Rock Bottom Girl(77)

“We only have one bathroom,” Faith laughed. “If I tied it up for an hour at a time, my husband would break down the door with the sports section in one hand and his Sudoku in the other.”

We laughed, and I turned my back on the picture-perfect Hostetters. They didn’t need any more attention.

I saw Jake coming. He had a pretty girl and a gangly redheaded man in tow.

“Marley Cicero, meet my cousin Adeline O’Connell and her husband, Rob,” Jake said, taking my empty cup and handing me a fresh one. “Adeline? Rob? This is my girlfriend, Marley.”

I felt my cheeks warm at the “girlfriend” introduction. I liked having that designation with Jake. I liked being attached to him in that way. And, if I were continuing with the whole honesty thing, I would be forced to admit that I liked just about everything associated with Jake.

As if reading my mind, he gave me a slow wink. There must be something in the smoke here, casting its spell of attraction. Or maybe it was the cold beer, enjoyed under a crisp autumn sky. Whatever the source of the magic, the “fake” in our relationship was becoming less and less important to me.

We made small talk, shooting the shit. Interweaving old memories with new stories. And I didn’t hate it. Not with Jake’s arm around my shoulders. Not with old friends, once forgotten, reminding me that childhood and high school hadn’t been quite as bad as I remembered it.

It was too good to last.

“Oh. My. God,” Amie Jo screeched as if seeing me for the first time. “What happened to your hair? Did you demand your money back?” She shouldered her way into our happy little circle, carrying a glass of wine. Only Amie Jo would show up to a bonfire with her own crystal.

“Oh, you don’t like it? Darn,” I said, lightly.

“You don’t like it, do you? I mean, I don’t see how you could. If you need someone to fix it, I’d be happy to recommend my stylist. But she books out months in advance. She’s very popular.” This clearly was not Amie Jo’s first crystal goblet of wine.

“Amie Jo,” Travis appeared behind her and laid a hand on his wife’s shoulder. He sounded embarrassed.

“What? I’m just offering to help,” she said batting her lashes, the picture of innocence.

“That’s very sweet of you,” I said as Jake reeled me in closer. “But I’m happy with everything just the way it is.”

Her eyes narrowed, and I could hear her run through her long list of barely veiled insults. I didn’t necessarily blame her. I’d taken a crown away from her senior year. I’d embarrassed her and ruined her senior year as much as she’d ruined mine.

“Hi, Jake,” Amie Jo chirped.

Ah, she’d settled on the “flirt with the enemy’s date” route.

“Hi, Hostetters,” Jake said cheerfully. He ran his hand through my hair, an intimate gesture that had his cousin’s eyebrows skyrocketing.

“You should have gone blonde,” Amie Jo said to me, fluffing her platinum mane. “I always have more fun.”

“I prefer brunettes,” Jake said, winking at me lecherously.

I didn’t know if he was standing up for me, slapping Amie Jo down, or complimenting me. Whatever it was, it made my intestines feel like they were full of molten Hershey’s chocolate. In a good way.

“If you’ll excuse us. I think I need to make out with my lady in the shadows,” Jake said. He led me by the hand out of the group, away from the crackle and heat of the bonfire.

I laughed. “Well, that’s an exit everyone will be talking about,” I said dryly.

But he just pulled me deeper into the night until it was just the two of us and the dark.

And then he was kissing me. Slow and deep. Thoroughly. Like he wanted the air I was breathing. I wrapped my arms around his neck and held on for dear life.

He’d kissed me before. I’d kissed him. But this was the first time that I felt like our agreement, the premise of our relationship, was disintegrating under newly applied heat.

This felt real.

It didn’t feel like a game or a joke or pretend.

I kissed him back, pouring myself into him. Letting myself go. For once.

He pulled back and ran his thumb over my lower lip. “I loved looking across the fire and seeing you smile at me,” he said gruffly.

Oh, crap. There was nothing fake about that declaration.

“Maybe we should talk about this,” I suggested. If we got a bit of air, if we talked it through, maybe the terrifying edge of these feelings would wear down. Maybe I could manage them. Survive them.

“I have a better idea than talking,” Jake said softly.

He shoved one hand into my nice, new hair and used the other to drag me against him.





46





Marley





“Come home with me.” Jake wasn’t asking or begging. It wasn’t even a question, an offer. It was a statement. A direct order.

And I had no intention of arguing with him. Not even for posterity’s sake.

I wanted to be wanted. Even just for one night. And especially by him.

I was throbbing everywhere for him. The pulse between my legs had gone beyond noticeable to life-threatening. I wanted his touch on every square inch of my body. Even the parts I wasn’t totally fond of. I wanted him to blaze a trail from my scalp to my toes. Kissing and licking his way over me until we were both satisfied. Or dead.