by C. Lymari
I needed to make a point, and if I was going to be different than all the other girls, I had to leave him wanting more. Tilting my head, I gave his jaw a slow kiss, and I felt his body go completely still. Score one for Juliet.
“I’ll see you later, Jake.” Giving him a coy smile, I made myself walk away.
I might have been walking slow, calm, and collected, but on the inside, it was another story. I didn’t turn back until I made it to the door, and my eyes grew wide when I noticed Jake had not taken his eyes away from me. At. All. Holy shit, I can’t believe I did that.
School was dragging that day. I wanted it to be art class so bad already. I didn’t need periods with people who didn’t give the first shit about me asking me about my sweet-sixteen party. Sorry, not having one. Instead, Jana, Abbi, and I were spending two weeks in Cancun.
Jana’s mom didn’t want me to pay for Jana’s vacation, so I picked something she would be able to afford; that way I could have her with me.
Before going to lunch, I stopped by the bathroom. There was a group of senior girls, Tina amongst them. I didn’t know them, so I didn’t greet them. When I was washing my hands, I noticed they were all staring at me. More like glaring.
“Is there something I can do for you?” My calm tone didn’t convey the bit of fear that went through me.
“Jake’s a senior. Don’t get your hopes up with him. He’ll be gone in a few months,” Tina jeered.
I may have had money, but I never talked down to anyone. I tried to always be respectful and thoughtful. The way Tina was talking down at me pissed me off.
“It’s adorable how you think he wants to date you, honey. You’re a sophomore, and he’s going away to college,” she continued.
The other girls snickered.
Drying my hands, I turned to look at all of them. “That might be true… but, honey, I’m not just anybody. I’m Juliet Dunnett.”
The moment I said the words, I felt like a complete asshole, but they did what I intended them to do. Tina glared, but didn’t say a word back to me. By lunchtime, I was an anxious mess waiting for art class.
“You look happy today.” Abigail smiled at me.
I shrugged it off because I wasn’t ready to share Jake with her or Nikki.
“It’s my birthday,” I said simply.
“Where were you this morning? You didn’t hang out with us?”
“I had some homework to do,” I clipped out.
Abbi gave me a small smile and dropped it. I knew it might be unreasonable, but something in me told me that Abigail was going to judge. I’d deal with her when the time came for it.
Rushing to my seat, I was a little disappointed that Jake wasn’t in class already. I went to get our supplies. Our stuff was always together; it was hard for me to reach it because Jake always put it on the last shelf apart from everyone else. I liked it. A lot.
“That looks like shit, Dunnett,” he said when he finally made it to class.
He had a point. I tilted my head to the side to try and find the flowers in the mess of colors I had painted before he walked in. Even in all the chaos I had drawn, there was still beauty in it. All those swirls mixing in, blending as they wished—they always looked lovely.
“You’re just jealous.” I turned to look at him, but I hadn’t realized how close to me he actually was.
If I were to look up, his scruffy jaw would have rubbed against my cheek.
I bet that would feel yummy.
“Jealous of what exactly?” he taunted.
It seemed like he had gotten even closer, making it hard to keep breathing air that wasn’t laced with his personal aroma.
He looked at me and murmured, “Beautiful.”
“I thought you said they were ugly as shit?” I answered, pretending like he wasn’t affecting me. Like the proximity didn’t make me feel stupid happy.
“I meant you.” He gave me one of his signature cocky grins before he went back to his seat.
It was then and there that, for the first time, Jake make me feel feelings I wasn’t used to like happiness and joy. My parents weren’t bad nor abusive; they just weren’t there. We looked like the perfect family from the outside, but on the inside, we were hollow.
“Tell me, Dunnett.” Jake leaned in to whisper in my ear.
His voice creased the shell of my earlobe, making me shiver. He crossed his arms over my chest. I trembled at the feel of being wrapped in his arms.
“Tell you what?” I turned my head so I could look at his bright eyes. I hated the way they rendered me speechless.
