Page 18 of The Fangirl and the Grump

That was…weird. And exhilarating.

Having someone attracted to me, feeling desired after all that shit that went down with Carter and finding out he was fucking my best friend…it feels good.

Really fucking good.

ChapterEight

Trace

For our weekly Thursday night dinner, Willow and I decide to stay local and meet at the tavern. Sometimes we go elsewhere for variety, but Wolfsbane is our favorite place to meet. It’s comfortable. Familiar. And the food is delicious.

I wave at Bram behind the bar as I head for our usual table. Willow’s already there waiting for me, perusing a menu like she mightnotorder the bacon cheeseburger and onion rings. Yeah. That’s likely.

“Hey,” I say as I slide into the booth across from her. “Sorry I’m late. The alarm at the house went off,again. Some tourists tried to get inside through the upstairs bedroom window.Again.”

She doesn’t ask me to clarify because she knows exactly what I’m talking about. She just shakes her head as she continues to read the menu. Our waiter, looks like it’s Steven tonight, approaches with two glasses of beer, setting them on the table before us. Stepping back, he smiles.

“Hey, Trace. Willow. Bacon cheeseburger, medium-well with onion rings, and the steak sandwich with fries?”

“You know me so well, Stevie-Poo,” Willow says in a baby voice as she sets her menu aside, making Steven laugh.

He looks at me, and I nod. Grabbing the menus, he spins and walks away as I pick up my beer and take a long sip. It’s cold and crisp and hits the spot after a long day. Hell. A longweek.

“How are things at the shop?” I ask Willow.

“Good,” she says. “Ooh, you should come by tomorrow. I added a few things to the menu I want you to taste-test for me.”

“I could be convinced,” I say with a grin.

“You love my food, and you know it,” she says, smiling back at me.

“I…” I start, and the words trail off as my eye catches a flash of blonde walking through the front door.

It’s her. Keegan.

She looks over her shoulder and smiles, and my gaze moves to the man behind her. He reaches out and presses a palm to her lower back, and my lips curl into a snarl without my permission. Willow notices, and follows the direction of my gaze with curious eyes.

“Keegan,” she calls out, and my eyes snap to my sister, widening with shock as she lifts a hand and waves.

I see the blonde in question wave back from the corner of my eye, but thankfully, she doesn’t come over. When Willow looks back at me, her eyebrows pull down.

“What? Why are you frowning at me like that?”

“You know her?” I ask.

“Yeah. She came into the shop Monday morning, and we chatted for a while. Did you know she got left here with no car? I let her borrow mine to go shopping, and that’s where she met Jacob.”

She pauses to nod toward the couple, and I look over to see Jacob Stillman, out of uniform, pushing in Keegan’s chair before moving to sit across from her. Ignoring the unfamiliar feeling inside me, I turn my gaze back to my sister.

“You lent your car to a stranger?”

“I trusted her. And she proved me right by bringing back my car right after. But not before Jacob questioned her to make sure she didn’t steal it.” She chuckles. “And, apparently, gave her his number and asked her out. She told me all about it afterward. He was quite charming, according to Keegan.”

I hum with disapproval as my gaze moves back to the tiny blonde. She looks gorgeous, nothing like the mess she was on Sunday. And she’s smiling too widely. What could fucking Jacob Stillman be saying to put that look on her face? I remember when he puked vodka underneath the football stadium stands when he and Willow were freshmen in high school. He may be a grown man now, but he’s still an idiot.

“What’s that look for?” Willow asks, and my gaze snaps back to her.

“What look?” I ask, grabbing my glass and taking a drink to cover my frown.

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