Page 39 of Fighting Jacob

I’m still staring at my phone when Noah strides into my room. He’s smiling like he won a hotdog eating contest, and his eyes have a twinkle I’ve never seen before.

“Hey, how you feeling?” His jerked-up chin asks more questions than his mouth verbalizes, such as, are you going tell me who beat your ass yet? But there’s too much going on with him to keep the focus on me.

“I’m good. You?”

“I’m fucking great.”

When he waggles his brows, I feel like he slaps me with a wet fish. Who the fuck is this guy standing in front of me? I’ve never seen him so carefree and happy...

My inner monologue trails off when reality dawns. No. Fucking. Way!

“Who has your panties in a twist?”

He rubs his hands together as he rocks heel to toe. “Emily.”

I cock a brow. “Emily… Emily? As in Lola’s sister, Emily?”

I didn’t know they had contact since the car prank we pulled months ago.

“Yep.” The “p” pops from his mouth. “You should see this girl, Jake. She’s so fucking beautiful, yet she has no clue.”

“I’ve seen her, remember?”

I laugh when he rolls his eyes. “Whatever.”

“Is that where you took off to this morning? Dad was interrogating me about your movements earlier.”

He nervously shifts from foot to foot. “Uh, yeah.” He’s embarrassed we spotted his eagerness. “We spent the day at Stoney Creek Falls. She jumped off the waterfall with me.”

“No shit?”

I didn’t think Emily would have the brass to jump off the boulder at Stoney Creek. Maybe she’s more like her sister than I thought.

“Anyway, I’m going to take a shower—”

“To work out the kink?” I interrupt with a laugh.

When he ignores me, I realize that’s precisely what he’s going to do. Welcome to McIntosh blue balls territory, Noah. It’s neither pretty nor nice.

Once he reaches my door, he glances over his shoulder at me. “Will you ever tell me what happened last night?”

My lips twist as I scratch my brow. “Yeah, one day.”

His eyes narrow as he shakes his head. “Don’t ever play poker, Jacob. You’ll lose more than your shirt.”

Chapter Nineteen

Lola

“Guys are such pigs.”

I shake off my funk as I exit the men’s bathroom at Mavs. I've just finished cleaning the urinals as part of my continued punishment from Maggie. After our disagreement weeks ago, she's given me every shit chore she can find. Because I really need this job and have yet to find a replacement, I have no choice but to put up with her unjust treatment. She isn't being fair because she doesn’t know the agreement Jacob and I have. Associating with another man isn’t cheating when you’re not in a relationship.

When I round the corner to head back to the main bar area, I crash into a well-formed chest. “Sorry.”

I attempt to maneuver past the person, but a deep voice halts my steps. "I knew I'd eventually bump into you."

With my heart beeping in my neck, I raise my eyes. After clearing ripped jeans, a fitted blue shirt, and a tattooed neck, I come face to face with Callum Parker—my ex-boyfriend.

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