Page 39 of Close to Heaven

“Who is she?”

“Who is who?”

Avery laughed at their exchange.

“You only wear cologne around women, so who is she?”

“Fine, you caught me. I’m going out with Jessie tonight.”

“Is she the woman from the bar?” Avery asked.

“Yep.”

“What a coincidence. Dakota’s going out tonight too.”

“With that military dude?”

Dakota rolled her eyes. “His name is Marcus, and yes.”

“Way to go, sis!” He held up his hand for a high five.

Avery watched their interaction with a touch of envy—not only because they both had dates tonight but because of the love and support they gave each other as siblings.

Then Cody turned his attention to her. “Wait a minute. Are you going to be alone tonight?”

“Would you two stop worrying about me? I’ll be fine.” If she kept saying it, maybe she’d believe it.

“You could hook up with Jax,” Cody said.

“Huh?” Her eyes went wide, and Cody laughed.

“Not that kind of hook-up. I meant for dinner. He’s probably alone tonight too.”

I’m sure he prefers it that way, she thought. “Thanks for the suggestion, but I’m just going to order a pizza and watch a movie.”

“Okay. Well, I better get going. Whatever you do, have fun.”

“You too,” Avery said.

He nodded and sauntered out the door.

“It’s not a bad idea, you know,” Dakota said.

“What isn’t?”

“You having dinner with Jax.”

Is she crazy? It’s a horrible idea! “I don’t think so.”

“Why not?”

Where do I begin? “He’s my employer, not my babysitter.”

“I’m sure he wouldn’t mind.”

“He probably has better things to do.”

Dakota shook her head. “All he does is work and go hiking. He could use some companionship once in a while.”