words cut into me a little as I remembered Alex’s harsh words regarding Jonathan’s actions. Hurt gnawing at a place deep in my heart, I tried to push down the fact that Jonathan had yet to even text me.
My face softened as I glanced at Jake’s pained expression. “I’m sorry. I was only teasing you. I have four handsome brothers so it’s a force of habit.”
Truth was, while all my brothers were lookers, none of them dated casually. They honored and respected women, at least around me. I couldn’t hold Jake to that standard, though. My brothers had an amazing example in my father, while Jake had no one to show him any differently.
Satisfied with my apology, Jake bounced his eyebrows at me and smiled. “You think I’m handsome?”
“Oh my goodness! You are such a guy,” I huffed, rolling my eyes.
He laughed and casually draped his arm across my shoulder, squeezing it slightly. “Come on, let’s go get cultured.”
I pushed him off and we fell into a casual stride, stopping at each tent to peruse the pieces each artist displayed. Though he wouldn’t admit it, Jake had an eye for art. He was surprisingly easy to talk to and as the hours passed, his hard exterior from the morning completely washed away.
We stopped to get snow cones as we were both feeling the effects of the North Carolina heat. The park was well shaded, but the hot breeze still felt like a blow dryer passing over my skin.
“There’s a table over there,” I offered when he handed me the icy drink.
“Sounds good.” He stuck out his tongue to catch the blue liquid before it slipped over the edge of the cup. A strange sensation hit me as I watched him being so normal. Jake had always seemed larger than life to me, this combustive force that, combined with Issy, made the world stop when they graced a room with their presence.
He glanced up from his sipping. “What?”
“Nothing,” I replied, shaking my head affectionately. “Let’s go.”
He got that arrogant grin back, and I rolled my eyes. Jake was used to girls fawning over him, and I realized it was going to take a while before he accepted that I would not be one of them.
Stopping short of our desired location, Jake’s body became fiercely rigid. I glanced at him in confusion and noticed a dark haired man strolling over to us. Jake was more tense than I had ever seen him and the visible scowl on his face let me know immediately he was not happy to see the guy.
“Stay here,” Jake demanded before he stalked towards the approaching figure.
They were too far to hear what was being said, but I took the opportunity to examine the stranger facing me. He was casually aloof and seemed to be smirking at Jake’s words, which I guessed were not pleasant since his back was still stiff with anger. The stranger lifted his chin towards me and smiled, causing Jake to turn his head and scowl at me. I suddenly felt like an eavesdropper and turned to leave, finding the closest booth.
I secretly kept sending glances their way, watching as Jake seemed to get more and more agitated as the conversation continued. Two more men approached them, both so large it was apparent they were acting as bodyguards for the smaller man. I suddenly felt a sense of urgency in my gut, as if Jake needed rescuing. Without thinking, I walked back over to the group and put my hand on Jake’s shoulder. The tension around them was suffocating.
“Jake, we should go,” I offered casually. “You promised me we’d catch a movie.” I tugged slightly on his arm and sent a casual smile to the stranger who glanced at the two men flanking him. They seemed to catch his hint and retreated, leaving just the three of us.
“My apologies,” the stranger purred with a smile. He was a handsome man, not much older than Jake, but something in my gut screamed “danger” when he looked at me.
“It’s fine,” I choked out, feeling very uncomfortable under his gaze. “We just need to go. Jake?” I tugged at his arm
My face softened as I glanced at Jake’s pained expression. “I’m sorry. I was only teasing you. I have four handsome brothers so it’s a force of habit.”
Truth was, while all my brothers were lookers, none of them dated casually. They honored and respected women, at least around me. I couldn’t hold Jake to that standard, though. My brothers had an amazing example in my father, while Jake had no one to show him any differently.
Satisfied with my apology, Jake bounced his eyebrows at me and smiled. “You think I’m handsome?”
“Oh my goodness! You are such a guy,” I huffed, rolling my eyes.
He laughed and casually draped his arm across my shoulder, squeezing it slightly. “Come on, let’s go get cultured.”
I pushed him off and we fell into a casual stride, stopping at each tent to peruse the pieces each artist displayed. Though he wouldn’t admit it, Jake had an eye for art. He was surprisingly easy to talk to and as the hours passed, his hard exterior from the morning completely washed away.
We stopped to get snow cones as we were both feeling the effects of the North Carolina heat. The park was well shaded, but the hot breeze still felt like a blow dryer passing over my skin.
“There’s a table over there,” I offered when he handed me the icy drink.
“Sounds good.” He stuck out his tongue to catch the blue liquid before it slipped over the edge of the cup. A strange sensation hit me as I watched him being so normal. Jake had always seemed larger than life to me, this combustive force that, combined with Issy, made the world stop when they graced a room with their presence.
He glanced up from his sipping. “What?”
“Nothing,” I replied, shaking my head affectionately. “Let’s go.”
He got that arrogant grin back, and I rolled my eyes. Jake was used to girls fawning over him, and I realized it was going to take a while before he accepted that I would not be one of them.
Stopping short of our desired location, Jake’s body became fiercely rigid. I glanced at him in confusion and noticed a dark haired man strolling over to us. Jake was more tense than I had ever seen him and the visible scowl on his face let me know immediately he was not happy to see the guy.
“Stay here,” Jake demanded before he stalked towards the approaching figure.
They were too far to hear what was being said, but I took the opportunity to examine the stranger facing me. He was casually aloof and seemed to be smirking at Jake’s words, which I guessed were not pleasant since his back was still stiff with anger. The stranger lifted his chin towards me and smiled, causing Jake to turn his head and scowl at me. I suddenly felt like an eavesdropper and turned to leave, finding the closest booth.
I secretly kept sending glances their way, watching as Jake seemed to get more and more agitated as the conversation continued. Two more men approached them, both so large it was apparent they were acting as bodyguards for the smaller man. I suddenly felt a sense of urgency in my gut, as if Jake needed rescuing. Without thinking, I walked back over to the group and put my hand on Jake’s shoulder. The tension around them was suffocating.
“Jake, we should go,” I offered casually. “You promised me we’d catch a movie.” I tugged slightly on his arm and sent a casual smile to the stranger who glanced at the two men flanking him. They seemed to catch his hint and retreated, leaving just the three of us.
“My apologies,” the stranger purred with a smile. He was a handsome man, not much older than Jake, but something in my gut screamed “danger” when he looked at me.
“It’s fine,” I choked out, feeling very uncomfortable under his gaze. “We just need to go. Jake?” I tugged at his arm
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