Good, now we’re both annoyed.

  “I feel like I haven’t heard the story of how you two met anyway?” Jacob asks. “Don’t tell me a dating app?” he jokes condescendingly.

  I furrow my brows at the judgment in his voice. My dad chuckles before taking a sip of his drink and my mother chimes in, ever my biggest fan. “Don’t be like that Jacob, that’s how all the kids are meeting people these days!”

  His eyes dart to mine and he doesn’t even attempt to hide the anger. “You went out with some guy you met online? Alone? Was Chloe at least with you the first time?”

  “Calm down, dad,” I snap and his blue eyes darken and narrow in response. I didn’t call you daddy so don’t even look at me like that.

  “That’s exactly what I said,” my father interjects and I snap my gaze to him who’s shaking his head at Jacob.

  “Which is why you didn’t know until way after the fact,” I sass. “I am alive, you know. I’m fine. He wasn’t a serial killer. And for your information, Jacob. Yes, he and his friend met Chloe and I for dinner for us to meet for the first time… and the second time if you must know.”

  “So, you met this joker online. He couldn’t meet a girl in person? Bad social skills?” Jacob asks sarcastically with a scrunch of his nose.

  “Yes,” my dad pipes up without taking his eyes away from the screen again.

  “Kevin!” my mom exclaims at the same time I say, “Dad!”

  “What? Miche, come on. And Whit, don’t act like you don’t know we feel that way. JP, wait till you meet this guy, he’s just so… not like us.”

  “And that’s a bad thing?” I ask.

  “It is when he’s marrying my princess. He’s just so standoffish. Aloof. The guy barely speaks and he’s been around almost two years. I just don’t think he’s good enough for you, sweetheart. We’ve been back and forth about this so many times, my feelings aren’t going to change.”

  “Kevin, enough.” My mother speaks before putting her hand over mine and squeezing. I look up at her. Eyes that match mine. Warm brown eyes that I’m fairly certain knows all of my secrets, even the ones I’ve tried to keep from her. She tucks a hair behind my ear before pulling me closer to her and wrapping her arm around me. “If Whitney is happy, we’re happy.”

  I smile but it’s fake. My head is resting on her shoulder, so she can’t see my fake smile but Jacob can. He’s staring right at me like he can read every thought in my head right now.

  “Well, I guess I have to meet this guy that has Whitney so happy then. When is he back?”

  “Next week,” I answer.

  Later that night, like a typical Saturday at my parents’ house, the small gathering of me and my parents, JP and the neighbor from down the street that they are trying to set him up with, grew. There are at least ten people here now. People from around the neighborhood, my brother has gotten here with a woman he sometimes hangs out with from time to time. Chloe and Trey have shown up and my paper has been long forgotten as I indulge in a few more drinks with Chloe. I’m not drunk and I’ve been very cognizant of how much I’m drinking in case I want to do any more work later. I’ve talked to Parker a few times throughout the day and I’ve been able to keep his accusations at bay at the idea of me being at my parents’ all day doing homework. I hadn’t really told him that me hanging out at my parents’ house had turned into this and I was starting to feel guilty especially since Chloe took a few pictures of us that I’m sure she’s already uploaded to her Instagram story. Now, Chloe, Trey, Jacob, and I, much to my reluctance, are outside on the patio watching as the sun sets.

  Chloe and Trey are in their own little world, her seated in his lap like she has been since they got here leaving Jacob and me alone to talk.

  Except we’re not talking. We are sitting in silence just staring at the sunset. I guess at this point there is nothing left to say. I’m just about to get up to get a break from the tension flowing between us when my mother and Georgina make their way outside. They’re both more than a little tipsy and I wonder what is about to come of this. “Jacob, the four of us are going out to dinner tomorrow. It’s already been decided.”

  I’m seated next to Jacob, my legs crossed and I find myself flexing my foot into a pointed toe like I used to do when I was seated and anxious. It’s getting dark, but the lights around my backyard give everything a romantic warm glow.

