Page 43 of The Other Half

“Told you it was worth it,” Jake said.

“Atta girl,” Kyle added before scurrying away to another customer.

“These are amazing. Like... AMAZING!” I ate another. I’d forgotten how much I loved carbs, and these fried balls of cheese might have been the best thing I’d ever eaten. They were even better than the Kobe beef tenderloin I loved back at my favorite steakhouse in New York.

Jake popped one in his mouth and I savored another. Kyle appeared again holding two plates with burgers stacked so tall with stuff they looked ready to topple over.

“No,” I breathed while my eyes swelled wide open.

“Yes,” Jake whispered back as Kyle set one in front of each of us.

“How? How do you even eat it?” I spun the plate, knowing there was no way I could fit my mouth around it.

“Keep both hands on your burger until the ride is over!” Kyle smiled.

Jake picked his up and squished it down, brown BBQ sauce poured over the edges while he shoved it in his mouth. Staring at mine like I was ready to scale Mount Everest, I blew out a breath.

“There are cheese curds in there,” Jake said with his mouth bursting full of food.

“Cheese curds?” I quirked a brow. At this moment in time, anything with cheese curds sounded delicious. Following Jake’s lead, I pressed the burger down as flat as it could go and opened wide. Even as wide as my mouth could go, I could only get half the height of the burger inside. When I bit down, the flavors exploded, and my eyes closed again. Heaven.

“Hmmm?” Jake asked with baited eyes we chewed.

“So good,” I managed to mumble over the impressive numbers of foods in my mouth all at once.

“Told you.” His close-lipped smile held his burger inside those impossibly perfect lips.

Unable to speak, I devoured my burger until nothing remained on the plate but the remnants of some sauce. Groaning my discomfort, I leaned back and blew out a breath. It had been years since I’d eaten until I was full. That sense of satisfaction that came after a big meal was something I’d never forgotten but hadn’t indulged in since high school.

“I’m so full.” I moaned. “Like... I might pop full.”

“I’m hurting over here, too,” Jake admitted. “But good, right?”

“So good. So, so good. You really may end up pushing me around in a wheelchair when I’m too fat to walk.”

“If we keep this up, I may be wheeling myself around beside you.” He chuckled. When I started laughing, I stopped as the pain in my stomach from the movement threatened to send my burger back up.

“You guys want another round?” Kyle asked.

“I can’t fit anything else in my mouth tonight.”

When I said it, Kyle’s eyes darted to Jake. I saw the scolding stare Jake shot him before Kyle turned around snickering. “I’ll get your check.”

Flushed with embarrassment, I avoided his eyes when they darted to mine. Even though there were many, many things I thought about doing to Jake with my mouth, tonight would not be the night. With onion breath and a stomach pressing against my jeans, I’d never felt less sexy in my life.

“Here you go,” Kyle said, dropping the check in front of us. Jake and I reached for it at the same time, freezing when our fingers touched.

“I’ve got it, Jake. I said I’d buy you dinner after I made you throw yours back.”

“No, I’ve got it, Cassie.”

Was this a date? I still hadn’t figured it out. On dates, the man always paid in my world. So, if I let him pay would that make this a date? Hoping he felt the same way, I nodded. “Thanks, Jake. It was really good.”

“You’re welcome.”

After he paid, we made our way through the sea of green and gold covered baseball players. Every eye clapped onto my ass when we walked through. It didn’t go unnoticed, and I saw a scowl come over Jake’s face when he stepped between us, his glare sending their eyes darting to anywhere but me.

He’s protective. Definitely a date.