27. Jake
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
jake
Where to now?” I asked Caitlin once we exited the pottery store. “Do you want to get a drink or something?”
“O-oh, you want to keep hanging out? I was just going to go back home.” She stumbled over her words, nearly tripping over a crack in the sidewalk.
“Yeah, of course, I do. The pottery class was fun, so why not keep the day going? Maybe beer tasting or something can be your next hobby,” I teased, trying to keep the conversation light in hopes my heart rate would slow.
Caitlin wrinkled her nose. “Not a fan of beer.”
“Wine tasting, then.”
“It’s like…” She pulled out her phone to check the time. “Two o’clock in the afternoon.”
I shrugged. “Five o’clock somewhere. What else do you have on your bucket list?”
“Well, technically none of the hobbies have stuck. I liked pottery, but would I do it again? Probably not,” she admitted.
“Same with cycling and crochet, obviously. So, I guess I still need to find a hobby I enjoy. Then I need to have one of those ‘yes’ days, get a tattoo, do something spontaneous, say no to something, and be reckless.”
Realizing she didn’t tell me she needed to buy a vibrator still, I averted my gaze, thinking about anything but Cait using it on herself or the sounds she made when she came.
I cleared my throat, stuffing my hands in my pockets in an attempt to seem casual. “I guess you could say no to me then, cross that off your list.”
“Yeah, but I want to keep spending time with you,” she said softly. “I don’t think I want to try wine tasting, though. At least not today. Maybe another time.” She laughed, bright and carefree.
“Let’s go to Rudy’s then,” I suggested. “It shouldn’t be too busy, and Rudy loves the company.”
Just as I expected, the bar was practically empty, with only a few of the regular older patrons who frequented the bar to watch the old Westerns that would play every now and then.
“Hey there, Jake!” one of the regular bartenders, Nico, greeted me. “Didn’t expect to see you here so early in the day.” He typically worked the evening shift not the mid-day, so I hadn’t expected to see him, either.
“Normally, I wouldn’t but Caitlin and I just went to a pottery class and thought we’d swing by.”
“Fun, fun. You’re Colter’s sister, right?” He reached across the bar to shake Caitlin’s hand.
“That’s me.”
“Heard a lot about you.” His brows raised, and he added on a ramble, “Well, in passing at least. They’re not just talking to me about you behind your back or anything.”
Caitlin offered him a reassuring smile. “Don’t worry. I didn’t think anything of it.”
“You’re working the early shift today,” I pointed out the obvious. “What happened to the other bartender?”
Nico shrugged. “Quit. I told Rudy I’d pick up some shifts and if it meant I had to work some doubles to help Liv out, I don’t mind a little bit of overtime.”
“Huh. Well, hopefully y’all can find some new people to help out.” I looked over at Caitlin. “Maybe Cait can pick up some shifts?”
Her eyes widened, but she nodded. “I’d be happy to help out when Whitley’s in school, and she can always go over to my mom’s house after if I need to stay later.”
Relief flashed across Nico’s face. “Thanks, I’ll let Rudy know, and he can be in contact with you. Anyways, what can I get for you two? Your usual?” he asked me, to which I nodded. Then he looked at Cait, raising his brows.
“I’ll just do a gin and tonic, but light on the gin, please,” she replied.
“You got it.” Nico grabbed our drinks and slid them across the counter.
“Close the tab for me, please.” I handed him a twenty dollar bill. “Keep the rest, bud.”
He offered me a grateful nod then moved down to the other end of the bar to check on the other patrons.
“Is that what you normally get to drink?” I pointed at her gin and tonic.
She started to tilt her head as though she was going to disagree then stopped. “I guess, if I’m not drinking wine, then yes. I’m not a big whiskey or tequila or beer girl anymore.”
“Grew out of hard liquor and beer when you graduated?”
Her eyes flicked up in a half eyeroll. “I guess so. Or maybe I just started drinking wine because I thought that’s what sophisticated people drank.”
“Did Adam drink wine?”
She barked out a laugh. “No. He drank beer with his shitty friends.”
“Well, there you have it. Your hypothesis about wine might just be correct.”
With a gentle shake of her head, she said, “You drink beer, and you’re nothing like Adam.”
“Yes,” I agreed then added with a grin, “But I also drink whiskey.”
That brought a small smile to her face. “Cheers to that, then.”
Our glasses clinked together, and we both sipped on our drinks, getting lost in small talk and periodically glancing over at the TV where John Wayne played a U.S. Marshal.
Across the lawn, a single light was still illuminated in the guest house. The light in Cait’s room.
It was a gorgeous night, with little to no cloud cover and skies as clear as glass.
I checked the time on the oven, and it was only about eleven o’clock. Maybe she’d be up for crossing off another bucket list item together since the pottery class went so well.
My chin dipped as I took in my current clothing situation. I hummed to myself as I rushed back into the bedroom to throw on a sweatshirt and a pair of loose sweatpants. I wasn’t sure I’d need the sweatshirt, but if all went to plan, we’d be outside and Caitlin might need it.
Five minutes later, I stood in front of her window, tapping on it like we were in high school sneaking around after curfew.
I knew I could have just gone to the front door, but I didn’t want to risk waking up Whitley since I knew getting her to fall asleep was always a challenge.
