Chapter 17 #3
“Thank you for acknowledging that.” My arms hugged my rib cage. I was calmer now, but I still felt vulnerable.
Why had Jake’s comments bothered me so much?
Wyatt had barely registered his rudeness.
I was sure his support of Lakeside was safely secured.
And Jake didn’t owe me the benefit of the doubt.
Yet. Still. Something about the way he’d said what he said.
The implications and judgment were all too familiar.
His words had felt like stabbing a wound with a blunt-tipped pointer.
“I was jealous,” he admitted, voice quiet. “Not just that he was flirting with you. That he could do it so openly. Like it was allowed. Like he’d earned the right,” he said.
He shook his head and closed his eyes with a sigh.
“Like he was trying to win you over—and had a chance.”
His eyes opened again. Full of honesty.
“But even if he had made an attempt, it’s none of my business and certainly not for me to decide.”
I let the silence hang there for a beat.
“Thank you,” I said at last. “Apology accepted.”
“Ali.” He hesitated, his voice just above a whisper. “Can I keep going? Say more?”
I knew he was asking because what he had to say would make an impact. This was when he would tell me everything I feared. That I was too much. Too flirty. Too frustrating. Too chaotic. Not worth it. And that it was time for distance.
I glanced at him sideways. “Say whatever you have to say. You can be honest. I’ve had my fill of people who smile while lying to my face. Don’t play games. You’ve grown to mean more to me than that.”
I saw his jaw tense as he turned his face away.
He stopped us and wrapped his arms on the outside of my arms, turning me. We faced each other. An arm’s length of space between us. An intentional distance, perhaps. His hands moved up my arm before dropping to his sides again.
“You’re . . . special, Ali. In a way I don’t even know how to explain.
I know you’re working your ass off for Lakeside.
For yourself. You’re trying to heal from how you were hurt in Chicago.
I hate that you feel like you still have to prove yourself.
Because I see you. I see your kindness. Your sharp wit.
The way you throw yourself into things—messy and fearless and . . . all heart.
“You care. More than most people are capable of. And yeah, you’re independent and fierce and stubborn as hell—but it’s . . . It’s fire. Not the kind that burns. It draws people in. It drew me in.”
He took a breath, like this next part physically hurt to say. This time I looked away, barely able to stand the anticipation of the but I was sure was to come next.
“So when someone like Wyatt looks at you like you’re just another conquest, yeah. It set something off in me.
“Not because I think low of you. But because . . . well . . .
“You’re exceptional, Ali. You deserve to be looked at like a miracle, not a trophy.”
Wait. What? That was not what I expected to hear.
“And—fuck it. I know you made it clear you only want friendship, but Ali—I want to be the one for you. I want to be the one to shamelessly flirt with you and make you laugh. To keep you out too late and still see you early the next morning. I want you. All the time. In every way.”
A breath I didn’t even realize I was holding escaped.
“I think it’s obvious that I feel more for you than friendship, and it’s silly for me to pretend otherwise. It’s killing me to pretend otherwise.”
I opened my mouth to say something. Not a rejection after all. He was opening up to me. His full heart.
Jake took a few steps and gestured to a small break in the trees just ahead. “We’re here. This is what I wanted to share with you.”
I followed him through the opening, and the world opened with it.
Before me was a field—wide, quiet, impossibly vivid. Not just green, but alive. Wildflowers spilled in every direction, bursting with color. Swaying like they were humming a secret song. The air smelled like sunlight and honey and something ancient.
Somewhere, a meadowlark sang.
It wasn’t just beautiful. It was sacred.
A single tear—one I’d managed to contain all day despite the roller coaster of emotions—dripped down my cheek. I quickly swiped it away.
“I’ve never seen anything like this,” I whispered, as if speaking too loudly might scare it away.
Jake stepped beside me. I turned to say something else, but he was already looking at me.
“I have,” he said softly.
And for one suspended moment, I forgot every reason I had not to allow myself to feel more for this man.
We were facing each other again. I could stand in his gaze forever. I never felt less than in his gaze. I never felt too much in his gaze. He looked deeper into me and drank in what usually stayed hidden beneath my emotional armor.
“Thank you for sharing this with me. For trusting me.” I pressed my palm on his chest over his heart. My eyes lowered. My heart was racing. Pounding with anticipation. I could feel his speed up under my hand.
His hand nudged my chin, lifting my face toward his. There was the spark. The one that had been missing when Wyatt’s hand brushed mine. The one missing when any man had ever touched me before Jake. His gaze dropped to my lips.
On impulse, I dragged my teeth to one side and bit my lower lip.
Jake’s thumb traced the edge of my lip in the same spot.
The gentle pressure made me brave. I dropped my chin, swiped kisses along his knuckles, then grabbed his shirt and pressed my lips to his.
This time it felt less like starting something and more like admitting something.
Something I didn’t have words for yet. I didn’t fully trust. But I didn’t want to resist any longer.
I pulled away slowly, and Jake pressed his forehead to mine.
“I don’t know how to do this,” I admitted, still a little breathless from the kiss. As gentle as it was, the warmth that spread through my body felt like exertion.
“I get it. I’m not sure I do either. But this feels like a good start,” Jake said, grabbing my hand in his and lacing our fingers together for the walk back to his truck.