Chapter 2
Chapter Two
EMMA
End of August - Driscoll, NY - Beginning of Senior Year
I smile at the sight of one of my besties. The sound of my short stilettos clicking against the black-and-white checkered floor draws his attention as his hazel eyes meet mine, and a grin spreads across his stupidly pretty face.
“Em, babes!” Jake stands for a hug, and I sneer at him for calling me babes.
“Jakey,” I say back, and he frowns at the nickname, pulling away.
“You know I hate it when you call me that,” he grumbles and sits in the booth.
A smirk lifts my lips. “Ditto, babes.”
He rolls his eyes. “All right, I get it. Let’s order our milkshakes so I can catch you up on some of my adventures from the summer.”
I snort, knowing adventures is Jake’s code for “any interesting stories that involve sex.” Jake waves over a waitress and orders me a strawberry-and-vanilla shake with extra whipped cream and a chocolate malt for himself.
The waitress leaves, and Jake folds his hands together. “Since I’m feeling extra generous today, I’ll give you the option of choosing which story to hear first.”
“Is that really necessary—”
“A field, the roof of a museum, or the unfinished threesome.”
Tilting my head, I wonder how Jake manages it.
He always has an interesting story to share after a vacation with a girl, or in this case, multiple.
Granted, I’ve known him long enough to realize he’s far from being a saint, and he’s always bringing a different girl along to our events or just disappears with a new one while we’re at a party.
But he knows me too, and he’s highly aware of my stupid curiosity.
“Can we just start with a simple ‘How was your summer?’”
Jake lifts a corner of his mouth, his crisp, expensive shirt wrinkling as he moves. “Come on, we both know you’re going to ask about one of them eventually.”
I shake my head. “Nope.” I hesitate, but I’m determined to carry this challenge out.
“How about you tell me about all the boring parties you went to in England that I missed?” Jake may have been in England as well, but our schedules and parties never coincided.
His events were more business, while mine were more social.
Our milkshakes arrive, and we both thank the waitress.
Jake shrugs. “Fine, whatever you say.” He blows out a breath.
“My parents did the usual, trying to set me up with women who come from ‘good breeding,’” he quotes directly about what his rich, snobbish family says about women.
My grandparents might suck, but his parents are terrible people from newer money than my family’s, yet they’ve managed to dominate most of the media industry in the country.
“Of course,” he continues, “they were all the same. Boring, rude, and only wanted me for the inheritance they know I’m going to get once I’m married.
” As I nod my head and tap my foot, he repeats the same stories our friends and I hear every year.
Boring events, setups, snotty gossip I already know about, and the one nice girl he meets every year, but has nothing in common with.
“I can’t take it anymore!” I shriek. “Just tell me about the damn field.”
Jake chuckles and checks his phone. “Fifteen minutes. A new record—shit,” he hisses, and he eyes me with an annoyed expression crossing his features. “Um, ow.”
I smile at his reaction to the kick I sent his way under the table. “Oops.” Grabbing the straw, I sip the cold milkshake and turn on the puppy dog eyes.
He points at me. “You’re not getting my story anymore.”
Scoffing, I kick him again. “That’s so not fair!”
“Lower your damn voice and stop kicking me, God. I’m wearing my good jeans.” He bends down to dust his pants, and I sip more of my milkshake. That’s another thing Jake and I have in common: expensive clothes.
Swallowing, I tap my fingers on the table. “Since I had a boring summer, let’s talk about the gang.”
Jake shakes his head and tsks. “You’re not getting out of this so easily, Haywood. Who did you meet this summer?”
At the question, memories of the sexy man in the suit, pressing me against the wall with his fingers in me, invade my mind— “Aha!” Jake says loudly. “So, you did meet someone.”
My eyes widen for a fraction of a second before I compose myself. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Don’t give me that bullshit. Kamila and Levi may not notice it, but this is the first time I’ve seen that kind of spark in your eyes.
As your friend, I need to know if this guy is going to treat you right.
” My stomach dips at the thought of the man I met almost a month ago—an experience where I left happy, yet sad, but with no bad memories at all, with a man I’d known for only a couple of hours.
Jake sighs, bringing me back to the present. “I know I’m a very private person, and I usually mind my own business, but if you truly like the guy you met, I prefer to know about it now instead of you keeping it a secret like all of our friends have done with their significant others in the past.”
Taking another sip of my milkshake, I cast my gaze downward, knowing there’s no point in telling him about the mystery man from this summer. It’s not something worth any of my friends knowing.
Just another example of an unsuccessful venture in finding love.
“And you know me well enough that, just like you, unless it’s something serious, I keep my mouth shut.” I look back up at him, and his face softens.
He puts his hands up in surrender. “Fine. Tell me about the school paper then.”
I feel my whole body light up at the thought of finally working on the Driscoll Wolf Weekly.
