19. Chapter Nineteen #2
“Really?” my dad deadpans. I nod, coming over to stand by my boyfriend-not boyfriend.
I slide him a plate for his eggs.
“Really. I mean, I am like twenty years older than him, so I didn’t want him to think I was a creepy old man.”
Jacob smirks. “Eighteen.”
“Huh?”
“You’re eighteen years older than me,” he says smoothly. “And I never thought you were creepy or old.” He gives me a soft smile. “I thought you were hot as fuck.”
We both realize the moment he curses, that he indeed just told my entire family he thinks I am hot as fuck. The grin that splits my face is wicked. My mother gasps, my father groans, Garrett curses, and I hear Lola giggling excitedly as Shannon and Travis laugh.
“Sorry,” Jacob says breathlessly, his cheeks turning tomato red.
“Well, sounds like you had nothing to worry about,” Dad says from behind his paper.
“Guess not,” I say as Jacob hurries out the door onto the deck, if only to get away from the embarrassment of his blunder. I don’t chase him, but Lola does.
No one stops her, either, and once the door shuts, the tension can be felt in the room.
“What are you doing with that boy, Aaron?” my father drawls. My blood chills.
“Excuse me?”
“I have shirts older than him,” he bites.
I cross my arms as Garrett chuckles. “So do I.”
I glare at him. He is one to talk.
That fact chills me, too, as I look outside the window, noting Lola and Jacob looking at her phone while he eats.
She’s showing him something. And he’s entertaining it, whatever it is, with that sweet smile on his face.
She grins, and he does too, and when she leans into his space, my heart melts a little. Doesn’t anyone else see this?
Or am I the only one that notices how perfect he actually is?
“Just because he’s young doesn’t mean he’s an idiot,” Shannon says, pointing a look at my father.
“I’m just concerned, is all,” my father says.
“Well, you don’t need to be concerned,” I bite. “About me or my relationships. I’m a big boy, Dad. I can make my own decisions.”
My father puts his paper down and looks out the window.
“I didn’t say it was you I was concerned about, Aaron.”
He gets up and takes his coffee to the sink, glaring at me as he heads outside to the deck, walking past Jacob and Lola to the gazebo.
My heart stops and I feel a rush of anxiety. It’s not me he’s worried about?
What the fuck is he worried about then? Jacob?
“Well, I think all things considered, Jacob is very nice,” my mother says pointedly, and I nearly stop breathing because the way she looks at me when she says the words is…
She’s never liked any of my boyfriends. She’s always been pretty clear about that.
“I think you lucked out, Aaron,” Shannon says with a grin. “That boy is practically Prince Charming.”
Her words make the world around me small. I catch Garrett’s stare.
“Yes, it’s almost like he’s too perfect. Like he was created just for Aaron.”
Garrett finishes his bagel. “Alright, we’re off to finalize our plans for our epic party.” He says.
“Enjoy your day, Aaron.”
When Jake and I get to the beach, I’m practically jumping out of my skin. All morning, I couldn’t stop thinking about Garrett’s words. Or my dad’s.
I focus on setting up our beach towels and umbrellas as Jacob unpacks the beach bag and his books. Apparently, his duffel was full of books.
More than I would bring on vacation.
He plops down on his beach blanket, watching me as I struggle with the damn umbrella. My temperature rises, and it’s not from the damn weather.
“Fucking hell!” I bite as I nearly throw the damn top because it won’t click in right.
“Hey…” He sets his book down, standing as he approaches me with a weary look.
“Are you okay? Are you mad about earlier?”
“What?” I look at him in question.
“I didn’t mean to swear in front of your parents and be awkward, it just sort of—”
“No.” I shake my head. “No, I’m not mad at you because you told my family you think I’m hot as fuck.”
His cheeks redden again and suddenly the anger dissipates.
“Oh. Good,” he says. I smirk.
“You really think I’m hot as fuck?”
He rolls his eyes as he tries to click the umbrella in.
“Isn’t it obvious?” he asks.
“Yeah. But maybe I like to hear you say it,” I say with a chuckle. “Maybe I like it when you praise me a little.”
The umbrella clicks in.
“There we go,” he says, adjusting the angle. “Sometimes you just need to take a step back.”
His words aren’t lost on me. He turns to look at me. “If it’s something I did—”
I pull him closer, sliding my hand over his exposed skin. He falls into my hold easily.
“It’s nothing you did,” I say. “I promise.”
He nods. “Okay.”
I don’t let go of him, and he makes no motion to move, either.
“How do you do that?” I ask, my voice deep and low.
