“This is delicious,” I said as I pulled my feet up under me. “I think I might want you to cook for us all the time now.”

Jalen grinned at me as he served himself a second helping of the pasta he’d made. “Then it’s a good thing you like this because there’s really not much more I know how to make, and none of it well.”

I sighed. “I suppose it was too good to be true.”

He leaned over, fork poised to steal. I scowled at him and pulled my plate closer to my chest. “Try it, buddy, and find out what it feels like to get stabbed with a fork.”

He held up his hands, laughing. “It’s all yours.” He leaned back but reached over and put his hand on my knee. “Do you want to take some home with you to have tomorrow?”

I shook my head. “No, thank you. I have leftovers from my lunch yesterday.”

“What’d you have?”

“A chicken sandwich,” I said as I ate the last of my cheese-stuffed ravioli. “But Clay gave me the rest of his turkey on rye, so I had that last night for dinner.”

“You had lunch with Clay yesterday?” Jalen’s voice sounded flat.

I hurried to explain. “My dad called me again yesterday morning, and I finally just had enough. Clay’s going to help me get the calls to stop.”

Jalen stood suddenly. He picked up his plate and mine, then headed into the kitchen. I frowned at the abrupt behavior. Was he seriously annoyed that I’d had lunch with Clay? Okay, I hadn’t called him to tell him yesterday because, by the time I’d gotten home, my mind had been focused on planning out this upcoming week’s schedule.

When he didn’t come back after a couple minutes, I went after him. He was cleaning up but didn’t look at me when I came in, making me think that he was doing something for the sake of movement, not because it actually needed to be done.

“Are you mad that I had lunch with Clay? You know he and I are friends. That means I’m going to see him from time to time.” No response. “I didn’t give you the silent treatment when you had lunch with Elise. Yes, it took me longer to tell you, but I’d started thinking about stuff on the way home and–”

“Have you changed your mind?” he interrupted quietly. “Do you want to be with Clay?”

“No!” I snapped. “He’s my friend, and I think it’s pretty shitty to be mad at me when you spent time with your wife, and I didn’t complain.”

He spun around, eyes flashing. “You think I’m upset because you had lunch with Clay? Dammit, Rona! I’m not that petty! I’m pissed because you went to him when you were upset, and you didn’t even think to tell me you were hurting.”

“Because Clay can do something about it.” What the hell was his issue? “I didn’t come to you to stop my dad’s calls because Clay has the contacts needed to make something happen.”

Jalen tossed the dish towel onto the counter. “No, I get that part. That’s logical. What’s bothering me is that you didn’t call me to tell me what happened and where you were going.”

“I don’t need to check in with you about everything.” I cross my arms. My cheeks were hot, my heart racing.

“Not check in,” he said, his voice tight. “Don’t you get it? I want to know about stuff like this because I care about you. I want to know what’s going on in your life. I want to be the one to talk through things with you.” He reached out and touched my arm. “I want you to lean on me and let me take care of you.”

Well, damn. I felt like a piece of shit now.

“Yes, I’m angry, but it’s because I’m hurt.” His hand slid up my arm, over my shoulder, and then his fingers curled around the back of my neck. His thumb strummed over the pulse point under my jaw. “I thought we were going to be more to each other.”

“I’m sorry,” I said quietly. “It was wrong of me to go to Clay instead of you.”

“You’re right that he has the connections you need to get this taken care of,” Jalen said. He brushed his lips across mine in a ghost of a kiss. “I just want to know what you’re going through because I want to be there for you. Even if I can’t be the one rescuing you.”

I raised an eyebrow. “Rescuing me?” I echoed.

He grinned. “Come on, who doesn’t want to be rescued by a handsome white knight?”

I leaned into him, wrapping my arms around his neck. “How about you be the damsel in distress, and I’ll be the beautiful white knight?”

“I’ll bet you look hot in body armor.”

I was still laughing when his mouth covered mine.