Chapter 15
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
“Check.”
Hallie groaned. “Again? I’m never going to get any better at this. Are you ever going to let me win?”
Jacob lifted a brow, but her focus shifted lower to where his mouth twitched. Was he biting back a smile because he enjoyed making a fool of her? Or was he actually enjoying himself? The jury was still out on that one.
When he’d been dropped off by Ryker a week ago, he’d brought with him some food and a new chess set. She hadn’t purchased one when she’d brought home some games because she didn’t know how to play.
Apparently, there was more to Jacob than even she knew.
“I will never go easy on you.”
She settled back in her chair with a huff. “That’s hardly fair.”
His eyes drilled into her, the amusement in them making him even more attractive than he already was. “The moment I let you win is the moment you no longer matter to me.” There wasn’t an ounce of teasing in his voice and those words had her nearly swallowing her tongue.
Jacob didn’t mean it. Not in the way she wanted him to. Clearly. Because if he did… then…
Hallie bit her lips together and refused to comment on his statement or draw any kind of attention to it for that matter.
In two more moves, he’d called checkmate and the game was over.
Jacob chuckled, drawing her attention. She’d been hearing that sound more and more frequently.
The first time she’d drawn one from his chest after his brother had left had felt like nothing she’d ever experienced.
It had been a win. Even after he’d laughed, his smile had remained. She’d missed those smiles.
She could see the happiness returning to his whole demeanor. The Jacob she had fallen in love with was coming back to her.
No, not to her.
He was returning to himself. And that was enough.
She matched his smile with one of her own.
“How about I pop some corn and we watch a movie?” Hallie asked, getting to her feet.
She took a step, but his hand shot out and he wrapped his hand around her wrist. She stopped and stared down at where he held her.
Then slowly, she lifted her eyes to meet his and they stared at each other.
She wasn’t breathing. Her brain was screaming at her to take a breath or she could pass out. But her body wasn’t responding.
It was her heart taking the reins now. Thumping in her chest with a strange kind of expectation. What was she supposed to do? Why was he holding her? Did he need something? Was he going to say something?
“Jacob…” she said on an exhale, her lungs finally deciding to work.
His thumb lightly caressed the inside of her wrist. Goosebumps rippled along her skin even though it wasn’t cold enough. Jacob seemed to be stuck in a trance. But that couldn’t be right. They were still navigating their friendship.
When he didn’t say anything, she tugged her hand free and cleared her throat, looking anywhere but at him. “So… popcorn?”
Jacob nodded. “Yeah,” he rasped.
Hours later, they were seated on the couch as the credits for the movie she’d picked started to roll.
The only sound in the cabin was the music coming from the speakers.
Jacob had settled on the couch before she did, and she’d scooted to the far edge so none of her body touched his.
Up until tonight, she hadn’t really noticed whether her thigh grazed his or if their hands collided when reaching for popcorn at the same time during their various movie nights.
But tonight, something had shifted.
Jacob never initiated touch. Not when they were friends. And especially not after she’d put her foot in her mouth.
“Hallie?”
She startled, popcorn going flying from her still nearly full bowl. Strange. She could have sworn she’d eaten more than that. She’d fixed them each their own bowl so she didn’t have to share with him.
Was that too obvious?
Hallie shot a look in Jacob’s direction. “Yeah?”
“You okay?”
She smiled. “Of course.” Then she grimaced at the squeak in her voice. “I’m good, Jacob. Really.”
He huffed through his nose, his eyes searching her.
Hallie was familiar with that look. Jacob was an expert at digging things out of her even if she didn’t want him to.
Of course, he had to want to figure her out which was probably why he’d never realized she had developed feelings for him in the first place.
Standing suddenly, she placed her bowl on the coffee table.
“It’s getting late, though. I’m heading to bed.
” She didn’t wait for him to stand. She didn’t offer to help him up.
And it wasn’t until she was behind her bedroom door that she realized just how out of character she’d been behaving tonight.
They had finally found themselves in a good place. It was like they both stepped into a happy bubble of the past. She didn’t want to pop that bubble.
Hallie leaned against the closed door and screwed her eyes shut as she slid down the wood and landed on the floor. There was only one problem with being in this bubble. And that was her feelings. It was far too easy to remember all the reasons she liked Jacob.
The longing was returning with a vengeance. It was so much easier when their friendship was on the rocks and she knew he didn’t even want to look at her.
Now?
Now she was in trouble.
Because when he’d been holding her wrist, caressing her skin, she could almost imagine him saying something sweet or standing to pull her in for a kiss. Her imagination had taken on a life of its own.
Then while he’d stared at her throughout the movie, she’d gotten so distracted she didn’t even know what was happening on screen. That distraction was also the culprit for why she didn’t eat the popcorn she’d made herself.
She just needed to forget that anything had happened. Tomorrow was a new day and as long as Jacob didn’t bring up that strange situation between the two of them, then everything could continue status quo.
Hallie heard the familiar thud, thud, thud, of Jacob’s cane and his booted foot coming down the hall toward the bedrooms. The music had been cut off, indicating he’d turned off the television.
The thudding stopped right outside of her door. Her whole body tensed and she waited for him to knock so they could discuss her strange behavior. She couldn’t breathe again. Or perhaps she was holding her breath out of fear.
Fear that he might tease her for overreacting.
Fear that he might apologize for acting weird.
