9. Chapter 9
Seren
What was I doing? I had no business entertaining this man.
My life didn’t come in simple, easy pieces anymore. It came in early mornings and the constant reminder of all my responsibilities that never really switched off. Everything I did had to fit around Cai or rugby. Around making sure I didn’t drop either of those things.
There wasn’t space for…this.
Men like him didn’t fit into lives like mine. So why was this happening?
It was just friends going out together. That’s all it was.
We walked toward the orange and pink food truck, the logo ‘Dog House Grill’ emboldened on the side.
The scent of grilled onions and something buttery hung thick in the air, curling into me in a way that made my stomach protest that I hadn’t actually eaten since breakfast.
“Oh god, I’m starved,” I blurted, my stomach growling.
Jake shot me a sideways look. “I know. Jonny has the best hotdogs on the West Coast, I swear.”
As soon as we got close enough, a guy with jet-black hair and a mustache came out of the truck with arms open. “Jake, my guy,” he crooned, pulling him into a hug.
Jake embraced him back. “Jonny, how the hell are you, man?”
Jonny clapped him on the back before pulling away, his attention already shifting to me. His eyes lit up, interest immediate. “And who’s this?”
“This is Nate’s sister, Seren. She’s a Valkyrie now, new in town, and starving.”
He extended his hand, and I shook it with a smile, his weathered skin rough against mine.
“Nice to meet you. I hear you have the best hot dogs in California.”
He chuckled, the corners of his eyes wrinkling. “Let’s see what you think, shall we?”
My hands practically made electricity at the speed I rubbed them together with excitement. “Yes, please.”
Beside me, Jake let out a quiet breath that almost sounded like a laugh.
I glanced at him. “What?”
“Nothing,” he said, but his mouth tipped up, eyes dragging over me. “You’re cute is all.”
“Friends don’t say other friends are cute, Jake.”
“Lies. I know all the girls use that exact word all the time when they braid each other’s hair before a game.”
I mean, maybe he had a point. I’d let him have that one.
Jonny leaned into the truck, shouting something over his shoulder while the grill hissed louder in response.
I stepped up onto the curb, peering in like that might fill my stomach faster. “What do you recommend? It all smells incredible,” I asked, already overwhelmed in the best way by the menu scrawled across the board.
Before Jonny could answer, Jake shifted beside me.
“She’ll take the classic,” he said without hesitation. “Loaded. And”—he glanced at me, one brow lifting—“you strike me as a cheese fries kind of girl.”
I blinked at him. “I’m not sure what it says about me that you’re already ordering my food.” Usually that would be a turn-off, but for reasons that weren’t clear to me, with him, it didn’t.
He shrugged unapologetically. “Tell me I’m wrong.”
I opened my mouth to argue, then hesitated because my stomach growled instead. Jake’s grin widened, showcasing those damn dimples of his. I should be concerned that he could read me so well; either that, or he was just really good at flirting, which was probably more accurate.
Within a few minutes, two trays were pushed out of the hatch, filled with hot dogs loaded with onions, sauce, and what looked like chili. Then the cheese fries came out, and I almost melted at the sight.
“Oh wow, thank you.” I practically squeaked with excitement as I took the first tray, popping a dripping savory fry into my mouth. “Oh my god,” I moaned.
Jake coughed beside me, scrubbing his hand over his jaw. Grabbing the other tray, I lifted the loaded hotdog with zero finesse. That first bite was heaven, and I could easily eat at least a hundred of these. As I took another quick bite, my knees near buckled.
“Shit,” he muttered under his breath.
I glanced at him mid-bite, catching the way he’d turned slightly away, his shoulders tense like he was trying—and failing—to get a grip on himself.
“What?” I asked around a mouthful, completely unbothered.
“Nothing,” he said quickly, but it came out strained, like the word had to fight its way past something else.
Chewing slowly now as I watched him, my eyes narrowed. “You just said something.”
He inhaled sharply, held it there, then said, “I said give me strength because watching you eat that like it’s the best thing you’ve ever tasted is doing absolutely nothing for my self-control.”
Heat flared up my neck so fast it almost made me lightheaded.
“Then stop watching,” I shot back, my body already doing its happy shuffle at the food lining my stomach, Jake’s words instantly forgotten with another fry.
He huffed a laugh, dragging a hand through his hair. “Yeah…not happening. I’m a glutton for punishment. Plus, I like looking at you.”
I should’ve paid more attention, but honestly, the cheese fries were calling my name. All decorum left my body. Within minutes, both trays were demolished, nothing left but crumbs and the faintest hint of dignity.
