Chapter 1 #2
So whatever this thing with Jesse was, it was fleeting. He was likely bored and new in town. Once he settled in, he would find some other girl who was prettier and skinnier to chase. I was just right in front of him for the moment.
I set the finished cone on the counter in front of him. “There. Your very exciting vanilla cone.”
He looked at it, then back at me. “I’m starting to think you judge me.”
“I absolutely do.”
“Harsh.”
“You’ll survive.”
He laughed again, softer this time, then reached into his wallet. He pulled out a five and held it in his fingers while I rang him up.
When I looked up, he was still watching me.
Not my chest. Not the menu behind me. Me.
That should’ve made me feel something. Instead, it made me wary, because attention wasn’t the same thing as wanting someone.
And wanting someone wasn’t the same thing as staying.
I knew that too.
He slid the five across the counter, and when I reached for it, his fingers stayed there for a second longer than necessary.
It shouldn’t have felt like anything.
It did.
“I was wondering something,” he said.
I looked up from the register. “That sounds dangerous.”
His smile deepened. “Maybe.”
I waited.
He leaned in a little, still casual, still easy. “Do you want to go out with me tomorrow night?”
My brain stalled.
Because even with Lark’s teasing and his weirdly steady attention, I still hadn’t really believed that was where this was headed.
So I just stared at him.
For one second, then two.
From the back, Lark hollered, “Say yes!”
I blinked hard, reality snapping back into place.
Jesse was still there, still watching me, and still waiting.
The silence stretched, and of course my brain went there.
Jude.
Because of course that was where my mind went.
He’d never once looked at me like that.
If he’d wanted me, I would’ve known by now.
He didn’t.
So maybe saying yes to Jesse wasn’t about sparks or butterflies or any of the other nonsense romance books liked to sell people.
Maybe I could say yes even if it wasn’t for the right reason.
“Yeah,” I said finally. “Okay.” The word was out before I could overthink it or before I could talk myself out of it.
Lark let out some kind of victorious whoop from the back.
Heat crept into my cheeks, but I ignored it.
Jesse smiled. “Yeah?”
“Yeah,” I repeated, steadier this time.
He nudged the five another inch toward me. “Keep the change.”
“You don’t have to do that.”
“I know.”
I picked up the bill and opened the register. “Tomorrow night, then.”
“Tomorrow night,” he agreed. “Does that work for you?”
“That depends,” I said, glancing up. “What time?”
“Whenever you’re free.”
“I work tomorrow.”
Before I could say anything else, Lark yelled from the back, “I’ll come in at seven and close for her!”
I closed my eyes for half a second. Then I looked toward the kitchen. “You are the biggest pain in my ass.”
“You’re welcome!” she shouted back.
Jesse laughed.
I sighed and turned back to him. “Apparently I’m free after seven.”
He nodded once, like that settled it. “Then I’ll pick you up after your shift,” he said. “You can pretend you don’t hate it for a few hours.”
There was something smooth in the way he said it. Not cocky. Just certain.
Not enough to make my stomach flip, but enough to make me notice. “That works,” I said.
His smile came easier then. “Good. Then I’ll see you tomorrow, Ever.”
The way he said my name should’ve made butterflies flutter more than it did.
Instead, all I could think was that this was happening awfully fast for someone I wasn’t even sure I liked.
But that wasn’t quite fair either.
I didn’t dislike him.
I was just… indifferent.
Interested in being asked, maybe. Interested in whether saying yes might finally be the thing that got Jude out of my system for good.
Jesse gave me a small wink, then turned and headed for the door.
The bell jingled behind him as he left.
And the second it shut, Lark came flying out of the back with both arms in the air. “I knew it!” she shouted. “I freaking knew he had the hots for you.”
“Oh my God,” I muttered.
She rushed up to the counter and planted both hands on it, practically vibrating. “Eight visits. Eight. That man was working up to this.”
I shook my head and tucked the five into the register. “You are way too invested in this.”
“Because I was right.”
“You say that about everything.”
“Because I usually am.”
I grabbed the scoop and started putting lids back on the ice cream bins, mostly so I had something to do with my hands.
Lark leaned in across the counter. “Tell me you’re at least a little excited.”
I snorted. “Lark.”
“What?”
“It’s one date.”
“With a hot guy.”
“With a guy.”
“With a hot guy,” she repeated, slower.
I gave her a flat look.
She sighed dramatically. “Fine. A guy. A guy who clearly likes you.”
I kept putting things away. “Maybe.”
She stared at me so hard I could feel it. “Maybe?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know. He asked me out. That doesn’t automatically mean anything.”
“It means he asked you out.”
“You know what I mean.”
She softened a little. “Yeah. I do.”
That made me pause.
Lark knew about Jude.
Not in a deep, tragic, confessional way. Just in the way friends knew things you never said out loud more than once.
She knew I’d had a thing for him. She knew it had never gone anywhere. She knew I didn’t talk about it because there wasn’t much to say.
I liked him. He didn’t like me back. End of story.
Lark folded the rag in half and set it on the counter. “This doesn’t have to be some big thing, Ever.”
“I know.”
“You can just go out with him.”
I nodded. “That’s the plan.”
“And maybe have fun.”
I snorted. “You’re asking a lot.”
She laughed and bumped my shoulder. “I’m serious.”
“So am I.”
That got another laugh out of her, and then we fell into the normal rhythm of closing.
Wiping tables, dumping baskets, and stacking chairs.
The Dairy Bar always felt bigger once it was empty. Quieter. Every sound sharper.
By the time we finished, it was almost eleven. The place smelled like sugar, bleach, and fryer oil.
Lark grabbed her purse. “Tomorrow. You’re going.”
“I said I would.”
“Good.”
She paused at the door. “And I still think he’s into you.”
“Good night, Lark.”
She laughed and left.
I stood there a minute after, listening to the hum of the machines.
Tomorrow night, I had a date.
That should’ve felt like something.
Instead, all I could think was Jesse asked.
Jude never had.