Restore Me by J. L. Mac Page B

inhaling a fucking French fry. I gulp down
some of my soda and clear my throat. “That’s funny, but I’m in a
relationship.”
    Andy’s hand drifts from my shoulder blade to my
upper arm.
    “You are?” Grams pipes in.
    Of course I am. Way to back me up,
smartass.
    “She is,” a booming voice confirms.
    I snap my attention to the doorway. Damon is
standing there, looking less than thrilled but oh-so-handsome in
his dress shirt and slacks. He’s back to dressing for work already,
which means he must’ve been meeting with people. That’s a step in
the right direction, I guess. His face is clean shaven, his hair
has been trimmed; he physically looks like the Damon I know and
love. He’s glaring at Andy, who doesn’t look particularly bothered
by Damon’s presence. They’re sizing each other up, though, I just
know it. I can practically see the pissing contest getting started. Men. I scoot my chair back from the table to get Andy’s hand
off of me.
    “Damon! Get over here and hug me, boy!” Grams
calls around a mouthful of burger.
    Damon’s attention turns from Andy to Grams and
he does as she says. “Grams, I came to steal Josephine from you. We
have some things to take care of.”
    “Okay!” Grams chirps happily.
    Of course she wants me out of here. Poor Andy is
going to be stuck with her, but I’m all too happy to oblige. It’s
been awkward as hell in here.
    “I want you to call me later. We have to talk.”
Grams points her finger at Damon authoritatively.
    “He will.” I assure her as I stand and sling my
bag over my shoulder. I make my way around the table and lean over
to hug Grams. “Use protection,” I whisper only loud enough for her
to hear. She cackles and bats her hand at me playfully. I smile
politely at Andy.
    Damon’s hand goes proprietarily to the small of
my back, no doubt to usher me from the room. His hand falls away
once we’re in the hall. I’ve begun to expect at least some degree
of rejection from him, so his distance doesn’t surprise me. It
disappoints me, of course, but it doesn’t surprise me at all. He
was just doing that to show Andy that I’m his.
    “Where are we going?” I speed walk beside him as
he takes long, easy strides out of the building.
    He flicks his wrist to open his sunglasses and
puts them on. He’s irresistibly attractive even acting like this.
Maybe particularly acting like this. “To get rid of Frank.” His
eyes stay straight ahead as we cross the parking lot.
    “And why in the hell would I do that?” I know
that my piece of shit car isn’t anything to brag about, but it’s
mine; bought and paid for with my own money. It was a big deal for
me when I bought Frank.
    “It barely runs and has next to no safety
features. Most women would love a new car.”
    “Well I’m not most women, am I?” I snap at
him.
    He stops abruptly, causing me to nearly collide
with his back. He turns to me and snatches his sunglasses off his
face. “You are most definitely not most women, Josephine, and
that’s why you won’t be driving that piece of shit car or hanging
out with maintenance men who have no shame in undressing you with
their fucking eyes!” He growls at me and uses his sunglasses to
point at me. He’s pissed. No. He’s livid. Jealousy is kind of hot
on Damon. He puts his glasses back on and keeps walking towards his
BMW.
    “Lots of men undress me with their eyes. He
isn’t the first and he won’t be the last,” I admit honestly.
    “Don’t toy with me by trying to make me jealous,
Josephine. I won’t tolerate it.”
    “Well excuse the hell out of me. I wasn’t trying
to make you jealous. You’re doing a bang up job of it all on your
own, Big Man.”
    “Keys.” He holds his hand out, waiting
impatiently. I’m surprised he isn’t tapping his foot.
    I hesitate for a moment to think about this. I
worked hard to buy Frank. I saved and saved for what seemed like
forever. I wouldn’t mind a new car; no one would refuse a new