“If I said I wanted your ass in my pickup truck on Friday to go see a movie, would you say yes?”
Holy shit. It was finally happening. I wanted to shriek and do a happy dance, but come on, I had to play it cool; after all, I had an image to uphold. A name to live up to. Yeah, I wasn’t going to think about that last one right now.
“Do I get to pick the movie?” I said instead of shouting yes like I wanted. I was dying on the inside; there was no reason for Jake to know this as well.
“Yeah.” His voice dropped to a huskier timbre, and it made my throat dry.
“I don’t like scary movies,” I whispered.
Jake had gotten closer to me, making it hard to formulate coherent thoughts. I knew there was a new scary movie my brothers were dying to go see. Not me. Hell no. I would probably die of a heart of attack if I saw it.
“Whatever you want,” he replied, more serious this time.
Shit.
I’d hoped for this day, prayed for it even, but the reality wasn’t something I was expecting. Despite the weight on my shoulders, I was going to say fuck the consequences.
“I’d like that,” I told him.
As soon as the words were out, Jake let out a relieved breath and gave me a smile that could rival the sun.
I was fucked.
13
Juliet
I should have gotten the hot chocolate, I thought to myself as I tried and failed to move my car from the pile of snow it had gotten stuck in. My Cadillac in the snow was a death trap. I should have stayed home today when I saw the forecast on my phone, and what did you know, it was going to snow again. But I was hungry, and my cooking had slightly improved. Not by much, and all those easy meals still took about fifteen minutes’ prep time, and if you were a newbie like me, those fifteen minutes turned into half an hour between looking at your phone and trying to find the ingredients and measuring them.
Pizza sounded divine, so I grabbed my coat and keys and made my way to Rocco’s for a fresh pie. Unfortunately for me, as I waited for my pizza, all hell broke loose and it started snowing hard. Did I wait out the storm and take up a seat to eat alone as Miguel asked me to? Nope? I was still too much of a coward. Remember?
My car swerved a bit I did my best to handle it, but now I was stuck, and it didn’t matter how much I stepped on the gas, I was not getting out of this one right now. Maybe I could walk back home? I mentally calculated how long it would take me, but come on, I would look ridiculous carrying a box of pizza wearing a cashmere coat and suede boots.
Instead, I cranked the heater up while I did some budgeting, wondering how much it was going to set me back if I called a tow truck. Could I even afford one?
Not going to lie, when it seemed like things were bad, they tended to go worse. Earlier that day, one of my biggest clients had ended their contract with me because his daughter was going to take over the books. It sucked, but hey, it must be nice to work for family.
How much of a loser would I look like if I ate some pizza in the car and then walked it home and got my car out tomorrow when the heat had melted some of the snow off? Just as I was about to take a bite of my pizza, a bright flashlight was thrown right at me. Got caught with my mouth open about to devour this pizza. How embarrassing. Putting the un-bit slice back in the box, I brought my window down. Great, I was found. But by one of the last people I wished to see.
“Hey, Jules. Kinda stuck
?”
I sighed. What did I even say to that? I was caught looking like a loser. A fat-ass loser. Clark was looking at me expectantly. Not like he was going away.
“A little…”
“Need a hand?”
“If you help me get out of this mess, you’d be my hero.”
“Let me see if I have some chains in my truck.”
As humiliating as Clark having found me with pizza in my mouth was, being able to eliminate the cost of a tow truck made me breathe easier. I could have called a cab home but that would have still left my car stuck in snow. People would have noticed, and that would have led to questions.
Clark came back sans chains, and there went my easy breathing. I was going to have to call a tow truck.
“I have my chains in my squad car, but my parents have a few. I was on my way there anyways.”
I nodded, still seated in my car. Okay, so no tow truck. I could go back to humiliation. I wondered how long it was going to take Clark to leave. My pizza was getting cold.
“Come on, let’s go.”
“Pardon?” I gave Clark a bewildered look.