  “Sure, sounds good. Tell me where to meet you.”

  The words, ones that I did not expect though I should have, instantly tank my mood. No. I cannot be having what feels like a visceral reaction to Jacob going out with another woman. I’m engaged. I told him no. He told me he loved me and I said it was too late. He can move on. He can…

  NO. HE. CAN’T.

  I’m up out of my chair before I can hear my mother’s excited response though I can hear her chatting animatedly as I make my way into the house. I bypass the living room where my father is talking to Nick Barnes from next door about his new lawnmower or whatever the fuck and make my way upstairs toward my bathroom. I did actually need to go but I also needed a moment away from the chaos that I was barely staying one step in front of. If this were a romance novel, I had about five seconds before Jacob showed up at the door, pushing me backward into the bathroom and demanding me to explain why I’m behaving like a jealous brat.

  My sex clenches at memories of him calling me that when he’d pulled me over his knee and spanked my bare ass.

  Parker. Call Parker.

  Fiancé. You have a fiancé.

  I immediately pick up my phone and press his contact and I frown when it goes right to voice mail. Come on. I’m sending him a text letting him know that I called him when sounds of movement outside of the door sends every hair up on the back of my neck. No. No. No. I cross my fingers and pray. “Please be Chloe, please be Chloe,” I whisper. “Chlo—?” I ask nervously.

  “Yeeessss?” she sings. “Let me in, I have to pee.”

  A sigh of relief but also… what feels like disappointment floods me. I try to ignore the latter feeling and focus on the fact that temptation in the form of my ex and my parent’s best friend isn’t standing on the other side of the bathroom door.

  I let her in just as my phone beeps in my hand and I expect it to be Parker, letting me know why he couldn’t take my call.

  Jacob: I feel like you’re smart enough to realize you don’t have any reason to be jealous.

  Me: I’m not. I text back before I even have the chance to come up with something wittier.

  Jacob: Please. Is that why you ran from the patio like you were on fire?

  Me: I had to pee.

  Jacob: Bullshit, you were anxious. I could feel it. And see it. I saw your foot.

  Me: That was nothing.

  Jacob: That’s your tell.

  Oh my God. My heart flutters in response to the fact that he noticed something so minute and now I’m realizing that the chaos I was trying to stay ahead of seems to be getting closer by the second.

  Me: Do you like her?

  Jacob: Do you care?

  Me: Answer my question first.

  Jacob: Why should I?

  Me: You’re not in any place to negotiate right now.

  I see the bubbles indicating that he is typing when Chloe interrupts my thoughts as she flushes the toilet. “Who are you texting?”

  I look at her and let out a sigh, deciding that maybe I need to let her in on the mayhem going on in my head. “Jacob.”

  “Obviously.” She washes her hands and stares at me through the mirror as she fluffs her hair. “He’s not into Georgina, Whit.”

  “I know, he said that.”

  She turns to face me and drags her hair through her fingers like she does when she’s looking for split ends. “The fact that he had to say that to calm your jealous ass down is a problem.”

  “He didn’t have to!”

  She looks up at me and away from her hair. “Oh? Is that why you stormed away when your mom came over to talk about their double date? Maybe your mom didn’t notice but I certainly did. Whitney, you can’t have it both ways.”

  “I know! Jesus, Chlo.” My heart is already pounding when there’s a knock on the door, and I’m certain this time it is Jacob. I open the door and there he is standing in front of it, blue eyes staring at me. His gaze is so intense I feel like he can read every thought in my head. His phone is in his hand and I can see our conversation still on the screen as he brushes past me and makes his way into the bathroom.

  “We need a minute,” he says, staring at me. When Chloe makes no effort to move, his eyes flit to her. “You need to go, Chloe.”

  I half expect her to put up a fight or say that it’s my decision but she just nods before looking at me. “You don’t have a lot of time.”