“Oh my God, Jake. I’m so excited for my first staff meeting this week.
” A small yelp escapes me, making my best friend laugh.
“I heard that the new editor is kind of a hard-ass, but I really hope they give me the chance to do a feature article this week—”
“Oh fuck,” Jake whispers.
His face pales as he looks past me and to the door. “What?” I whisper, then turn my head to see our two best friends walking in with their significant others.
“Duck,” he says quickly, and we both shrink in our seats before they spot us.
“What the heck are they doing here? They weren’t supposed to get to Driscoll until tomorrow.” I stop to think. “I didn’t see any of Kamila’s bags in our suite.”
“She must’ve stopped by Cameron’s room first and planned to surprise you.” Jake keeps sinking into the booth until he can’t go down any farther. “One of us always has to lie to them about when we’re getting back to campus.”
“Well, it’s never not worked.” Our waitress passes by, and I smile at her confused expression. “Why don’t we just make something up about your parents?”
Jake narrows his eyes. “I said I was coming back tomorrow in the Scooby Gang group chat this morning, remember?” Right. “So, unless you want to explain the past three and a half years to them, I suggest we come up with a plan B.”
Jake and I have had our beginning-of-the-semester milkshake date every year since the spring semester of our freshman year.
It started when we didn’t talk for an entire winter break because of something that happened one stupid, drunken night at the end of our freshman fall semester.
We met up for milkshakes to finally talk about the situation, and ever since then, we’ve kept the tradition.
It’s something we’ve never told our other best friends and vowed never to share because of how it started.
Friends don’t need to know everything, especially those who would bombard us with questions and want to know every single detail that Jake and I would rather not relive.
Jake and I love them, we truly do, but they’ll insist on joining our tradition, and it’s something we’d like to keep going. Since it’s our last time doing it at the start of the school year, it only seems right to end it the way it started.
“You’d better hurry up,” I whisper. “You’re the mastermind with the wad of cash in his back pocket. Go ahead and put it to good use.”
His lips thin. “It’s not a wad…it’s only four hundred bucks in twenty-dollar bills.”
“Got any singles in there or your BMW? Maybe we can stop by a strip club on our way back to campus.” I roll my eyes, annoyed at neither of us coming up with a solution.
“Fucking hell, Em.” After a moment of silence, we both cover our mouths to stop the laughter from spilling out. He takes a deep breath and pushes himself up just a little. “Okay, they chose a booth near the door, and it looks like they’re ordering, but Stevie and Levi are facing our way.”
Nodding at the mention of our best friend and his wife, I state the obvious. “We need a distraction.”
He snaps his fingers. “Exactly.” Our waitress passes by as if she hears us from where she’s standing. “Amelia,” Jake whispers loudly, and the waitress turns, seeing us almost sprawled in our seats.
I look at Jake in confusion. “You know her by name?”
His shoulders lift. “I’m good at remembering cute girls’ names.” He throws me a wink, and I purse my lips.
Amelia reaches us, and I take a moment to appreciate her looks as Jake did. Deep brown skin, brown eyes, and a nice smile. Yeah, Jake, I get it. “Do you guys want anything else?”
“Yes. We want to get the fuck out of here.” She looks at us, confused, while Jake digs into his pocket and takes out two hundred-dollar bills.
And here I thought it was all twenties. “Two hundred dollars, plus the money for the milkshakes if you can distract the two good-looking couples sitting together by the door, giving us enough time to book it out through the back door by your kitchen.”
Her eyes widen, and she smiles. “Make it three hundred.”
Jake raises an eyebrow and looks from her head to her feet and back up. Oh, he’s intrigued.
“Two-fifty and your number,” he shoots back.
Amelia checks his tall, muscular frame to see whether he’s worth it. “Deal.” She takes out her notepad, writes her number, rips it out, and hands the paper to Jake as he gives her the cash. “Oh, and I don’t like to be kept waiting,” she warns him, and walks away.
The only emotion I can express is shock. “Only you can manage to get a sure thing while we’re trying something as ridiculous as running away from our friends.”
He turns his hazel eyes back to me. “Take notes, Em.” Jake smirks just before we hear plates fall from the front, crashing onto the floor.
“I’m so sorry, I’m such a klutz,” Amelia says.
Levi responds, “Let us help you out.”
“You guys are too kind.” Amelia’s voice is light and airy.
“Not a bad actress.” Jake nods in agreement with me. “Is the coast clear?”
Jake lifts his head. “Levi and Cameron are helping, and she’s…” He laughs. “Amelia is crying, so naturally, the girls’ attention is all on her. Let’s get the fuck out of here.”
We get up, I take off my heels so as not to call attention, and I grab my purse as we double-check everything to ensure we’re ready, then dash out of the diner.
As we turn the corner toward the back door, I check on our friends one last time and can’t help but feel terrible for leaving them with a mess we didn’t want to create.