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meet my best friend, Summer. He didn t extend his hand, just nodded and said, Hey. Hey yourself. Summer smiled. Would you like to dance? Becca had to suppress a laugh when Clay s eyes went wide. Summer was always the forward one. She didn t even know why she had insisted on a formal introduction. It wasn t like Summer couldn t walk up to a whole group of guys with confidence, something she would never do. But Becca was surprised when Clay nodded, got up and let Summer lead him to the dance floor. She hadn t taken him for the dancing type. When one of Clay s friends offered her a seat she declined and walked back to her table. She watched Summer and Clay dance. First it was a fast song, and then changed 30 Rough Edges to slow and sensual. Something Summer was extremely good at. She shook her head and took a sip of her Fuzzy Navel. Maybe Summer could help him get over this hang- up with her. Later, when she was home and lying in bed, she stared at the phone. Should she call him? She put a pillow over her head and tried to sleep. But she was too wired and her thoughts kept straying back to Jake. She hadn t talked to him since Saturday afternoon. That was almost three days ago. And it wasn t like she could wait on him to call. He didn t have her number. Fighting the desire to dial his number she flopped on her side. Then onto to her stomach. Every time she moved the soft sheets slid against her skin and she groaned. She kicked off the covers and flopped over on her back. Oh hell, who was she fooling? She wanted to hear his voice. She grabbed the phone and dialed. Hi, Becca said when he picked up. Hey, darlin . How are you? Jake answered. I m good. Stretching out on her bed she stared up into the dark and smiled, feeling instantly relaxed now that she could hear his familiar voice. How was your weekend? It was a weekend, he said flatly. That doesn t sound good. What happened? Fight. That s all. A fight? Are you okay? she asked and instantly sat up in bed. Oh, yeah. I m cool. The other dude& not so much. What happened? Tony and I were at a club downtown and some guy started shoving around a girl. No one seemed to be noticing, so I told him to stop. He said it like he was reading facts from a book. You told him? Okay, maybe I did more than tell him. But he did stop. Becca laughed. I bet he did. That was a nice thing to do. Yeah. Whatever. She could almost hear his shrug. Not whatever. Most people don t like to get involved and wouldn t have done anything about it. So unlike what your dad would have done. Yeah? Yeah. And don t use that tone with me. You are not like him, Jake. It made her mad that he seemed intent on thinking that. He would have been the guy pushing the girl around. Am I right? 31 Ashlynn Pearce Silence hung on the phone before he finally answered. Sure. But don t be putting me on some pedestal, Bec. I don t deserve it. I stopped some guy from hitting a girl& so what? It s one incident and I m sure all my other fuck-ups make up for it. Shoving her hair out of her face, she got up and paced her bedroom in anger. His parents were the fuck-ups. How could they treat their only child the way they had Jake? It boggled her mind. But the sad part was she didn t think Jake had told her the worst of what had been done to him. It made her want to pull him close and help heal those wounds. He was a good man. But he didn t believe it. You are not a bad guy like you seem to think. So how was your weekend? Sighing at his change of subject and knowing it was his way of dealing, she said, It was good. Summer and I went to Sunsets tonight. Your usual Tuesday nighter. I introduced Summer to a coworker of mine. I think she had a good time. But you didn t? How could she tell him that she thought about him the whole time? That he stayed in her thoughts like an addiction? It was fun, she said and lay back down on her bed. You re lying. Okay, fine. But I didn t have a bad time. But no fun? No. Not really. I had things on my mind. Like you. Anything in particular? Or just life in general? Oh, you know. Life. Work. She cleared her throat and said, Summer s coming with me Saturday. His low chuckle spread through her body and gave her goose bumps. Thinking about this weekend, huh? I am too. You are? she asked, surprised. He always seemed so in control, like nothing ever got to him. Even when he talked about the hell he had been through, it was like he was detached from it. How could I not? I m lucky I get to meet you. I honestly didn t think you would go for it. Warmth filled her and it brought a smile to her face. How could I not? Easy. You could have said no. And if you back out at the last minute, I won t hold it against you. Jake, I ll be there. And she would. She didn t know a lot of things, but no matter [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ] |
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