Page 13 of The Love Rematch
This is just like that.
It has to be.
Unless…she never hallucinated him. And all those times he’d really been there. And now, he’s really here.
No. No. No. No.
She stares at the lawn lit by bright floodlights. He’s too short. He’s too tall. He’s blond. He’s—
Jake.
Oh god, it’s him. It’s really him. She’s not hallucinating. Or if she is, she’s damn impressed by herself. He seems so real. Different than she remembers—broader, even from this distance, suaver somehow, more debonair in his navy suit with his brown hair falling in a slight wave across his brow—but still Jake. A grown-up version of him. A version she never could have come up with on her own.
“What are you looking at?”
Emily screams and grabs her chest. Heads turn. She drops to the ground before Jake can catch her gawking from the window.
“Emily?”
She yanks Nina down beside her, digging her fingers into the other woman’s forearm with what must be painful force. Nina gently extricates herself and looks at Emily as if she’s an alien newly arrived from planet crazy.
“You’re freakishly strong,” the producer grumbles, rubbing her skin. “What are we doing on the floor?”
“Shh,” Emily demands. “There’s a contestant out there.”
“I promise you there’s not.”
“There is. I just saw him. He’s got a suit on.”
“Hold on.” Nina crawls onto her knees and peeks over the sill. She snorts, then turns back to Emily. “That’s Jake. Don’t mind him. He got promoted this season and is now under the false impression that he’s somebody important. I told him the suit makes him look like a jackass, but what do I know? I’m just more experienced, more qualified, and more senior than he is, so naturally, he ignored me.” She rolls her eyes. “Men.”
Emily’s chest constricts. She’s still stuck on hearing his name out loud. On hearing it confirmed. “Um, you said Jake?”
“Have you guys not met yet? He’s the field producer in charge of the guys. I’m surprised he hasn’t introduced himself. Hold on. I’ll—”
“No!” Emily jerks Nina down again.
The producer flops to the ground, this time with a glare as she snatches her arm back. “Seriously, what do they feed you in Georgia?”
Emily shrugs. “Peaches?”
“Well—”
“Nina. You there?”
Emily freezes as his voice comes through her handler’s headset. If they weren’t so close, she wouldn’t have heard. But she does.
“I’m getting the suitors into the limos now. What’s your status?”
Nina snaps her headphones on and murmurs into the microphone. “I need a minute.”
Emily can’t hear Jake anymore, but she doesn’t have to. The damage is done. Nina’s words sink in. He’s a field producer. He works for the show. He’s in charge of the men. Her men. Her thirty second chances.
“I need to talk to my sister,” Emily blurts.
“One sec,” Nina says into the microphone, then lowers the headphones. “What?”
“I—” Emily gasps for air. All of a sudden, she can hardly breathe. Her skin is on fire. Her head feels as though it might explode. “I need to talk to my sister!”