But worst of all, fear that he would tell her he was starting to feel the same.
Because that would ruin everything. She didn’t trust him. She definitely didn’t trust herself. And the last thing she wanted was to lose the friendship she knew was dangling by a thread.
When the thudding started again and was dampened by the door to Jacob’s room being shut, she allowed herself the oxygen she’d been starved of and breathed in deeply. Then she climbed to unsteady feet and prepared for bed.
Tomorrow would be a new day.
They’d get back to normal.
And she could put aside all her longing once again.
Hallie exited her room the following morning and stopped just outside of it to see Jacob’s door was still shut. She moved toward it and lifted a hand to knock but then hesitated. They’d stayed up late last night. Maybe he needed more sleep. She shouldn’t wake him if he needed the rest.
She headed for the kitchen and busied herself with cleaning up after yesterday’s activities.
Dishes. Laundry. Vacuuming. Anything she could do to stay busy.
When Jacob still hadn’t come out of his room by ten, she’d opted to put the muffins on the counter and wrote him a note.
Muffins were a good breakfast and she could make him lunch whenever he was ready.
Then she retrieved her camera and headed outside. It had been a few days since she’d taken pictures. More than a few days. The last time she’d even pulled her stuff out was the night that Jacob had caught her with the pictures she’d taken.
It was time she got back to her normal day-to-day interests. Anything to keep her thoughts from drifting to the man inside that cabin.
The fall colors were starting to appear in the trees and shrubs on the property.
Leaves were flitting down from the branches when a breeze tugged them free.
She’d always loved the smell of Autumn. Even the air felt different and it wasn’t because of the cooler temperatures. It was something she couldn’t explain.
A squirrel scurried up a tree and she lifted her camera. The squirrel paused, its tail twitched and she pressed her finger on the button. The sound of the click sent the rodent darting off the tree and into some bushes.
Hallie grinned then continued on the trail. She took pictures of the landscape, the mountains in the distance, and when she got far enough, a picture of the cabin. Perhaps she spent too much time away from the cabin, because by the time she got back to the house guilt snaked through her gut.
Whether she’d wanted to admit it or not, she was avoiding Jacob. That was the main reason she hadn’t knocked on Jacob’s door. Her steps slowed as she got closer to the house, then her phone vibrated and she exhaled with relief.
“Hello?”
“Hallie? Oh good, we caught you. We’re just stopping by the grocery store and then we’ll be there.” Sammie’s voice came through the phone. “Caleb has the karaoke machine and all the cords but we wanted to pick up snacks. Any requests?”
She shut her eyes and placed a hand to her forehead. Right. She’d completely forgotten that their friends were coming by to sing karaoke. Jacob had agreed after a great deal of convincing. Hallie wondered if he’d still be up for it.
“Hallie?”
Clearing her throat, Hallie looked up at the house. “No. I don’t have any requests. Anything you want to get, I’m sure will be great.”
“Okay. We’ll be there soon!”
Hallie hung up the phone. They’d probably be here in under ten minutes if they were just running into the store for snacks.
She took a deep breath and heaved a sigh.
Then she headed for the house. Jacob wasn’t in the main living space so she was saved from having to tell him where she’d been.
She hurried to her room and put the camera away.
But the second she put the box in the closet, she felt his presence. She didn’t have to turn around to know that Jacob was hovering in her doorway. The hairs on the back of her neck rose and when he said her name, she shivered.
“Hallie.”
There was a demand in that one word. One that allowed no argument.
She turned to face him and forced a smile. “How are you feeling today?” Hallie went from folding her arms to shoving them in her pockets. Her nerves were getting the better of her especially since he was looking at her like that.
Like he wanted to say something he had no right saying.
This had to be in her head. She was looking for things that weren’t there. All she wanted was to leave this room and start getting ready for their friends. She cleared her throat. “Jacob?”
His brows furrowed. “When you…” Jacob coughed and shifted his weight from one foot to the other. He was still blocking the door, preventing her from leaving. But then he took a step toward her and she had to fight the instinct to step back.
Too close.
Way too close.
She could smell his soap and something else.
Aftershave?
That’s when she noticed that he’d cleaned up his beard. His neck was free of scruff and his beard had been shaped. She was so distracted from noticing the changes that she hadn’t realized he’d closed the distance between them entirely.
Jacob grasped her chin, forcing her to meet his eyes. His touch was warm and gentle.
And far too… intimate.
Her breath caught.
He searched her eyes then his focus dipped to her mouth when she moistened her lips. His thumb lifted and he pried her lower lip from between her teeth. “Do you still…”
A loud knock pounded on the door and Hallie gasped, nearly jumping out of her skin.
She pulled away from him, immediately missing his warmth and the way his touch made her feel.
“That’s Sammie and Caleb. The others are probably on their way.
” She brushed past him and strode for the now open doorway, but Jacob grabbed her hand and stopped her from making a full escape.
“Hallie,” he rasped.
She forced her gaze on him when another knock sounded at the door. “I should probably go get that.”
“This conversation isn’t over, Hallie.”
“I don’t even know what this conversation is about,” she whispered.
“Liar.” His tone wasn’t menacing or hurtful. In fact, it almost sounded flirtatious. And when one side of his mouth quirked upward, she knew there was no way he was going to let her avoid whatever it was he wanted to say.
Hallie tugged her hand free and offered him a nervous smile. “I hope you like singing. It’s time for some karaoke.”