Jake
Page 4
Maybe that isn’t the right thing to ask. Maybe he never meant for this to go on for longer than a week or so. Anxiety tightens in my chest once again.
“Nowhere!” He beams.
My throat constricts.
“Wait,” he shakes his head. “That came out totally wrong. I’m not going anywhere. I hope you’re not going anywhere. I’m in this for the long haul. I mean it.”
“You are?” When people say they’re going to stick around, I never believe them. It’s a good thing, too. Most people leave. Yet, when Jake says it, I believe him without question. Something deep inside me just knows he’s telling the truth.
“Are you?” Now he’s the one who looks nervous. “I understand if it’s too much right now. You have a lot on your plate.”
“That’s why I’m calling you desert,” I joke. “I’m not going anywhere either. If you’re not going anywhere and I’m not going anywhere, maybe we should go nowhere together.”
“Until we go somewhere,” he finishes. “Together.”
Epilogue
Lilly
“They’re staring,” Jake leans down and whispers in my ear. We’re at the only grocery store in town picking up things for dinner.
“At you or me?”
“Definitely me,” He chuckles. “Are the townspeople going to come after me for being with you?”
“Maybe,” I grin. “They probably think I can’t handle you.”
“Little do they know you’re the handful between the two of us,” he winks and tucks me under his arm.
After our first night together, I almost expected things to fizzle out within the first week. After all, it’s so implausible that two people can fall so hard, so fast and have it work out in the end. Yet, in our case, things couldn’t be more perfect.
With each passing day, I realize that I’ve been missing Jake my entire life. I’ve had a space in my heart for him for as long as I can remember. He’s the fantasy prince I dreamed of as a child. He’s the hero I need as an adult.
He likes to say I’m his hero, too, but the jury is still out on that. He’s excelling in the Rangers. They have a nearly complete profile on just about everyone in the drug cartel. The head of the snake still proves to be elusive, but I know Jake and the others will work it out.
People look at me differently now. I’m not sure if it’s because I’m with Jake or if it’s because of Buck. Maybe it’s because of me. I carry myself differently. I move like I have a place in the world, which I do.
Jake and I booked a trip to Paris last week. We’re going in the spring. I’m so excited. I think about it constantly. He’s never been out of the country either. I’m trying to convince him to take a leave of absence so we can travel the world, even though that’s a totally unrealistic plan.
“Do we need any of these?” I look to find Jake holding a huge box of chocolate frosted doughnuts. I know for a fact they have no nutritional value and most of the ingredients are impossible to pronounce.
“Those things taste like fake sugar and regret,” I say. “You better get two.”
“They’ll go great with our bad buddy-cop movie marathon,” he grins.
Some people give us curious looks as we dissolve into laughter over doughnuts. Others smile with us. I can’t be bothered to feel self-conscious. I’m too damn happy.
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