“Do what?” His gaze dips to my mouth. My palm sweats from the heat, between us, from the sun.
“How do you make everything else feel so insignificant?”
He chews his bottom lip. “Aaron—”
“How do you make it so easy?”
“Make what so easy?” he asks, placing his palm against my abs.
But I don’t answer him. Because just as I open my mouth, I see Chris, stumbling down the beach with a beer in his hand and a scowl on his face.
“Chris, what’s—”
“I’m done,” he says bitterly. Jacob pushes away from me.
“What’s wrong?” Jacob asks. Chris sits on Jacob’s towel, drinking his beer and I realize he’s drunk.
It’s barely eleven o’clock and he’s completely shitfaced. I’ve never seen him like this.
“Everything,” he bites.
Jacob looks at me in question. I shrug.
“Fuck if I know.”
Jacob sits next to him, pulling his legs up. “Do you want to talk about it?” His words are awkward, and I can tell he doesn’t really want to but doesn’t know what else to do. That makes two of us.
“I’m not doing the party,” he says. “I quit.”
My eyes widen in shock. “You quit?”
He nods.
“I never wanted this. I just want to do my own thing instead of what my dad wants me to do, you know?”
His words are heavy. I do know.
“I know the feeling,” Jacob says. “Your parents pissed?”
Chris shrugs. “Not as pissed as they’ll be when they find out why.”
“Why?” I ask.
“Because I got a job with Tempest.”
The world stops as I process his words.
“What? Chris, what are you talking about?”
Chris takes a swig of his beer.
“Rob offered me a better deal,” he says. “I took the deal before coming here but things were still being finalized—”
“You knew this whole time, and you said nothing?” I bite. “Fuck, does Garrett know?” I can’t hide the disappointment in my voice.
Chris purses his lips. “Yeah. He knows.”
Fuck.
“What did they offer you?” I ask, pinching my nose.
“Work from home. Make my own hours. Generous time off, and—”
“You are giving up a shot at owning and running a massive company so you can sit in your basement and—”
“I am giving up a position I don’t want,” he says plainly.
“ Evermore is your dream, Aaron. It’s always been your dream, not mine. You should be the one running the company. Not me, not Garrett.” He scoffs. “And you should be thanking me!” he bites.
“Thanking you?” I snap. “Why the fuck should I be thanking you?”
“Because now you have a better shot!” he says. I shake my head.
“Are you leaving, too?” I ask hesitantly. Chris nods.
“Tomorrow morning. Mom and Dad and Lola are staying. But I can’t. I have a life back home I need to go back to.”
He looks off into the distance, and Jacob finally speaks.
“Is it Bella?” he asks. Who’s Bella?
Chris sighs. “No. I mean, sort of, but—”
Chris turns to look at Jacob, and I see the wistful air of hope in his eyes. Attraction that can’t be missed. He reaches out to grab Jacob’s face and I see red.
Jacob pushes it off before I can get to him, but his eyes are soft.
“Sorry,” Chris mutters. “You just look so much like him, guess I forgot….”
“I’m going to go for a walk. I’ll be back.” Jacob says.
“What were you thinking?” I ask breathlessly. “Taking a gig with Tempest ?”
Chris drains the rest of his beer.
“I just wanted to do something on my own. Make my own decisions for once.”
“I don’t want to be married to my desk, man. I don’t want to miss birthdays and holidays and be thinking of numbers when I should be thinking about kissing my boyfriend or—”
He lets out a breath and his word hangs in the air. Boyfriend.
I’ve known Chris all my life, and I’ve never seen him even look at a man with interest. He’s always had girlfriends. Pretty girlfriends, too. But there’s no hiding the guilt in his voice, or the truth in his words.
And I realize Chris and I aren’t really all that different.
“Money isn’t everything, Aaron. I know that sounds cliche, but it’s true. I don’t want the company. I just want a job that will let me travel and enjoy my time with the people I love.”
His words settle on me.
“I get it,” I say. “I do.” I watch Jacob, walking along the beach. I can see from here he’s on his phone, and I remember his brother back home. Probably checking in with him. Which he should do. He has a life outside of here, after all.
A life apart from me. Because I’m not his boyfriend. I’m his client.
But I think as I watch Jacob traipse through the surf, that Chris is right. Money isn’t everything. There are things that mean a hell of a lot more.
A kiss full of laughter.
A racing pulse beneath my palm.
A look that can chase away all the anger and bitterness inside me.
And that’s the moment I realize, I’m fucked well beyond repair.
Because I think I’m falling in love with Jacob Riley.