own trials in recent life reminded her how much she needed the tiny family she had.
She called room service, ordered a high-protein breakfast for her brother, and then asked the manager of food services to meet her downstairs with the acting manager of the hotel.
She had a few things to cover before she and Jack jumped on the plane.
In the manager’s office, Katie asked the two people to sit. “I have a big favor to ask of both of you, a private favor that needs to be between the three of us.”
For the first time in months, Katie started to feel good about herself.


Monica stood beside her sister as they walked around the car lot full of shiny new chunks of machinery. Although Danny was feeling better, the cool day had made Jessie ask the neighbor to sit with him long enough for her to pick out a new car.
Something about the whole We burned your car so come on over and pick out another one thing bugged the crap out of Monica. If Jessie weren’t in such a funk, she’d be questioning the good fortune, too.
Nonetheless, they walked from cars to SUVs to trucks and discussed the merits of all the vehicles.
Mr. Gravis pointed out the attributes. “Navigation is a big thing right now. All the newer cars have hands-free Bluetooth connections for your cell phones, making it safer while on the road.”
“Fuel economy is more important than speed,” Jessie told the dealer.
“Do you like the hybrid?”
“I live in an apartment. Plugging it in would be a hassle,” Jessie told the man.
Monica hadn’t thought of that.
“Then a smaller engine with high miles to the gallon. You have a son, right?”
Jessie nodded.
“I think the crossover is perfect,” Monica said. “Room for five, plenty of storage in the back. The mileage is better than the bigger SUVs.” Monica led her sister over to the cars in question and opened the door of a blue one.
Jessie slid into the seat and placed her hands on the wheel. “It is nice.”
“Leather seats with heaters in them on the higher-end models, back-up cameras that display on the navigation system.” Mr. Gravis touted the car’s statistics while Monica climbed into the passenger seat.
“What do you think, Jessie?”
“I like it…”
“But?”
“The trucks are nice, too.”
Monica’s smile fell. Jack’s truck was old. Even now, Jessie was thinking about him. Monica put her hand over her sister’s. “This is your car. Jack isn’t here.”
“I know.” Jessie glanced around the interior of the car and shook her head. “I guess this would be a good pick.”
“Might I suggest something?” Mr. Gravis asked.
“Go ahead.”
“Long trips are made easier with the entertainment package for the kids in the car.”
Jessie cocked her head to the side. “The dealer wants me to have a completely loaded crossover?”
Mr. Gravis smiled and nodded.
Jessie glanced at Monica. “What do I have to lose?”
“Take it.”
Jessie glanced at the dealer and said, “Show me this car loaded up and I’ll take it on a test drive.”