Total pages in book: 71
Estimated words: 69919 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 350(@200wpm)___ 280(@250wpm)___ 233(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 69919 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 350(@200wpm)___ 280(@250wpm)___ 233(@300wpm)
It was a risk I couldn’t take. Whatever the hell fetch was, Jolie and I were like that.
Never going to happen.
CHAPTER SIX
Jolie
Grandma G and I had started our monthly lunch dates when I was young. Back when my grandfather was alive and she’d still been driving. Until I was around twelve, our lunch dates consisted of an early movie and a late lunch, and we’d alternate who got to pick the movie. As I moved into my teens, we’d sometimes substitute shopping for the movie, and once she even went roller-skating with me and my friends.
She’d slowed down a lot in the last five or six years, but I still enjoyed the hell out of our time together.
I hadn’t thought we’d get together this month because of the wedding and everything else, but when she’d called yesterday, I’d been happy to make time for her. She waved as I pulled up to the front of the building she lived in and she hopped into my Jeep like she owned it.
“Hi.” She leaned over and kissed my cheek.
“I love that scarf,” I told her, referring to the long, red-and-purple scarf with an abstract design.
“Thank you. Your father brought it back for me from Iceland when he and your mother went a couple of years ago.”
“I didn’t even get a gift from that trip,” I said, laughing as I put the Jeep in gear.
“Well, I guess we know who your dad’s favorite mom is,” she quipped.
“No doubt about that.”
“How are you doing, sweetie?”
“I’m good. Better than I thought I’d be.”
“Has your father settled down at all after the Jarvis fiasco?”
“Yes and no. He’s not angry anymore, but he’s still pushing Jarvis on me like an old coat.”
“And Jarvis?”
“He calls and texts and yesterday sent me a huge gift basket from Hotel Chocolat.” Anyone that knew me was aware they were my favorite gourmet chocolates.
“Ah. Your weakness.”
“Not if they come from him. I gave the chocolate away to the kids at the hockey camp last night.”
She snickered. “I do love you, my dear Jolie.”
I glanced over at her. “Is that sarcasm?”
“Not at all.”
“I’ve told him to stop, that there’s no hope of reconciliation, but Dad is driving this. No doubt.”
“You’re truly over him?”
“Grandma, I was never in love with him. I liked him, and it was exciting for a while, but I walked away from our wedding without looking back. And unless he calls or texts, I don’t even think about him. My only regret is how much money was wasted.”
She reached over and patted my leg. “Then it’s time to move on. Any prospects?”
For some reason, Boone’s incredibly blue eyes came to mind, and I quickly forced the image away. “Nope. Not interested. I’m focused on my PhD. There will be plenty of time for dating once that’s done.”
“What about sex?”
I didn’t bother hiding my laughter. “You’re a little too interested in my sex life.”
“Because I don’t want you to waste your time with any more selfish men. You deserve better.”
“Was, uh, Grandpa selfish?” I couldn’t believe I was asking and practically held my breath as I waited for her response.
She just smiled, though. “At first. But I figured it out and we had a talk.”
Figures my grandmother would have been a trailblazer in the sex-talk-with-your-husband department.
“That’s good.” What else could I say?
“Don’t let your father—or anyone else—bully you into doing things you don’t want to do. You’re a smart, strong woman, but I saw this coming a mile away. Wait for a man who deserves you, Jolie.”
“Believe me, that’s the plan. It’s just, you know, tall redheaded biologists with big hips aren’t exactly at the top of most men’s dating list.”
“Stop that.” She gave me a look even though I could only see it in my peripheral vision. “You’re stunning. It’s just going to take the right guy to see that your beauty goes deeper than what’s on the outside. And anyway, those long legs of yours? Most men would kill to see them in a short skirt and high heels.”
“Yeah, but most men aren’t tall enough for a woman like me to wear heels.”
“Insecure men. A real man will love having a taller woman on his arm. Trust me on this. Where do you think you got your height?”
I smiled at the idea of my grandmother walking around in a miniskirt and stilettos. It had probably happened in the sixties and seventies.
“I just want someone who appreciates all of me,” I said slowly. “I don’t need another scientist who understands my work—that’s not a thing. But he has to get me, the woman beneath the nerdy science stuff.”
“There’s nothing nerdy about being a scientist. You’re working on something that could impact the future of the medical community. You know how many blind people could potentially benefit from your research?”
“That’s why I do it, but Jarvis actually asked me what the retina was and why anyone would care that I was focusing my dissertation on something to do with it.”