Page 76 of I Never Stopped Loving You

“I’m sorry. I swear, I didn’t…Damn it. Why the hell do you have to do that shit, Noah?”

“I was just messing around, Jeremy. I didn’t know she hated the word that much,” Noah counters.

“Why would you know I hate being called sweet?” Jenna snaps, and even I start laughing. “You bitch,” she laughs at me. “Did you tell him that I hate it?”

“I did. He said you seemed sweet when we left last night, and I told him you’d rip his tongue out if you heard him call you sweet.”

“Jesus. Really?” Jeremy stares at her, concerned. “Why?”

“Ex-boyfriend. Noah, this isn’t over.” She points her finger at Noah, then swings it at me. “And you, Missy. I’m kicking your ass later.”

“Ooh, can I watch?” Jeremy teases, but the glare Jenna gives him shuts him right up.

“So, what’s your plan, Jenna? Guessing or admitting defeat?” Noah challenges her.

She leans on the table and glares at their board. They still have six faces up, whereas we only have one. But if she manages to guess it correctly on this turn, they win.

“Is it Richard?” Jenna asks after glancing from me, then down to the board as if she’s trying to infiltrate my mind and see which character that’s ours.

Noah gasps, and I glance over to see him staring wide-eyed at Jenna. She smiles because she thinks she got it right on the first guess. But no, it’s not that one.

“Nope,” I say, putting her out of her misery.

“What? Then why the hell did he act like that?” she snaps, pointing at Noah.

“I was excited that we won, because your dude is Bill.”

“I hate this game,” Jenna groans as she leans back in her seat and crosses her arms. “Add it to the list of games that aren’t allowed to cross our threshold, Willow.”

“You got it, boss.”

Thank God our food gets here just as we pack up the game. The first few minutes of the meal are eaten in silence. Only the occasional hum of the deliciousness can be heard in the noisy bar. Damn, these burgers are so good.

“So, Jeremy. Why did you want to be a lawyer?” Jenna asks, finally breaking the awkward silence between them.

“Oh. Uh, my dad, grandpa, and uncle were all lawyers. So I figured I had to be one too. It’s what my father expected, and he always made sure to remind me.”

“What did your mother think about that?” she asks, and I watch as Noah and Jeremy both go tense.

Jeremy slowly glances up at Noah before looking back down at his burger.

“She never cared.”

CHAPTER 35

NOAH

Shit.

Well, that’s one way to ruin the night.

Jeremy hates talking about our family, especially his mother. That woman deserves to be brought back from the dead, tortured, and then re-killed for what she did to him.

I need to try to change the night around. These two have to click. I already fucked it up with my little prank. Honestly, I didn’t think Willow was that serious about the sweet thing. I gotta know the story behind that and the Monopoly thing.

“So, Jenna, what do you do for a living?” I ask.

“I’m a part-time waitress right now at a brunch place downtown, but I’m in college.”