Burned (13 page)

“Did she tell you that?”

“Nah, a mutual friend did.”

“What else did this mutual friend have to say?”

“Oh, ah,” he cleared his throat. “Nothing much.”

“Jake.”

“Okay.” He shifted beside me. “He said she had some grand scheme for trying to win me back at the wedding.”

“I foiled that scheme,” I said wryly.

He didn’t look too bothered by this. “Apparently so.”

“You’re okay with that?”

“Definitely. I’ve had it with her manipulations. Our mutual friend also told me Darby found out about me getting the internship at McMillan
and Sons. That put me back on her radar. You know, since I might actually have some potential after all. Apparently that upgraded my status from complete loser.” His tone was sarcastic, I thought probably to hide the edge of hurt behind it.

“Ugh. She’s—” I shook my head, not knowing what to say.

“Something. Yeah. I know. Now she’s been calling a few times a day. She never did give me the ring back. I doubt that’s why she’s calling, though.”

“You’re kidding,” I said flatly. She broke off the engagement. She left him when he probably needed her most. She was perfectly aware of the financial situation he was in and she kept the ring? I laughed though I was not amused. “Jake,” I said as I shook my head, “I like this girl less and less.”

“You’re not the only one,” he said flatly. “Sorry I have a crazy ex.”

I laughed bitterly. “You’re not the only one.”

His head swiveled to the side. I felt his gaze roaming over my face. “Want to talk about it?”

I shook my head, wishing I had kept my mouth shut. “Absolutely not. We’re on this amazing date. From here on out, I only want to talk and think about us.”

“Or,” he said as he rolled onto his side and leaned in, “we could skip the talking altogether.”

“That,” I said as I laced my fingers behind his neck, “is the best thing I’ve heard all night.”

Two dozen cupcakes were spread out in front of me. I scrubbed down the counter and washed up the dishes as I waited for them to cool. I wasn’t an ace in the kitchen but I was trying to learn. Mostly, I cheated. Boxed products were my friend.

Except for the frosting. I’d made that from scratch.

Baby steps.

One day, I aspired to make an entire culinary masterpiece from scratch. Today was not that day. Today was the day I settled for making salted caramel frosting all on my own.

It was a start.

I gently pressed a finger against the top of the chocolate cupcake. It bounced back into place. I quickly set to work slathering my gooey, decadent frosting on top of the stash of cupcakes I’d baked. I was not so secretly glad that Jake was still staying here. No need to have two dozen cupcakes all to myself.

Twenty minutes later I had them frosted, taste-tested, and sealed away in an airtight container.

The front door swung open and moments later Jake strode into the kitchen.

“What have you been up to?” He chuckled. “Never mind. I think I can see for myself.”

I raised an eyebrow at him.

He grinned as he moved in close. I thought he was coming in for a kiss. I was not about to protest. Instead, he swiped his finger across my cheek. He held it in front of my face to show off the glob of frosting that was precariously balanced on it.

I groaned and instantly tapped my face with my fingers to see if any more of my confectionary masterpiece was lingering.

Jake grinned as he popped the glob into his mouth. He moaned as it melted across his tongue.

“Good, right?” I said.

“Delicious,” he agreed. “Is there more?”

I pointed to the container of cupcakes. “Help yourself.”

He popped off the lid and gobbled up two of them. I was happy to see them go. Better to put his abs at risk than my own. Mostly because I thought he had a long way to go before the condition of his abs would be in jeopardy.

He licked the last of the frosting from his fingers. “Those were awesome. Now,” he said, “maybe you should go change clothes so we can go out.”

“Change? Into what? Where are we going? Casual isn’t appropriate?” I asked. It was mid-day. I had no idea what he had in mind.

“Casual is perfect,” he said. He tugged at my shirt and I glanced down. “Chocolate spattered…not so much.”

I rolled my eyes at myself. “I swear, I’m such a slob. I need an apron. The old fashioned kind that my grandma used to wear.”

“Aw,” he said. “I don’t mind the splatters. It makes you seem all domesticated. But if we’re going out, I assume you—”

“Don’t want to look like a slob?” I finished blandly. He laughed. “Where did you say we’re going?” I pressed.

“I didn’t. But now that you asked, how about we try golfing?”

“How about
no
?” I suggested. “No golfing.” I’d never played, not once, not ever. He’d been playing since he was a kid. He and Max had been on their high school’s golf team. He could be done with the whole course—it was called a course, wasn’t it?—before I’d even manage to get one ball into that little hole. “Golfing…not a good idea.”

