Page 79 of Only You

“We slept together one time, and he thinks he owns me or something.”

Jack wasn’t surprised, but he didn’t want to get caught up in her drama. “You’ll be fine,” he said, but it was too late.

“Hey, Jack.” Tom clapped him hard on the back like they were good buddies when in fact, they hardly knew each other. Tom worked with another group, and his territory was on the west side of the state.

“Hey, Tom. How’s it going?” Jack said. Talk about feeling trapped.

“Better now,” Tom said, eyeing Gillian appreciatively.

“Great. Well, I’m going to mingle. See you two later.” Jack quickly moved away, ignoring Gillian’s protest. He spotted Kayla talking to Jim, and Grayson was milling nearby. Grayson kept glancing at Kayla, and Jack’s temper flared.

Jack approached them when Kayla said, “Excuse me for a moment.” Deflated, Jack watched her striding out of the ballroom, in search of the ladies’ room. With Kayla gone, Jack wasn’t eager to talk to his boss, or Grayson. But once again, he was trapped.

“Jack! We were just talking about you,” Jim said.

“Uh-oh. Am I in trouble?” he joked.

“I was just telling Grayson he should shadow you for a couple of days. He’s going to shadow Kayla too. I want him to learn from the best.”

Jack swallowed his dismay. “I appreciate the compliment.”

“I see someone I need to talk to. Why don’t you two work out some dates?” Jim walked away, leaving Jack and Grayson behind.

Jack shifted uncomfortably. “We don’t have to decide anything tonight. It’s supposed to be a party.”

“Fine by me. You can email me some dates that would work,” Grayson suggested.

“Sure,” Jack said.

“I do have a question for you though,” Grayson said.

“Shoot.”

Grayson leaned closer and lowered his voice. “It’s about Kayla.”

Jack tensed. “What about her?”

“I heard a rumor that you two are dating. Is it true?”

Jack glanced around, hoping nobody had overheard. He was more worried about Kayla’s reputation than his. Jack wanted to tell Grayson to mind his own business, but he had to work with the guy, so he tamped down his irritation. “No. We’re not dating.”

Grayson smiled. “Cool. I just wanted to check before I asked her out.”

Jack squeezed his cup too hard, and beer shot up and out, splattering his shirt and suit jacket. “Dammit!”

“Sorry, man. You should go take care of that,” Grayson said, looking amused.

Jack stalked off toward the restrooms, garnering a few curious glances on the way. Normally, he would have laughed it off, but he wasn’t in a humorous mood. As he strode down the hall to the men’s room, Kayla emerged from the ladies’ room.

She eyed his damp shirt and jacket. “What happened?”

“I spilled my drink,” he grumbled.

“Do you want to go home?” she asked.

More than you know. Before he could respond, Gillian approached them.

“Oh, Jack. There you are!” Gillian’s words slurred together, and her eyes were glazed over.