AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He assesses me for a moment, then reaches out and runs his fingers over a lock of my hair. “Do you regret what happened last night?”
I swallow, shaking my head. I don’t need to ask if he did because the warmth of his eyes already tells me all I need to know. It’s both a relief and absolutely terrifying because I don’t know what he and I mean. All I know is for Jace to ask, for him to even care about how I feel after we kissed, is huge. What we did was nothing for him, but his question recognizes he knows it was a big deal for me.
I clear my throat and allow the smile tugging at the corner of my lips to surface. “Weirdly enough, I don’t.”
“Good. Then do you want to come hang out?” Jace’s smile slices right through me as he nods in the direction of the guys.
My eyes widen. His invitation surprises me, and he must be able to tell from my reaction because he chuckles. “I promise to make them behave.” When I don’t say anything right away, he squeezes my hand and adds, “We have pizza.”
I glance over his shoulder to the empty pizza boxes and smirk. “Youdidhave pizza.”
Jace’s head whips in their direction and he groans at the sight of a nearly empty pizza box. “You fat asses.”
“Hey,” Chris says, his mouth full, “you snooze, you lose.”
Jace rolls his eyes as he turns back to me, but I just laugh because in all honesty, Chris is pretty hilarious. He reminds me a lot of the dynamic between Teagan, Jace, and their friends back home.
There’s a knock on the door and Chris jumps up from his seat. “I got it,” he calls out.
“Um, actually. I can’t stay. That’s probably the girls now.”
Jace glances back at me while Chris greets them at the door. “Well, hello, ladies. Brynn’s in the kitchen.”
I turn, needing a reprieve from the intensity of Jace’s gaze at the same time Samantha and Charlotte reach the kitchen. “Ready?” Samantha asks.
Jace shoves his hands in his pockets. “Where’re you ladies off to?”
“Um, just dinner,” I say.
“A triple date,” Charlotte blurts out at the same time as me.
I offer her a meaningful look as Jace’s gaze darts between us. “I’m sorry. Did you say adate?”
I clear my throat. “Yeah. Samantha texted us about it this morning, actually. That guy I mentioned she’s been talking to at Bradd’s, James? Well, he finally asked her out.”
“The bartender.”
I nod, amazed he was paying enough attention to remember.
“So, why are you and Charlotte going?” He points between us.
I glance at Charlotte for help. She offers me a rueful smile before saying, “Since Samantha doesn’t know him all that well, she asked him if he had any single friends and we arranged a triple date. We figured we’re all single. Why not?”
The muscle in Jace’s jaw twitches. “Cool, cool. So, whereisthis date?”
Samantha narrows her eyes. “It’s at Pizzuto’s, that fancy Italian place downtown?” She shakes her head and grabs myarm. “Anyway, no need to worry, Daddy. We’ll keep her safe and bring her home before bed.”
“Daddy,” Jace mumbles with a scoff.
With a smile, Samantha yanks me toward the door while Chris watches our exchange with a shit-eating grin.
“Wait—” Jace calls out, stumbling after us.
Beside me, Charlotte elbows me in the ribs and mouths,He totally likes you, before we turn around again to face him.
We blink at him, waiting while he stares at me with a blank look. Clearly, he has something he wants to say, but he seems to be at a loss for words as a mixture of emotions I can’t read play over his face.
Part of me hopes he’ll beg me to stay. Save me from the awkwardness of a blind date by crossing the distance between us, taking my face in his hands, and claiming me with his mouth.