Besides, this way made it feel even more spontaneous and exciting.
After I tapped on her window a few more times, she finally stirred, getting out of bed to investigate.
When she saw my face outside, she jumped, hand clutching her chest. Then her brows pinched together and she crossed her arms, sliding open the window and hissing, “What the hell? You scared the shit out of me! What happened to knocking on the front door?”
Okay, maybe tapping on her window was a little too spontaneous.
“Wanna go stargazing?” I ignored her questions.
“Right now?”
“Yeah.” I pointed toward the sky. “Clear skies out here. You can see literally all of the stars right now.”
“It’s like eleven o’clock, and Whit is sleeping.”
“So? It’s spontaneous.” I flashed her a wide grin, hoping my smile would be convincing enough. “Just trust me. We won’t go far.”
She huffed out a breath. “Fine. Give me five minutes.”
The minute the window shades closed, I pumped my fist in the air. Instead of waiting for her in the bushes like a creep, I moved to the front porch, sitting in one of the chairs facing the yard.
Crickets in the grass provided the only sounds other than the whish of a gentle breeze moving through the trees.
I was so lost in my own world that I didn’t even hear the front door open, didn’t realize Caitlin had come out onto the front porch until her hand settled on my shoulder, causing me to jump.
“Sorry!” She pulled her hand back like she’d touched hot coals. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”
Laughing, I reached for her hand, squeezing it gently. “Payback for me tapping on your window like a weirdo.”
“Not gonna lie, I thought I was going to end up on a Dateline episode for a second.” Her shoulders shook with laughter, and she tousled her hair a bit.
“I would have come to save you if you were in trouble.” I winked.
“Okay, Superman.” She rolled her eyes, but then her gaze softened and she whispered, “You would have been the first person I called if I was actually in danger.” A pause, then a murmur, so quiet I could barely hear, “I probably would have said that two years ago, too.”
When neither of us said anything, I cleared my throat to break the silence. “Shall we?”
“Where’s the best stargazing spot around here?” she asked as I led her to my truck.
“Honestly?” I looked around at the property. “Anywhere out here is great. I didn’t know if you’d want to sit on the ground, though, so I brought some blankets and pillows out to the truck. We can go somewhere, but if Whitley wakes up, I want you to be close.”
She offered me an appreciative smile, nodding in agreement to the plan.
After lowering the tailgate and giving it a pat, I offered her a hand to climb up into the bed. She lay on her back, and I followed, lying down on my side in the space beside her.
She stared up at the sky, her hands interlaced and resting on her stomach. A gentle breeze blew a few strands of hair into her face, and I resisted the urge to tuck them away behind her ear.
“Are you cold?” I asked, fully prepared to strip off my sweatshirt and hand it to her.
She tilted her head toward me then turned onto her side so we could make eye contact. “Hmm.” As though sensing my eagerness, she replied, “A little.”
Shucking off my sweatshirt in record timing, I held it out to her. “Here.”
A glint flashed in her eyes. “Aren’t you going to be cold?”
“I’m good. I’m actually warm.” In fact, I was burning up on the inside.
“All right.” Reluctantly, she took the sweatshirt from me, throwing it over her head. The sleeves were too long on her, coming past her knuckles.
It looked fucking adorable.
She caught me staring at her, and as she dipped her chin, her brows raised. “What? Is there something wrong?”
The only thing wrong is how much I want to rip that sweatshirt off you. Along with everything else you’ve got on.
“Nothing’s wrong.”
She kept looking at me as though she didn’t believe me, so I repeated, “Nothing’s wrong. I swear. You just look cute in my clothes.”
Pink streaks formed across her cheeks, and she lay back down completely without saying anything in response. I mimicked the action, staring up into the night sky.
“Do you think there’s anything else out there?” she murmured after a few silent minutes, scrunching her nose.
“What, like aliens?”
“Sure.”
I chuckled to myself. “Probably. I wouldn’t be surprised if there were space rock aliens out there on a faraway planet somewhere.”
Her head snapped toward me, an amused smile gracing her lips. “Are you a big Gosling fan?”
Shrugging, I replied, “I dabble.”
“When you’re not out on the road roping cattle and doing cowboy shit, right?”
“Exactly.” I lifted my hands behind my head. “I actually loved The Notebook, thank you very much.”
Her hand flew out to smack me on the arm. “You did not.”
“You don’t believe me?” I gasped in mock offense.
“Would you blame me if I didn’t?”
I let out a breathy huff of a laugh. “Nah. I did watch it, though, believe it or not. Isa made us all watch it for a movie night once. Not gonna lie, I was a little ticked off that she made me turn off the Wrangler’s baseball game, but it wasn’t a bad movie.”
She shot up, clutching her hand to her chest in fake dramatics. “You’d skip family movie night for a baseball game?”
“If it was the Wranglers, you bet. They’ve been my favorite baseball team since I was a kid.”
“Have you ever seen them play in person?”
I shook my head. “Nope.”
“Dang.” She lay back down. “Well, I hope one day you get to see them play.”
“Maybe we’ll have to go to a game together,” I suggested quietly.
I wasn’t sure if she heard me, but in the darkness, she whispered, “Yeah, maybe.”