Page 58 of The Second Kiss
I whirl around to face him. “Jealous?”
“Yeah, it’s nothing personal. Jasmine’s a lot more my type, besides–”
“Who do you think you are?” I move closer, getting in his face. “Not everyone wants to be with you, Gage.”
“Calm down, Jess.” He puts his hand on my arm.
I slap him. Hard. “Don’t touch me Gage! In fact, do me a favor, don’t touch me or any of my friends ever again!”
“What’s going on?” Jacob emerges from the direction of my house.
“Just a little disagreement.” Gage has his hand over the cheek I just slapped.
“A disagreement?” Jacob asks.
I face him. “Your brother thinks that knowing someone for a couple of weeks entitles him to certain privileges. I disagreed.”
Jacob looks at Gage with the same look he got from Raymond earlier. “What did you do?”
“Stay out of this. It’s none of your business,” Gage growls.
“Jess, what did he do?”
I’m furious. I’m trying to keep from crying. It’s been a stupid night; stuck being the third wheel, trying to figure what Gage did to make my best friend cry, trying to figure out why it bothers me that Gage chose Jasmine. I don’t feel like explaining any of this to Jacob. I head toward my house.
“Wait.” Jacob reaches out to stop me.
“Stay out of it, Jacob. Gage is right. This is none of your business.” I push past him and go inside.
twenty-eight
Chaos
The next morning everyone is expected to help with the remodel of the old house. Dad wants it done before the new renters come in January. I’m stuck working with Jacob and his brothers, and I'm mad at two out of the three.
Nathan is tiling the backsplash in the kitchen, Jacob and Gage are painting the walls, and I’m cutting in around the trim. Jacob and Gage aren’t speaking to each other. I’m not speaking to Gage, and I don’t want to talk to Jacob either. Nathan never talks, so it’s quiet even with all of us working together. Gagekeeps trying to catch my eye. He’s trying to look cute so I’ll forgive him.
It won't work this time.
I set my brush down, maybe a little too hard, on the metal roller pan. Jacob and Gage both look at me. An idea comes to me, maybe a way to get back at Gage and maybe even Jacob. I walk over to Nathan, stand close to him, and smile. “Hey Nate, do you want to do something tonight?”
Nathan looks flustered. He drops the tile he’s holding. It falls on the carpet. We both bend over, but I get it first and hand it back to him. I let my hand linger on his for a minute. “What do you say?”
He glances over at his brothers. They’re both watching us. He shrugs. “Sure. What do you want to do?”
I look Gage in the eye then turn to face Nathan, dropping my voice to match the pitch Jasmine uses when she’s flirting. “How about I surprise you?”
“Okay.” Nathan keeps turning the tile over in his hands instead of meeting my eye.
I touch his arm and smile. “Come by about seven.” I pick up my paintbrush and head outside to rinse it off. I should probably feel guilty about using Nathan to get back at his brothers, but I don’t.
I take extra time getting ready for my date with Nathan. I pulled my hair up into a sloppy bun so it falls down around my face. I’m wearing tight jeans, a blue cashmere sweater I borrowed from Jasmine, and high-heeled boots–not the ones I wore to the party with Brad.
Nathan shows up at my door right at seven. He looks good. Nathan is one of those guys who fade into the background. With his brothers around, I guess I didn’t realize how good-looking he is. The sun from his Florida college has given him a deep tan and lightened his hair. It makes his pretty blue eyes stand out.
“So, where to?” he asks when we get in the car.
“I told you, it's a surprise.” I let Nate drive and slide close to him on the seat because I know Gage is watching. “Are you up for a drive?”