“I’ll modify the plan. Let’s try mini-golf,” he suggested. “And I thought it was a great idea.”

I didn’t want to disappoint him. I also didn’t want to embarrass myself. I hesitated.

“Tell you what, I’ll play left handed.”

I raised an eyebrow at that prospect. That might work. That might actually be fair. “Okay.”

He tossed an arm around my shoulder, pulling me in for a sideways hug. He kissed my temple before saying, “It’ll be fun, Lanna. It’s just a game.”

~*~*~

Turns out, it was fun. It was a whole lot of fun. Even if he did beat me. Left-handed, no less. When Holly got back into town, I might have to talk her into taking up mini-golf with me. Then maybe someday far, far away we could progress to real golf.

After a few rounds we decided we’d had enough for the day. Neither of us was in a rush to go home. Not to mention, we were both starving and I, for one, needed more sustenance than chocolate cupcakes had to offer.

The café was crowded. Most likely because the air was hot and muggy outside. Everyone was piling in to enjoy the double allure of the air conditioning and ice-cream.

A plate of loaded chili cheese fries landed in front of Jake and me.

“What is this?”

“Our signature dish, on the house,” Clarissa said. “Actually, not on the house. On me. As a thank you.”

“For…?” Jake asked.

She looked at me, her expression downright giddy. “For the other night. Having dinner with you guys? After you left we just stayed and talked and talked. Jarrett and I went out last night. Like, on a date. It was…amazing. I mean, we just went out for pizza and then saw a movie. But I had so much fun. We have
so
much in common! So thank you, Lanna. I’ve had a crush on him for such a long time. Probably since the first time I saw him and I’ve never worked up the nerve to talk to him. Well, I mean, I’ve talked to him. But only ever to take his order. Not like a real conversation.”

“Glad I could help,” I said as I cut into her rambling. “But you really didn’t need to do this.” I motioned to the fries.

“Sure I did,” she argued.

I smiled. “Okay, then thank you.”

“What else can I get you?” she asked.

“I’ll have a lemonade,” I said.

“Same for me,” Jake tacked on.

“Be right back!” Clarissa scampered away.

Jake smiled at me as he eyed up the line to the ice-cream counter. “We can get dessert,” I offered, assuming that was where his mind had wandered to.

He laughed. “Actually, that line makes me think of the first time I saw you.”

“Oh, really?” I leaned back in my seat, curious. “You actually remember the first time you saw me?”

“Definitely. The line was long, just about like that, and I spotted you working behind the counter. You were so busy you barely looked my way,” he said. “I, on the other hand, kept my eyes on you the whole time I was standing in line. I had a hard time looking away.”

I wanted to argue with him, but I couldn’t. I didn’t remember that day at all.

“Ironically, the first time I saw you, you were waiting for ice-cream. But I was over there,” I pointed to my favorite booth at the back of the café. “I was with Holly and you were talking to Max.”

He smiled. “Maybe that’s the day I figured out who you were. Because the next time I saw you, you were here with them.”

“Funny,” I said, “because I always got the impression that you never noticed me at all.”

He shook his head, a smile playing on his lips. “Oh, trust me, I noticed.”

“Here you go,” Clarissa said as she placed the drinks on the table. “Need anything else?”

“We’re good,” I assured her.

She smiled and hurried away to a table that was flagging her down.

“You know what I think?” Jake asked.

“What?” I asked, suspicious of his blasé tone.

“I think we should go golfing for real.”

“Do you now?” It wasn’t a terrible idea. I mean, it wasn’t as if he was asking me to go sky diving or rock climbing. It was golf, for heaven’s sake. On the other hand, he’d been golfing since preschool. It was hardly fair for me to be expected to compete against him. “Tell ya what,” I said as I leaned across the table. “How about if you give me lessons?” I had no idea how long it would take to learn to golf well. A week? A month? Ten years? Regardless, time on the golf course with Jake sounded like something to look forward to.

“Deal. So,” he started, “if sports aren’t your thing, what are you interested in?”

“In high school I was in band.” His eyebrows lifted in question as he chewed on a mouthful of fries. “I played clarinet. I sang in the choir. I had tiny parts in the spring musical both junior and senior year.” I shrugged. “Sports have never interested me. Oh, I was also on the yearbook committee. Mostly because Holly asked me to be. But it was fun.” I frowned. “All of that was great but none of that is really anything that has carried over into the adult world.”

