Jules
“So?” Olly smiled. “What do you think?”
“Um, about what?” I didn’t mean to scowl, but I honestly wasn’t for sure what he was talking about. “Those strawberries?” Which looked amazing.
“No…” Right as he attempted to say more, someone yelled his name.
“Oh my word. Olly.” A woman said from behind me.
“Lucy.” His eyes went wide, and he glanced over my shoulder and back at me. “Um…”
“Oh, shit. Am I interrupting you?” She touched her hand to my shoulder.
“What? No.” I smiled at the woman and looked back toward Olly. “I was just heading out.” It was obvious by Olly’s expression that he felt uncomfortable. I figured it would be easier if I left. “We can talk later.” I tried to send a message with my eyes to let him know we weren’t done talking.
“I need to drop off some produce, so maybe we can grab lunch later.” He nodded.
“Oh, bummer.” The woman pouted. “I was going to see if you’re free so we could catch up.”
“Bring some of the strawberries if you have enough; the customers would love them.” I reached over and grabbed one from the box he was holding.
A part of me wanted to lie and tell Olly I was busy at lunch, but instead, I smiled and took a bite of the strawberry while walking away.
The truth was, I wanted to have lunch with him.
My car was parked about a block away. Even from that distance, I could still hear the woman talking to Olly. Her voice carried. Right before I turned the corner toward the parking lot, I heard her say, “Is that your girlfriend? Did I miss my chance?” Then she laughed. Well, it was more like a cackle.
The best example I could think of to describe her laugh was Janice from the TV show Friends.
It was very loud.
Stacy was standing by the entrance to the market when I arrived. “Wait, why are you here?”
“I co-own the place with you, remember.” I shook my head. “Hi, Dan. It’s good to see you.” He was a regular who was there almost every day.
“See you tomorrow, Dan.” Stacy touched her hand to his arm in a kind gesture. Then she wrapped her arm around my bicep and walked inside with me. “Talk.”
“About? Oh, Olly will be bringing some produce by, and I asked him to bring some strawberries.” I touched my hand to my stomach. “I tried one, they’re so sweet and juicy. The customers will love them.”
“What are you doing?” Once we were inside, she stepped away and turned to face me.
“Some woman showed up and sounded so excited to see Olly.” I stepped around Stacy and took a few steps in an attempt to head toward my office. “So I left.”
“You’re going to let that woman win.” She ran up beside me and bumped her shoulder against mine.
“It’s not about winning or losing, Stacy.” I rolled my eyes. “She appeared and dominated the conversation.”
“Did he say anything to you?”
“I think we’re having lunch today.” I stepped around my desk and sat down. “If that woman doesn’t change his mind.”
Stacy seemed so distressed. She was shaking her head as she left my office. It was really funny.
I didn’t feel worried, though. My woman’s instincts were telling me I wouldn’t be eating alone for lunch.
I glanced at the clock, 10:30. There were still a few hours until lunch, and I had invoices to tend to.
A little while later…
“Jules.” The low voice said my name from the doorway. I recognized the voice immediately and lifted my head from the invoice I had been working on.
“Ryan.” I leaned back in my chair. “How are you doing?”
“Good.” He leaned his shoulder against the doorframe. “Stacy mentioned we have local produce coming in today. Do you want me to place the items in our usual spot by the door?”
“If Olly brings enough, I only want the strawberries near the front door.” I spun a pen around with my thumb and index finger. “It’s peak season and they’re so good.”
“Oh, great. They’ll sell fast, too.” He smiled and turned to leave.
“Hey.” He stopped and looked over at me. “How are you and Lola doing?” It didn’t matter if he answered or not, as his face immediately turned red. “That good, eh?”
He dropped his head. “Yes.” He smiled and walked away.
I burst out laughing and grabbed a piece of paper to fan myself. “Wow.”
“What happened?” Olly was now standing in the doorway.
“Have you talked to your sister lately?” I rested my forearms on the desk
“Um, no, should I?” He sat down on a chair opposite me.
“It’s just a hunch, but I have a feeling they’re very happy.” I winked. “Wait, it’s not lunch time yet, does that mean you need to take a raincheck today?”
“What? No.” He stood and walked around my desk. “I just dropped off the produce, and that included two flats of strawberries.”
“Nice. They’ll sell in seconds, I bet.” I stood because it felt weird looking up to talk to him. “And?”
“And, I wanted to apologize.” He grabbed my hand.
“You have nothing to apologize for.” I squeezed his hand. “An old friend or girlfriend showed up unannounced. Not a big deal.”
“True, but I didn’t get to finish our conversation.” He brushed a strand of hair away from my face.
“What didn’t we finish?” I knew what he was talking about, but it was more fun playing dumb.
“What is your answer to the text message I sent you last night?”
“Can you refresh my memory?” I winked.
“Jules, will you go on a second date with me?”
“Oh, that. I remember now.” I rested my hand on his chest. “Yes.”
“Yes?”
“Yup. Do you have something special planned for this date?”
“I haven’t gotten that far yet.” He rested his hand over mine. “Any suggestions?”
AUTHOR NOTE:
I’m cracking up because I can hear Lucy’s laugh from a block away. I wonder if she’ll make more of an appearance in the future? You’ll have to decide that for me. She did seem bummed when she realized Jules was potentially Olly’s girlfriend.
Okay, finally, that second date is happening. I heard Italian dinner ideas, or should they have something else?