Been There Done That (Leffersbee #1) - Hope Ellis Page 0,34

“And whose fault is that?”

I grinned, rolling my eyes, taking him in as he settled his broad shoulders against the cab and stretching his long legs in front of him. Jackson was definitely a looker. He’d come a long way since our high school days, when classmates called him “shrimp,” “metal mouth,” and “pizza face.” Those classmates were jerks, scum. Bottom dwellers. I’d always appreciated all versions of him.

Anyway, Jackson may not have peaked in high school, but he’d roared into his college years with a vengeance. I took in his flawless tan complexion, warm brown eyes, and close-cropped blond hair, thinking he still had a certain swagger even outside of his deputy uniform.

“Like what you see, right?” Jackson gave me a lecherous wink as he opened the Styrofoam container on his lap. “You could be riding this ride, sweetheart. You’re the only reason you’re not.” He kept his voice light, like it was all a joke, but I knew there was an undercurrent of truth in his words.

We’d been pretending, playacting, for a long while now. This agreement between us was mutually beneficial: his parents stopped harassing him about when he was going to settle down with a nice girl and my parents stopped harassing me about working too much or having no time for a personal life.

The idea had been borrowed from my cousin, Dani Payton, and her multi-year engagement to Billy Winston. After their engagement was broken, it became abundantly clear that the relationship had been entirely for show, a ruse to make both appear more settled, respectable, dependable, trustworthy in their chosen fields. It had also diverted attention away from their personal lives. It had worked.

And if it worked for them, then . . .

I sighed deeply, resting my head against the lip of the truck and stretching my legs out parallel to his. “I have no doubt it’s a thrilling ride.”

“Really? No doubt?”

“It’s just . . .” I felt myself frown. “I don’t know. It’s complicated.”

“It’s never easy with you, Zora.” His gaze skated over me. “That’s your problem. You’d be a lot happier in life if you learned how to just take what you want without questioning everything.” He shook his head when I opened my mouth to object. “Eat your food before it gets cold.”

I popped the top, discovering beautifully braised lamb chops bathing in their own juices. Stalks of asparagus and a pillowy biscuit resided alongside.

“Thank you so much, Jackson,” I said, strangely feeling a tickle in the back of my throat. “For getting dinner, for making time for me on your rare Friday night off—”

“You brought the fried chicken last time, and I know how you hate fried chicken. This wasn’t a hardship.”

“That’s not the point,” I sniffed. “I just appreciate this, and you.”

“Hell, we’re almost married, according to half the town,” he said around a mouthful of steak. “You deserve something, don’t you? Well, if you won’t let me buy you a ring, have some meat.”

Our gazes met and we both collapsed into laughter.

“You’re perfect for me, Zora.” Jackson’s soft smile made me want to hug him. He loosely braceleted my ankle with his thumb and forefinger and gave my leg a gentle shake. “You’re the only woman I know who would get teary over lamb chops while barely looking at roses.”

“I loved the roses,” I protested. “And it’s the thought I care about, the effort you put into doing this when we’re both already tired. But you know how I feel about lamb chops. They’re meat lollipops.”

Jackson’s eyes narrowed as I slid the first one in my mouth. “Right. Meat lollipops. This is definitely one of those moments when I wonder why we haven’t had a bedroom rodeo yet.”

“Because you keep calling yourself ‘Daddy,’” I teased.

“He saw the text, though, didn’t he?” He looked insufferably smug as he forked up green beans.

Yesterday, I’d filled Jackson in about Nick being back in town as well as an overview of our first encounter. I knew that Jackson would hear the news of Nick’s return from someone, and I didn’t want him worrying that ‘Mr. Rossi’s’ sudden reappearance would jeopardize Jackson’s agreement with me. But I hadn’t told Jackson about today’s morning meeting yet.

Looking up at my continued silence, Jackson pushed, “He saw it, didn’t he?”

“How did you know that?”

“Because I know you. You told me what time you were meeting. And you don’t have it in you to ignore text messages and phone calls. You always look as soon as they