He nodded sagely. “See. You should’ve taken up golf.”

“Guess I should have,” I admitted. “What about you. What else did you do?”

“I played football. That’s how I got to know Max so well. I studied a lot. It was important to Frederic that I make the honor roll.” He made a bland face. “Guess I can’t really fault him for that. As much as I don’t like the guy, I can probably thank him for the fact that I have pretty good study habits.”

“You always were a smart one.”

Jake flinched at the sound of the feminine voice. Judging by the immediate way his jaw tensed, it was clear that he knew exactly who had snuck up on us.

“Darby,” he said flatly. “What are you doing here?”

“I stopped for…some ice-cream. And here you are. Looks like it’s my lucky day.”

“Are you sure you didn’t stop because you saw my car parked out front?” Jake asked. He used that same, flat tone. He stared Darby directly in the eye. “Last I heard, you didn’t eat ice-cream. Or anything even remotely caloric. Not to mention, the one time I brought you here, you complained about it for a week after the fact.”

“Oh, don’t be silly.” From where I was sitting, it looked like she batted her eyes at him. Her tone was light, flirty, completely the opposite of his. Her eyes were trained on him, like a predator, yet she completely ignored me. I felt a surge of relief. “We all choose to…indulge now and then.” She chose that moment to flick her gaze my way before refocusing on Jake. “Then we come to our senses and figure out what’s best for us in the long run.”

He tilted his head to the side and gave her a puzzled look. I was fairly certain he understood her veiled admonition but was choosing to pretend he didn’t. I smiled as I pulled a fry through some chili and popped it in my mouth.

“Could you spare a moment or two?” she asked, still ignoring me.

“Sure. What do you need?” Jake asked with a sigh.

She nodded toward the door. “I meant outside. I’d like to speak with you…in private.”

“Oh, yeah. That I can’t do,” Jake said. “I’m sure you’re completely aware that I’m on a date. I’m also sure—since you know that I haven’t been taking your calls—that you are aware that I don’t particularly care to speak with you.”

“Jake.” I cringed at the whiney tone of her voice. “Don’t be this way.”

“Then don’t track me down when I’m out on a date!” His tone shot up as she finally sparked some emotion in him.

“As you said, you’re not taking my calls. You don’t answer your door. What am I supposed to do?” She shifted from one foot to the other.

His door? I cringed. She must’ve been stopping by his apartment. Apparently no one had enlightened her to the fact that he’d been gone all week. She surely had no idea that he and I were technically living together. I was not about to point that out.

“Give up?” Jake suggested. “Take a hint? Get a clue?” He shook his head. “Do you honestly think I have anything left to say to you?”

“You don’t have to say anything. I just need you to listen.” Her voice dropped several octaves. She tossed a quick glare my way. “I would like to apologize. I
am
sorry for how I handled things. But this isn’t really the time or place to discuss it. Could you please meet with me later? Just call. Or text.
Something
.”

He turned away from her and looked at me. His expression was a mixture of frustration and apology.

I gave him what I hoped was a look of sympathy in return.

Because yes. This was awkward. Very, very awkward.

For all of us.

“Have you even
listened
to my messages?” Her tone was suddenly pleading.

Her question piqued my interest. For the first time I realized maybe it would be polite of me to…take a bathroom break or something. But I wasn’t sure that was what Jake wanted so I stayed put.

“I haven’t listened to a single one,” Jake candidly answered. “I delete them as soon as they come in.”

“I see.” Her chin tilted up, a defiant gesture, but the sudden glistening in her eyes gave way to how she was really feeling.

“Fine. I’ll call you later,” Jake said through clenched teeth. He glanced around the crowded café.

A few curious people were watching us as Darby took up space in the aisle. Or perhaps it wasn’t because she was taking up space. Probably it was because she looked like she was dressed for dinner at the country club, not a burger joint. Her cream blouse, black pencil skirt and shiny black heels made her look completely out of place. I didn’t have to glance down to know that my hot pink shorts, white ruffled tank top and wedge sandals were drab in comparison. Yet, I really didn’t care.

I fit in here, she didn’t.

I noticed Clarissa taking a table’s order but her eyes were darting back and forth between her notepad and our table. She was from Harmony Bay so of course she knew both Darby
and
Jake. And probably their history and she was probably waiting for some big blowout. In all honesty, I was too. The longer Darby hovered over us, the more agitated Jake was becoming. She had to have noticed it as well, but she didn’t back down.