Page 84 of Between Now and Forever
“I’m good. I hope you’re the same, Mrs. Weston,” he says.
“Oh, yes, very well, thank you, Jay,” she answers.
She looks back and forth between the two of us. A cheeky grin slips across her face.
“I’ll let you two get back to it,” she says. “It was great to see you, Gabby. Come visit me sometime. I still live out by the ball fields. You remember where that is, don’t you?”
“Of course. It was good to see you, Mrs. Weston.”
She smiles at us. “Enjoy your lunch.”
Jay nods a goodbye as she walks away.
I settle back in my chair and heave a breath. “You do know that woman is one of the biggest gossips in this town, right?”
“No.”
“Well, she is. Half of the town will know she saw the two of us having lunch together by the time I get back home.”
Jay studies me. “Does that bother you?”
His gaze is heavy on me as I consider his question. My instant reflex is to panic and say yes, it does bother me. I expect that Ishouldwant to protect the boys and not have them hear that we’re together. I wait for a string of words to form that explains why having lunch in public might not be a great idea just yet.
This is all so new. And Jay doesn’t want this in the open ...does he?
“Does it bother you?” I ask instead of answering him.
He’s thoughtful before responding. Finally, his eyes lock on mine.
“I want you to be comfortable,” he says softly. “If you want to keep this quiet—especially for the boys—then I understand that. That’s what we’ll do. But if it’s my decision to make, then I don’t care if anyone in this town knows that I’m interested in you. Because I am.” A grin tickles his lips. “I like you, Gabrielle. A lot.”
A rush of warmth floods my veins, and I bite my lip to keep from laughing in relief.
“I like you too, Jay. A lot.”
“How hungry are you?” he asks.
My stomach clenches.
“Because we can stick around and have a burger,” he says. “Or ...”
I stand up. “Or. I pickor.”
His laughter is loud as he gets to his feet. He takes a twenty from his wallet and hands it to Taylor as she walks by.
“We gotta get going,” Jay tells her. “Keep the change.”
Taylor reads between the lines and giggles. “Get out of here before you two set this place on fire.”
Jay takes my hand and practically drags me to the door.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
JAY
Irinse my plate and place it in the dishwasher. It’s a process that’s never made sense to me, but it’s a habit I can’t break.Why have a dishwasher if you’re going to clean the dishes first anyway?I don’t know. But it’s what I do.
Gabrielle’s bra hangs off the back of a kitchen chair in the same spot she tossed it a few nights ago during one of our middle-of-the-night rendezvous. Sometimes we don’t get beyond the sofa. Other times, we wind up in the kitchen, and I make her a snack so she can relax. My favorite nights include her on my lap in the living room or lying with her in my bed, telling stories and sharing mindless details about our day.