He couldn’t possibly mean what he said, right? There’s no way in hell I was going to his house. The day of the mistake—you know, the one where my lips had a mind of their own and attacked Jake—that day was the last time I’d seen him. That was a week ago. It wasn’t like I’d gone out of my way not to see him, because I never had a reason to see him in the first place. But now I could go another seven years before laying eyes on him again.
I kissed Jake and he didn’t kiss me back.
Thinking about it made my throat feel funny. Maybe it was more humiliation. I mean, that had never happened to me. No guy in their right mind would turn me down.
“There’s no way in hell I’m leaving you here alone.” Clark tapped the top of my roof expectantly.
Shit.
Hopefully Jake wasn’t at his parents’. I mean, he had his own place, right? With a sigh, I grabbed the pizza and climbed into Clark’s truck.
“Jules?”
“Hmmmm?” I didn’t dare look Clark in the face.
“Why didn’t you call your brothers for help?”
It was hard to force a laugh. “You know they both have families now. They don’t need to drop everything they’re doing to help me.”
Clark didn’t say anything else, and I hoped he believed my lie. We parked in front of a small ranch-style house. Jesus, it wasn’t even Thanksgiving and they already had Christmas lights on.
“Mom’s a nut. She lives for Christmas and refuses to accept that it’s only socially acceptable for the lights to go on after Thanksgiving. She says that if it’s good enough for the stores to roll out in Christmas after Halloween, it’s good enough for her.” He laughed.
Not knowing what to say, I gave Clark a smile and watched him get out of the car.
“Let’s eat.”
“Inside?” I turned to look at Clark and at his parents’ jolly house.
“Yeah, were else? Besides it’s family night. After that, we can get your car.”
“F-family night?” My hands started shaking the pizza box, making a noise as it hit the dashboard.
“Yeah. Come on, don’t be shy. You know me and Jake, and Blake is cool.”
Dammit. It wasn’t like I could have told Clark about his brother rejecting me. I said a quick prayer to get out of this mess. I was rather desperate that a broken leg and a trip to the ER didn’t sound that bad.
As soon as we walked into the house, I smelled the food and my mouth watered. My mother was never much of a cook. I mean, she knew how to do it, but all those organizations she was head of took time away from her family. Our cook, Clara, was amazing; I never went without having what I wanted. When I moved in with Chad, he had a cook, and I always made sure to plan our meals. I guessed that was my way of feeling like a domesticated housewife. Planning what someone else was going to cook.
Now, I had learned to acquire the taste of cardboard disguised as noodles. Frozen dinners were lifesavers. To be honest I couldn’t remember when the last time was that I’d had a home-cooked meal. I didn’t think five-star cuisine counted as home-cooked.
“Clarkie, is that you?” a loud feminine voice boomed through the house.
I turned my head, trying to see where it came from. The living room was small, and honest to God, they had flower-printed couches. I had never in my life seen anything other than leather or a solid print suede, but they didn’t look bad. It gave the room charisma.
“Clarkie?” I asked.
Clark put an arm around my shoulder and dragged me to what I assumed was the dining room. “Not a word, Jules.”
“Oh, look at that. He brought a girl home.”
That was said by a man who appeared right in front of us. I assumed he was Mr. Carson, but I couldn’t see the resemblance. He had almost no hair, his face was square, and his nose was a little wide. His jeans could be described as dad jeans, his maroon shirt tucked into them—nothing like my dad’s three-piece suits—but he had the kindest smile I had ever seen.
“A girl? Did he kidnap her? It’s okay, sweetheart. Blink three times if you need help!” I easily recognized Blake’s shout.
“Blakey,” the same woman from earlier yelled.
“Ma, it smells delicious,” Clark said as the room came into view.
The kitchen was the dining room and vice versa. The cabinets, sink, and stove went along a wall with the fridge, making a L in the room.
“Now who have we here?” the woman asked.
