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CHAPTER 19
Jimmy
As we walked through the crowds I couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride that Bella was by my side. And not just because she’d come in third in the pie-eating contest. It was just because I was proud to be with her.
I knew that I had no place feeling it, but I couldn’t help myself. I was doing my best not to go overboard on the PDA but honestly, it was difficult to stop. When she was near me, I was drawn to her like a magnet. I had a very difficult time keeping my hands to myself.
I was looking around for excuses to touch her. Was there a bench we could sit on? A photo booth we could slip in? A dark alley I could sneak her off to? I’d been walkin’ around at half-mast since our make out session had been rudely interrupted by Tanner.
“Hey, Jimmy!”
I looked up and saw Beth Ann Mosely. She was the first girl I’d ever kissed. Now she was married to Mark “The Hawk” Timmons, and they had two kids. “Hey, Beth Ann.”
“You really do have a lot of friends.” Bella smiled.
The emphasis she put on friends told me that she was referring specifically to my female friends. And I couldn’t lie, I liked the hint of jealousy I’d heard in her statement. I could assure her that the most Beth Ann and I had shared was a smooch at the drive-in when we were ten years old, but where would be the fun in that?
I grinned. “I’m a friendly guy.”
“Yes, you are.” She opened her mouth, as if she wanted to say more, but then quickly shut it.
“What? Just say it,” I encouraged her.
I may not’ve volunteered the information about Beth Ann, but if she asked, I’d always be honest with her.
We ended up at the gazebo, which was covered in twinkle lights. She climbed the steps and looked back at me. “How many girlfriends have you had? Ballpark.”
“None,” I breathed, once again struck by her beauty. She looked like an angel beneath the twinkle lights.
Her expression remained blank. “You’ve never had a girlfriend?”
“Not officially, no. I’ve hung out with women, but when things start to get too serious, I back off.” It was the truth but as soon as I said it, I realized I was tasting my own foot. I didn’t want her to think that statement included her.
If she had taken it personally, she didn’t seem too upset about it. With absolutely zero judgement she asked, “Why?”
“I guess, I just…” I’d always told myself that my reluctance to get into a relationship had nothing to do with the curse, but now that I was thinking about it, I was starting to wonder if subconsciously, it had. “I just never saw any relationships work out.”
“What about your brother and Reagan?”
“They’ve only been together a few months. I’m talking about long term.” I figured now was as good a time as any to find out more about her past. I stepped into the gazebo with her, lifted my arms, holding onto a rafter above my head. I didn’t want it to seem like I was grilling her. I wanted to keep things casual. “What about you?”
“I told you,” she lowered her voice, “I was a virgin before you.”
My dick hadn’t got the memo that we were in a very public place and therefore her statement didn’t equal asking him for an encore. He was sure that she was calling him to action. I lowered my arms and took a seat so as not to offend passersby.
“That doesn’t mean you couldn’t have had a boyfriend.”
“Yeah, I guess so.” She walked around the edge of the enclosure, her hands trailing along the rail. “But I haven’t. I mean, not really. I’ve dated a few guys but after a couple of weeks they just…”
“They just what?” Ask you to marry them? I assumed that’s what she was going to say. I definitely understood where they were comin’ from. Hell, I’d never had a girlfriend, but I’d happily get down on one knee if I thought Bella would say yes.
“They just…stopped talking to me,” she stated bluntly. “I think it’s called ghosting.”
Who in their right mind would stop talking to this woman?
“Well, then darlin’, it sounds like you were dating the wrong sort of men.”
“Or they just weren’t interested in me.” She sighed.