Jake stared down at the empty trays in my hands, then slowly lifted his gaze back to me, one eyebrow inching up like he wasn’t entirely sure what he’d just witnessed.
“…I’m impressed,” he said, voice threaded with amusement. “And a little bit scared.”
I stacked the trays together, tossing them in the trash. “You ever tried eating with a toddler hanging off you?” I smirked, brushing my hands together. “You learn real quick it’s less about manners and more about eating before someone else eats your food.”
Jonny barked a laugh from inside the truck. “She can stay,” he called out to Jake. “I like her.”
I turned to smile at him and reached for my purse. “It’s dangerous that you’re so near my son’s daycare,” I said. “You’re going to ruin us. That was incredible, thank you.”
A hand covered mine as I pulled out my phone, ready to tap and pay on the machine.
“This is on me,” Jake rumbled, and it took a second for me to process his warm skin on mine, but also what he was saying.
“Absolutely not.”
He didn’t move, but his chin lifted. “Absolutely yes.”
“We agreed to be friends, right?” How many times would that reminder work on us, I wondered.
His dimple popped out with a grin. “I’m glad you think so. I buy the guys food all the time.”
I rolled my eyes. “Be so for real, Jake.”
“I am.”
He stepped forward, releasing my hand, only so the curve of his fingers could settle beneath my chin with a gentleness that felt altogether dangerous.
He lifted my face as though it were something precious, commanding my gaze to meet his, and I found myself unprepared for that kind of closeness.
His eyes were so pale, they were almost silver, yet they held a depth that was oceanic.
A sensible woman would resist, and yet I felt myself drifting toward them all the same.
“It’s not the same thing,” I whispered.
His thumb brushed once across the front of my chin. “You’re right.”
I swallowed thickly as he lifted that same digit, now smeared with cheese and chili, and slid it into his mouth, sucking slowly, until he let it out with an absurdly wet pop that made me weak.
“Because I don’t want to kiss Nate.”
The absence of his skin on mine didn’t help the rising heat inside me.
If anything, it made it worse. Like my skin had clocked the loss and was determined to let him know through my flushed state.
Something was burning inside me that had been numb for so long; I’d forgotten what it was. It had been a while since anyone looked at me like he was.
My body reacted in volcanic bursts that started deep in my chest and darted to where his hand held my attention, before settling in my core.
Alive. I was being shocked back to life. Reminded that I’m not just a mom, but a woman who could still feel this, who wanted to be wanted, even if I hadn’t realized how much I’d missed it until now.
I took a breath, trying to steady myself, trying to remember why this was a bad idea, because there were a hundred reasons stacked in the life I’d built, and was continuing to build, reasons that had kept everything controlled, predictable, safe, and none of them made room for Jake Ledger.
And still, I didn’t look away.
I exhaled slowly, trying to get back to something resembling normal.
“Right,” I said. “I’ll let you buy this one, so long as I get the next. That’s how friends do things.” Friends, friends, friends, I chanted in my head. Though my body was not on board with that sentiment.
His smile lit up his entire face, and I understood how women fell at his feet. “Okay, friend, sounds good.”
I said a quick goodbye to Jonny, thanking him again and stuffing an extra into his tip jar.
“Come back anytime,” Jonny called out, already turning back to the grill.
I stepped off the curb, brushing my hands together, trying to shake off the moment and failing slightly when Jake fell into step beside me like it was the most natural thing in the world.
“So,” he said, glancing down at me, “when’s our next friend date?”
I was unqualified to answer that in my heated state. This was all a terrible idea.
“I’m not sure.” I needed air. Being outside wasn’t enough; I needed an oxygen mask around Jake.
“I’m going to get Cai. I’ll see you at the stadium next week?
” I’d never been so thankful for weekends off during training, but it would also serve as a reminder that Jake was a distraction I didn’t need.
“You don’t need me to drive you the rest of the way?”
I glanced at him, catching the way he was watching me, like he knew exactly what I was doing—creating space, putting something sensible between us before I did something I’d regret.
When I didn’t answer, he nodded.
“Yeah, okay,” he said finally. “Next week.”
Our eyes remained locked on one another, even though we were already walking in opposite directions.
“Seren.” My name in his voice didn’t help my cause. His hand dragged briefly over the back of his neck, eyes searching my face. Maybe he wasn’t completely immune to whatever this was either.
“Don’t overthink it,” he said.
“Oh, Jake, you really have a lot to learn about me.”
I turned then, forcing my feet to keep moving toward the daycare, toward my life that I knew would always be my priority.