I peeked my head out from Clark only to be stunned at the gorgeous petite woman in front of me. Now I could see where the Carson kids got their looks.
“Juliet.”
My stomach dipped with his voice. I hoped my smile came off as warm and not like a grimace. My head slowly craned, and there he was—Jake Carson sitting at his family’s dinner table, and he did not look happy to see me. How did I know he was not happy to see me? That was easy: his jaw was clenched, and he kept glaring at me and Clark, probably for bringing me when he too was trying to avoid me.
This was just fabulous.
To not look directly into Jake’s eyes, my eyes wandered to the feast they had spread before them. I swore the only time I saw food like that was when my parents had guests to entertain.
“I’m so sorry to intrude on your dinner.” I put my hands inside the pockets of my coat so they couldn’t see them shake. This was so embarrassing, and I wanted to die.
“Don’t be silly, sweetheart. The more the merrier.” Mrs. Carson smiled at me and handed Clark and me a disposable plate each. “Jakey, go get Juliet a chair. I left it in Blakie’s room when I was trying to clean the fan.”
Not wanting to cause any type of scene, I walked behind Clark and admired Mrs. Carson. My mother used to hate when we had uninvited guests for dinner and she wasn’t prepared. The table wouldn’t be set, and God forbid we weren’t using our finest china.
Jake came back with the chair, and I hated that I’d made things awkward between us. He was the only person I could talk to, and now he didn’t seem all that happy to see me. Jake put the chair across from him and next to Blake.
I was waiting for him to move so I could sit, but he was just there holding on to the chair. He nodded his head for me to take a seat. Slowly, I sat down as Jake adjusted my chair. What a chivalrous thing to do.
Shit, it was always the little things, wasn’t it?
“How long have you two been dating?” Mr. Carson pointed his fork at me and Clark.
I was choking before I could fully appreciate the flavor of the roast beef.
“They’re not dating,” Jake snapped.
“You don’t know that,” Clark countered.
Meanwhile, I grabbed my glass of water, trying not to die at the Carsons’ dinner table.
“Clark was just giving me a ride home. My car kind of got stuck in the snow.”
“What kind of car you have? Because I
love a good Toyota as much as the next guy, but the cars are shit in the snow,” Mr. Carson said.
“She has a sweet ride. A Cadillac,” Blake added, all of them going on like I wasn’t even here.
“Good thing my Clarkie was there. He’s such a hero.” Mrs. Carson beamed, pinching Clark’s cheek.
Clark was not amused.
I played with my food, aware that Jake was looking at me. Slowly, I dared to take a peek, and yep, his eyes were on me. But they weren’t that deep blue that I was starting to get addicted to. They looked like the dark sky.
“So Juliet, what do you do?” Mr. Carson asked.
My cheeks flamed from being put on the spot. I didn’t know why, but I wanted these ordinary, sweet people to like me. People who were not like my parents’ people.
“I majored in business in college. Right now, I’m managing the books for a few stores online,” I told him.
“I didn’t take you for a math major,” Jake interjected while he stuffed mashed potatoes in his mouth.
Smiling at him, I opened my mouth to a can of worms. “I wanted to get my BBA.”
“Why didn’t you?” Clark asked, and everyone looked at me.
Jake’s eyes were so intense, I had to look away. Unfortunately, his mother’s eyes weren’t any less inquisitive.
“After I got married, my… Chad wanted me to focus on our kids.”
“You have kids?”
“You’re married?”
Jake’s parents looked at me and Clark, clearly confused.
“We didn’t get that far.” I cleared my throat. “My husband is no longer in the picture.”
I would be free of him as soon as the divorce papers went through.
“Don’t you worry, sweetheart. My boy here, he’s a catch.” Mrs. Carson winked at Clark, and the asshole grinned at me.
“I don’t think Dunnett needs you to hook her up with Clark,” Jake snapped at his mother, making my stomach drop with the viciousness in his voice.
14
Juliet
Sophomore Year
