Page 48 of Jake

Lauren blushed, the red creeping from her face and down the impressively low neckline. “I, umm, I will be right back.”

In the interest of speed, she picked the dress up with one hand as she headed down the hall. She threw whatever she thought she would need in a bag, not caring if it matched or the occasion. She didn’t plan to stay dressed anyway.

“Need a hand?” came Jake’s voice from the doorway.

“I think I have what I need.” She looked in the bag that she’d haphazardly packed.

He approached, putting his hand on her back as he reached for her pink overnight bag. His fingers slid up and down her bare back, leaving a trail of goosebumps over her whole body.

“I love that I can touch your skin,” he said in her ear, causing a shiver to ripple through her body. “Let’s see how long you can last.”

The rumble of his low voice was doing things to her that she couldn’t believe. Never had she ever been so turned on by a hand on her back and a voice against her ear.

“We need to go to dinner.” He backed away, taking her in one hand and her bag in the other. “The sooner we have dinner, the sooner we can do better things.”

She wanted to tease him, be playful, but her mouth wouldn’t work, so she just nodded and walked out with him.

“Have fun, you two.” Catherine waved them off.

“I’m stealing your roommate for good,” Jake told her.

“Go for it, she’s happier with you anyway.” Catherine closed the door behind them.

“Stealing me?” Lauren asked.

“I’m not letting you out of my bed for at least twenty-four hours,” he promised as they entered the elevator.

She wholeheartedly believed him and was thrilled about it. She ducked her head as she smiled, and Jake touched a finger to her chin, tipping her head back.

“I love your smile.” He softly kissed her lips. “I won’t mess up your makeup now, but I am going to later, just so we’re clear.”

Lauren cleared her throat as the elevator slid open. Jake took her hand yet again and led her to the waiting car, handing her down into it as the driver took her bag.

Jake sat next to her and handed her a glass of champagne before picking up one of his own. “To us,” he said as he lifted his glass to her.

“To us.” She touched her glass to his.

With everything he said and did, her nerves about going out tonight eased. She grew less worried about the people around them and what they might be thinking, instead focused only on her relationship with this man next to her.

The driver opened the door and Jake unfolded from the car before reaching back in for her. This was it, the moment of truth.

Lauren reached for Jake’s hand and stood as she climbed out of the car. Cameras instantly started flashing and she did her best not to throw her hand up as she wanted to, instead pasting what she hoped was a realistic smile on her face.

There were always paparazzi outside of this restaurant as celebrities often ate here. She had known they would be here, but nothing had really prepared her for the onslaught of people asking who she was.

“You’ve got this. Just keep walking with me,” he whispered.

Jake tucked her hand into his elbow and rested his other hand over hers, giving it a reassuring squeeze. He pulled her along as she kept her eyes focused on the door before them, the safety from this chaos.

It was shorter than she expected before they were safely inside and the chaos was gone. The dimly-lit restaurant was quiet with a piano playing over speakers from a far corner.

“Right this way,” a woman dressed in black told them.

Quickly, they were ushered to a table far away from the door. The white tablecloths were a stark contrast to the black chairs as Jake pulled the seat out for her.

Jake’s hand drifted up her back again as he moved to take his own seat. She repressed the shiver that wanted to sneak out in this room full of people.

She didn’t listen as the wine list was read to them, barely heard the specials as they werre spoken. Her mind was reeling as she looked around at the restaurant and the people that were eating nearby.

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