Joneses – 18.1 Drunk Man’s Tales

Every time Mary stepped outside and caught a glimpse of the Pancakes residence, her mood sullied at the memory of how catty Eliza had been. Knowing she always minded everyone else’s business, Mary never thought she would stoop that low. Luckily, she hadn’t said anything everyone else didn’t already know, but what if they didn’t? Eliza would have blown her cover and embarrassed her in front of the entire neighborhood!

Mary wasn’t the type to seek vengeance, but part of her wanted to quit her job to sever all ties with that woman in case she had more tricks up her sleeve. But, Mary liked her job. It really was perfect for her, and she hated that Eliza had been the one to suggest it. Besides, quitting without a backup plan or another job lined up would be foolish. John still paid child support faithfully every two weeks, so she wouldn’t be completely in the hole, but depending on his money begged for trouble. Besides, now that she had a few promotions under her belt, she only used half of the child support for household expenses. The other half she saved for Phoenix’s young adult birthday.

It was 6:47 in the morning, and she had a busy day ahead. The last thing she needed was to let Reed wind her up. She took a deep breath and cleared her throat to stay in character.

“Good morning, Mr. Keller,” she said in her business voice.

He chuckled. “Mr. Keller? I feel like I’ve been demoted.”

His voice was smooth like a newborns’ skin. Staying professional with such pleasantness in her ear proved difficult. “Why are you calling so early?”

“Because I knew you’d be up…”

Miles away in Oasis Springs, she could see his face so clearly. His icy blue eyes narrowed slightly, piercing through her soul. Those soft, luscious lips accompanied them and were fixed in a sexy smirk. Shaking off the image, she tensed every muscle in her body in order to maintain focus.

“…and I wanted to catch you before you got busy.”

“Is there something you need?”

“Heh, more like something I want.”

She could have kicked herself for leaving that door wide open for him.

“If you don’t have plans later, we should get together.”

She’d been expecting that for a while and was surprised he waited so long to ask her out though she appreciated his patience. He probably gave her space to consider how she felt about rekindling their friendship and possibly going back to the way they were before John ruined their perfectly good relationship. But, going backward was not smart. They were both different people now, and he was still stuck on a teenage dream and needed to let it go.

She closed her eyes and let out all the air in her lungs as she prepared to let him down gently. “Reed…I do not think that is a good idea.”

“Oh? You were keen the other week.”

“I was under the influence!”

He chuckled again as if she had opened another door he was about to waltz through. This guy had a witty response for everything! It was aggravating…and she enjoyed it.

“A drunk man tells no tales, Mary Jones. Think about that. I’ll talk to you soon.”