Page 139 of Jake Forever
Fearful that she'd think I was reading over her shoulder, I took a small step sideways, only to hear her say, "Going someplace?"
She was still looking down, andstillscrolling. I felt my shoulders tighten and my blood pressure rise.
But I swallowed my irritation and said, as nicely as I could, "No. Of course not. I was just trying to give you some privacy. That's all."
"Oh," she said, still looking down. "I guess that's okay."
"But if you'd like," I said, "I can come back in a couple of minutes."
Her voice sharpened. "In a hurry, are you?"
"Uh, no," I stammered. "I just don't want to rush you."
And, I don't want to be standing here like an idiot.
"Oh, don't worry aboutthat," she said, her tone growing decidedly snippy. "Believe you-me. I don't intend on being rushed."
Yeah, andIdidn't intend on slapping her silly. But sometimes, these things just happened, didn't they?
I felt my palms grow twitchy, and my mouth grow tight. I started glancing around, wondering how long I'd be standing here.
It was then that I spotted them – my brothers, a few tables away. They had drinks and menus placed in front of them and amusement written all over their faces.
I felt my gaze narrow. What on Earth were they doing here?
And why were they looking so amused? I saw nothing funny about this whole experience.
Deliberately, I looked away, doing my best to ignore them.
Finally, after several long minutes, the woman stopped scrolling and set down her phone. She lifted her head and smiled – except it wasn't at me.
Looking past me, she called out, "Yoohoo Sarah! Over here!"
I turned my head to see a young woman around my own age, or maybe a couple of years younger. She had a colorful book-bag slung over her shoulder and a smile that looked a little strained.
She approached the table and took a seat next to the woman, whose name, I suddenly realized, I didn't even know.
But then again, I hadn't expected this to be such a long-term relationship.
Sarah looked up, meeting my gaze. "Uh, hi." She looked around. "So, uh, could I get a ginger ale?"
Eager to kill some time, I chirped out, "Sure thing," and started to turn away.
Before my escape was complete, Miss Table-for-Ten said, "Hold on." Finally, she looked at me. "Youarecoming back, I assume?"
Unfortunately.
"Of course," I assured her with what I hoped was a smile. "I'll be back in a minute."
On my way back to the bar, I stopped at my brothers' table. In a hushed voice, I demanded, "What are you guys doing here?"
"What else?" Steve said. "Watching to see how it goes."
"Howwhatgoes? The apology? How'd you know it was now?"
"You told us Saturday," Steve said. "Don't you remember?"
"No." It was true. Ididn'tremember. After talking with Jake, I'd been too high on love to remember anything. That was two days ago, and I wasstilla little buzzed.