  The door closes quietly behind her with the faintest click leaving us alone. He doesn’t say anything, he’s not even looking at me as he stares out the window. I’m getting anxious waiting for him to speak when he begins to pace back and forth in front of me. I follow him with my eyes, watching him get visibly more agitated with each passing second. He runs a hand through his hair and it’s the first time I’ve noticed a bit of gray peppered throughout his chestnut strands. Say something! I’m not sure if I’m talking to myself or to him but all I know is this silence is making me crazy.

  I’ve just convinced myself that I should speak up when I’m against the wall with his arms caging me in. “Whitney.” He lets out a slow shaky breath. “You are… impossible. Did you just ask me if I liked her?”

  I go to respond when he puts a finger up. I listen because I don’t really have a response or a reasoning behind my irrational jealousy I’d have to explain.

  “I wish I did like her.” His right hand moves off the wall and finds my face. His palm rests against my cheek as he drags his thumb under the space just beneath my eyes that are now welling with tears. “I wish I liked anyone. But I don’t.” He shrugs before shaking his head. “I can’t. Not while I’m still in love with you.”

  A gasp escapes my lips and the sound sends his eyes to my mouth. He bites his bottom lip and my eyes follow the movement.

  “Say something,” he whispers.

  “I don’t know what to say.” And that was the truth. I feel like my mind has gone blank.

  “Tell me to walk away.” I don’t speak. He drags his hand away from my cheek and I know the pinkness is coating my cheeks in response to his touch. His thumb finds my bottom lip and he strokes the skin gently. “Tell me not to kiss you.”

  I don’t speak.

  He leans down so our faces are only an inch apart and I’m sure he can tell that my breathing has become labored and I also wonder if he can hear the pounding in my chest. He’s giving me a chance to stop this. But I don’t want to. I know it’s wrong and I know I’m about to start down a path of destruction but I can’t think about anything except Jacob’s mouth on mine. Fuck, his lips. I remember he had the softest fucking lips. His nose brushes against mine and I let out a sigh that causes him to utter a groan. Our lips are so close but not touching as we essentially breathe in the same bit of air and then just as my eyes flutter closed, I feel his lips touch mine gently. It’s light and quick but it’s enough to send an explosion of fireworks behind my eyelids and goose bumps to appear all over my flesh. I open my eyes and he’s staring straight at me.

  His hands find their way into my hair and he pulls gently and just that small action has my panties dampening. “Baby.”

  “Hmmm?” I respond without thinking and the smile that finds his face makes my knees buckle.

  “You still respond to that.”

  I don’t respond.

  “I love you,” he repeats and I don’t respond to that either.

  I just raise my chin, letting him know what I want. I lick my lips and he raises an eyebrow at me sexily. But also, in that arrogant way that tells me he knows he’s got me. That sexy arrogance. Not many men can pull that off, you know. Bastard. His lips find mine again but this time it isn’t a brush or light, it’s a full-on kiss. He wastes no time and soon his tongue finds mine and I’m lifted off the ground and I’m pinned to the wall. My legs wrap around his waist instinctively as he grinds his dick into me. His tongue weaves with mine in the familiar dance we did for the better part of two years. His cock is hard and the space between my legs is getting slicker by the second as he drives himself hard against me.

  He grips my ass harder and I’m grateful that all of it is covered by the lacy boy short underwear I’m wearing instead of some of my barely there underwear. Whenever I’m wearing a short flowy dress like I am today, I feel too exposed wearing a thong so I wear something with more coverage and I’m grateful for that in this moment. I know that if he was touching the bare flesh of my ass, it would be even easier for him to rip them from me. And then who knows what would happen.

  I want him to rip them from me. The thought enters my mind and the words leave my lips before I can stop them.

  “Fuck me,” I moan out when he takes a break from attacking my lips to find the space behind my ear and trail kisses down my neck. His tongue darts out and licks the same path just before he pulls back to look at me.

  “Here?”

  “Ah.” I gasp as he bites my earlobe and it brings me slightly out of the sex haze and into the present where I remember where we are. “No. Not here. We shouldn’t.” I think I say, because the angle that he’s grinding against me now is providing direct friction against my clit and it’s making my whole body sizzle every time he thrusts.

