She didn’t want to assume she was spending the night with Donovan or announce it to anyone in case he wasn’t comfortable with it, but given the incendiary looks he’d been giving her when he thought no one was paying attention, she didn’t think it was presumptuous of her to believe her presence would be welcome.
“Since we don’t have an event tonight, I planned to go look for a birthday gift for my grandmother.”
“Oh.” Ella’s face fell in disappointment. Jada met Donovan’s amused gaze over the teen’s head. “Hold strong,” he mouthed. She bit her lip to stop herself from laughing.
“Why don’t you go with her, Donovan?” Nicholas asked.
Jada choked on her lemonade. His friends were truly world-class, Olympic-gold-medalist meddlers.
Donovan kept his cool, merely stroking his chin. “Why do you think I should do that?”
Nicholas eagerly straightened in his chair. He picked up his phone and waved it. “You’re not the only one who can do analytics when the mood is right. Our social media hits and impressions were off the charts yesterday when Dr. John showed up. People are wondering what’s going on with you two. Photos of #JaDon in the wild will boost interest. Need to get that hashtag trending again. And stop for dinner while you’re out. Sit on the patio of whatever restaurant you choose so people walking by can see you. Oh, yeah, and you have to go through the whole restaurant on your way in and out so those people see you, too.”
Jada exchanged another glance with Donovan before he cocked his head to the side and stared at his co-owner. “When did you become so diabolical?”
Nicholas flashed the smile that caused so many to swoon. “I learned from the best.”
* * *
Donovan held open the door to Burberry. “What do you get the woman who can buy herself anything she doesn’t have?”
Jada stepped through the entrance, accidentally on purpose brushing against Donovan. “A question I’ve asked myself a million times.”
“Have you found the answer?”
Fond memories came back to Jada in a rush. “I went through a phase in my teens where I thought I had to go big or go home.” She wrinkled her nose. “I became a little too aware of how much money my family had. I thought I could get the attention of the adults in my family if I bought them something grand. My parents are a little…”
Donovan stepped next to a trio of mannequins dressed in the brand’s legendary plaid coats. “A little what?”
Jada fingered the sleeve of one of the coats. Expensive. Chic. “A little—make that a whole lot—not like me. They accepted the gifts, liked them even. Who doesn’t like a private, behind-the-scenes tour of the winery that makes their favorite wine? After they thanked me, they then asked why I didn’t get an A on my math and science exams, and if I needed more tutoring.”
Donovan laid a hand at the small of her back. “I’m sorry.”
“Thanks.” Jada leaned into the comfort for a moment before walking toward a display of scarves that had caught her eye.
“What happened with Mrs. T?”
Jada held up a plaid scarf. “I probably bought her something similar to this scarf for her birthday, if not this exact same scarf. She said it was pretty, but I could tell she wasn’t blown away, so the next year, I tried harder. Credit cards are evil enablers. She set the gift aside and asked to see me alone. She said and I quote, ‘Jada, I thought I raised you better than this. Wasting money so you can show off is not the way.”
Donovan’s shoulders shook with laughter. “I can so see her saying that. What did you do then?”
“I wanted to make her proud, of course. I had a year to think about it. I thought about it a lot. I realized she values family time. And the Knights winning. But family always comes first. The next year I gave her a gift certificate that said she and I would have lunch together, just the two of us, once a month, outside our normal family gatherings.” Jada smiled at the memories that never failed to warm her heart. “You’d thought I’d given her the keys to the Vogue fashion closet or number one draft picks for the next ten years.”
He held out his arms wide, his brow wrinkling. “So what are we doing here?”
Jada shot him a look. “I like looking at the pretty clothes, duh.” And looking was all she could do. Her parents hadn’t changed their mind about her credit cards. But she had a roof over her head, a job she loved, and a man she … adored. She had no complaints. And honestly, she hadn’t missed shopping much. Yeah, she was enjoying being in the store, but she’d discovered other things that gave her—dare she say it—more pleasure than buying clothes. “I can take a minor detour before I get down to business. I deserve a reward. I’ve been working very hard at a certain cupcake shop.”