Page 289 of 5+Us Makes Seven

“Yeah,” she said. “You too.”

“Hold on.”

I stepped to the street and hailed a cab for her.

“Thanks again,” she said as she got in the back.

“No problem. Talk to you soon.”

After I closed the door, I watched the driver pull away, merging with traffic. I thought briefly about heading to a nearby strip joint to blow off some steam, but with her on my mind, I decided against it.

She’ll come around, I told myself as I made my way home. We’ll finish what we started.

THIRTEEN

Jade

Back at the apartment after my dinner with Cooper, I wondered if I should have invited him over. My phone rang. I glanced at the screen and saw Max’s name. Ugh.

“Hey, Max,” I answered. “What’s up?”

“You never called me back about our second date. You’re not backing out on me, are you?”

“No, I’ve been busy with work and stuff.”

Tell him about Cooper and get it over with!

“How about tonight? We could grab a bite to eat.”

“It’s late,” I said, walking into my kitchen. “I’ll call you later in the week, okay?”

“What’s wrong? You didn’t like our first date?”

“It was fine, but I’ve got a lot going on right now.”

“Yeah, that’s what you said.”

Both of us fell silent for a few seconds.

“I’m going to go,” I said. “I’m getting ready for bed.”

“Alright. I’m not going to stop trying to get that second date.”

“You can keep trying, but I’m not making any promises.”

“Later on, Jade.”

He ended the call before I had a chance to say anything. Max had looked me up a week earlier, and I had gone on a date with him out of curiosity, wanting to get information on Cooper.

Now both men were interested in me, and I didn’t know what to do. In Afghanistan, I had leaned toward Cooper, but maybe that had been a mistake? Max was much easier to read.

After pouring myself a glass of water, I retired to my bedroom. It was early, but I did have to make it to work early the next day. My skills as an editor were in high demand.

I worked for a publisher of trashy romance novels, which was as far away from journalism as one could get. While I told myself I didn’t care what other people thought, none of my friends or family knew about the job.

As I laid under the covers, memories of that night in Afghanistan flooded my mind. We had been so close to fucking, taking our relationship to the next level. Had I been too hasty?

The look on his face after the explosion would always be etched in my memory. Why had both men come back into my life so suddenly? Was it a sign I should be with one of them? Which one?