  He tugs my hair gently and it has a direct line to my clit which pulses in response. “Yes here. We absolutely should. The sooner my dick gets inside of you the better.”

  I pull back, those words also reminding me of the fact that I’m engaged to another man. “We are in my parents’ house… I’m still engaged.” Fuck fuck fuck. What am I doing?

  He traps my bottom lip between my teeth and pulls on it gently before pressing a peck to my lips and setting me down on my feet. His hands fall from my ass but not before moving forward and tracing the top of my panties gently with his index finger. A flutter moves through me and I grip his biceps to steady myself.

  “We’ll go to my house.”

  “Now?”

  “Now.” His eyes are dark. “You’re not feeling well. I’ll offer to take you home.”

  “That only settles one part of this dilemma,” I tell him. Tears flood my eyes at the thought that I just cheated on my fiancé and I’m contemplating going even further.

  You just asked him to fuck you, I think we’ve officially crossed the line of further.

  “Anything else is irrelevant,” he grunts as he runs his fingers through my hair in an attempt to smooth the tresses he’d pulled on. He runs his salacious gaze all over me and I realize he’s probably seeing if I look presentable enough to go back downstairs.

  A knock on the door stops us from speaking and I briefly panic thinking it could be my parents or anyone that would be confused as to why Jacob and I are in here alone. “It’s Chlo…” her voice is low and rushed. “Mason realizes you’re both gone and you’ve got about ten seconds to get back downstairs before he makes that fact known to more people than just me.”

  I know Mason wouldn’t rat me out but I also know he might come find us and there aren’t many places we could be. Or he’d make a point to ask where I am sending anyone on a search for me that would lead to questions I am not prepared to answer right this second.

  I move toward the door when Jacob grabs my arm stopping me in my tracks. “Not now, JP,” I tell him before he has a chance to speak.

  “Come home with me.”

  “JP, stop.” I pull out of his grasp and open the door to see Chloe’s worried eyes. She pulls me out of the bathroom and toward my bedroom, my guess so that Jacob and I don’t reappear at the exact same time after being gone for so long.

  Chloe shuts the door behind us and I feel like I’m finally able to breathe after being trapped in a bubble with Jacob. “We kissed,” I blurt out. “More than kissed.” I recall his cock rubbing against me and my sex clenches in response. “Not sex but…” I bite my bottom lip before rubbing my fingers over the skin remembering his bruising kiss. The way he bit my lip, ran his tongue along the seam of my lips, the way his hands gripped my hips, his fingers digging into my flesh like he was afraid I’d disappear from his grasp.

  “Oh my gosh, this is huge. You and Jacob, oh my God!” she squeals and wraps her arms around me. “I mean, I’m going to have a long talk with him about what I’ll do to him and more importantly his balls if he ever hurts you again but oh em gee!” She claps and I shush her.

  “Can you be quiet? I don’t think my parents heard you.” My phone vibrates with a message.

  Jacob: Come home with me. We can talk. Or whatever you want. Just… that can’t be it. Don’t tell me that was the end of us because I don’t believe it.

  It’s risky and not the smartest idea and the idea of getting out of the house with Jacob right now doesn’t seem plausible. My brother is here now. My car is also here but I shouldn’t be driving and if I was able to get the idea past my parents that Jacob was giving me a lift home, Mason would definitely have an issue with that.

  Jacob: Please.

  Me: Do you think we can just walk out the front door? What about Mason?

  “I can distract him,” Chloe says and when I look up, I see her looking down at my phone. “I’ll make him take a shot with me and you guys can make your swift exit. Aunt Michelle and Uncle Kev won’t think anything of it. I’ll say you weren’t feeling well. Mason isn’t going to say anything when he figures out you’re gone.”

  Me: Never mind, I think I have it figured out. Can you just grab my laptop for me please? It’s in the living room.