Chapter 30
thirty
As Jake and I peruse the grocery store aisle, we haphazardly throw items in the cart like we’re a couple of children gone wild.
A hodgepodge of our favorite childhood snacks: Twizzlers, Double-stuff Oreos, Cool Ranch Doritos, and Chewy Chips Ahoy.
We’re going to overindulge tonight; my stomach can hate me tomorrow.
“Chewy SweeTARTS. Yes or no? They’re not technically the same ones you loved growing up, but I vividly remember your obsession with anything sweet and sour,” Jake says, holding a bag of candy over the cart.
“You were the weirdo who traded chocolate for SweeTARTS at Halloween.” He shakes his head, letting out a small laugh.
“SweeTARTS are a top-five candy. In the cart they go. Might as well get two bags,” I reply, feeling drastically better than I did an hour ago. Jake always had a way of bringing me out of my shell. Helping me find the light in the darkness. Putting a smile on my face.
“What about M&Ms?”
“Is that a serious question? Immediate yes. Don’t forget the popcorn!
” I focus on evaluating the rest of the candy aisle as Jake heads down the next one.
“Get extra butter!” Jake chuckles as he turns the corner.
I throw a few more bags of Jake’s favorite candies into the cart before heading to find him.
At the end of the aisle, I pause, watching Jake in front of the popcorn section, intensely looking at his options while two women in their mid-twenties gawk at him.
Full-on staring, mouths open, eyes wide as if they’ve never seen a man.
A flush of heat rises up my neck, and my stomach twists in knots as they stare at him.
Like he’s a piece of meat. When he’s so much more—an amazing man and friend who also happens to be gorgeous even when he’s wearing a pair of jeans, a dark gray T-shirt, and an old baseball cap pulled down low, casting a shadow over his face.
He shines with effortless cool. No wonder women ogle him wherever he goes. And he’s completely oblivious to it.
I shake my head, pushing the cart in his direction, realizing I’ll eventually need to jump back into the dating pool.
Hopefully someone finds a woman in a ratty lounge set, hair piled in a messy bun, and a puffy face to be attractive because that’s what I’m rocking tonight.
The complete opposite of the polished style of the two women currently eye fucking Jake.
They’re probably his type. Rumor has it, he prefers blondes.
Just another reason I didn’t bother to answer his absurd suggestion that we get married if we’re both still single at forty.
He doesn’t need a backup plan like I do.
He has a bevy of women fawning over him everywhere he goes.
If he wanted to, he could easily find a wife at any time.
His offer was merely to make me feel better as I spiraled about ending up alone.
“Have you noticed those two women checking you out?” I whisper, walking side-by-side with him and pushing the cart. I glance in their direction as one of them takes out her phone, attempting to capture a photo of his ass. At what point does this become sexual harassment?
“Not really,” he replies casually. “Where should we go next? Frozen foods, then alcohol?”
“I don’t see how you don’t notice it. They’re not being discreet about it. One of them about gave herself whiplash checking out your ass.”
He shrugs. “I’m used to people staring. Barely notice that shit anymore.” He grabs a few of our favorite frozen snacks from childhood and throws them into the cart. “Plus, I’m not interested in dating them.”
“Ah. I get it. Don’t want to tie yourself down. Makes sense.”
“Didn’t say that,” he replies, stopping the cart and gripping its sides. “I’m just not interested in dating or fucking any of these women.” His gaze meets mine. Although his hat conceals his eyes, there’s a flash of something unreadable behind them, sending tingles down my spine.
I let go of the cart, allowing him to take over pushing as I follow him down the next few aisles. I’m not sure what to think about the comments he’s made and my body’s bizarre reactions to them.
He’s never wanted a serious, long-term relationship.
Always wanted the benefits without the strings.
But the way he talks about the future and about how he’d treat the right woman makes me wonder whether he’s finally ready for a change.
Is he ready to become the man I always knew he was deep inside?
The kind you can give your heart and body to, knowing he won’t break it?
But what will that mean for us? I can’t imagine his girlfriend and eventual wife will take kindly to having me around. He lives in a world where drama thrives, and having a woman as his best friend is asking for a shitstorm of epic proportions.