Lauren

 

Turns out it’s impossible to sleep well when you’ve been kissed by Jake Cooper.

And just when I’d finally fallen into an exhausted state that mirrored sleep, the sun came up and shone through a crack in my curtains. I burrowed under my pillow but my air mattress was proving to be a cold bed in my poorly insulated bedroom. So, I lay there, sleep-deprived, clammy, and cold, knowing I had to drag myself out of this discomfort and into what might prove a much more uncomfortable day.

My phone buzzed and I groped for it. Through blurry eyes, I read Jake’s text.

Head’s up. I’m coming over.

Jerking straight up in bed, I yelped in panic. What was he thinking?

But it didn’t matter. I ran for the shower, only to find the door locked. I hammered on it, not in any mood to put up with Renee hogging the bathroom all morning.

“Chill!” she yelled from the other side.

A few seconds later, it opened and she glared at me. Her hair was wrapped in a towel and her acne glowed red against her clean, pale skin. But her scowl was the scariest part. “Move it,” she said, shouldering past me.

“I knew it. I knew this day was going to be freaking awful,” I raged as I got into a lukewarm shower because Renee had used all the hot water.

In my rush, I hadn’t remembered to bring clothes with me. So, after I’d showered, dried off, and zealously brushed my teeth, I wrapped myself in a towel and opened the door a crack. Sure enough, I could hear Jake’s voice in the kitchen. The chances of him seeing me all the way down the hall were practically nonexistent, but I hunched over and sprinted to my bedroom like a terrible secret agent.

Five minutes later, I was dressed in jeans, a black t-shirt, and a flannel lined plaid shirt because it was cold. I threw on my boots and wrapped my wet hair into a messy bun on top of my head, wishing I had time to dry it. There was no time to do anything about the dark circles under my eyes. Now, only the hard part was left—pretending there was nothing going on between Jake and me.

The walk down the hallway was too short for me to plan what to say or how to act, but it didn’t matter. Nothing could have prepared me for the devastating look in Jake’s eyes when he saw me. I stopped still, stunned, as he claimed me with an intimate, meaningful look. Somehow though, when he spoke, he sounded perfectly relaxed—casual even.

“Hey, Lauren.”

“Hey.” I said, trying to match his calm tone.

Jake leaned against the counter with his arms crossed over his chest while Natalie mixed a protein shake, her usual power breakfast. I glanced between them, noting the stiff set to Natalie’s shoulders. What reason had he given her for coming over? For that matter, why was he here? We both had to be on campus in less than an hour.

“You look tired,” Jake said as I got orange juice out of the fridge.

I flashed an annoyed glance at him as I got a glass out of the cabinet. “Yeah. I couldn’t sleep last night.”

“That’s weird. I couldn’t either.”

Was he determined to make this as awkward as possible? “And yet, you’re up early. What are you doing here anyway?” There, let him squirm.

He glanced down and said, “You left your backpack at Grams’ house. I thought you might need it for class.”

My face flooded with heat. Really, it wasn’t surprising I’d gone off and left it after what happened, but it had to look stupid to Natalie. She was, of course, watching us like a hawk. I shrugged and said, “Thanks,” then turned my back to him. I pulled a bagel out of the pantry and popped it in the toaster.

“How’s your grandma doing?” Natalie asked, her voice sweet as honey.

“She’s fine, though she hated the storm last night.”

“Me too. I’d be happy to go sit with her if you ever need me to.”

I rolled my eyes as I waited for my bagel to finish toasting. Irma would hate feeling like someone was babysitting her, and it wasn’t like Natalie had ever made an effort to go visit her before.

“Thanks, but she doesn’t care for visitors. It interrupts her work.”

“Really?” Natalie asked. Her voice pitched higher than usual. “Doesn’t Lauren go over there all the time?”

Jake chuckled. “Yeah, but only because she’s an artist too. Grams cracks the whip on her, believe me.”

“That’s great,” Natalie said, her voice tight.

She would have known that a long time ago if she ever talked to me. Wait, where had that irritation come from?

My bagel popped up and I started smearing it with brown sugar and cinnamon cream cheese. Having a paycheck was a wonderful thing.

“We barely even talk,” I said, hoping to make her feel better.

“Sounds fun,” Natalie said. “Well, I’d better go get ready for work.”

I turned and set my plate and orange juice on the counter. Jake and I both watched as Natalie went upstairs. When her bedroom door closed, I picked up my bagel, but dropped it as Jake stood and moved purposefully around the counter.

“Finally,” Jake said. “I thought she was never going to leave.”

“No way.” I stepped backwards, retreating from him until my back was against the fridge. “Not here, Jake.”

“You said we could when we’re alone.”

“I said sometimes.”

“Well, I think this is a great time. With the way I’m feeling this morning, you’re lucky I didn’t lay one on you in front of Natalie.”

“But she could walk in any second.”

He stepped back, looking disappointed. Sighing, he said, “Okay, if you say so.”

But my eyes focused on his lips, and I remembered the kisses we’d shared last night. “Well, maybe just one. If you make it quick and...”

His mouth covered mine before I could finish. His lips touched mine, teasing me by never staying in one spot long enough for me to settle into the kiss. I threaded my fingers through his hair, the short strands curling like silk around my fingers. Then Jake deepened the kiss, and there was no more room for thought, or breathing, or anything but him.

There was a squeal behind us and a high-pitched voice shrieked. “Holy freaking crapola!”

I nearly died with panic when I realized someone had walked in on us, but Jake just chuckled and slowly released me before turning around.

“What’s the matter, Beth?” he asked, his voice cheerful and teasing.

“Oh, my gosh! You two are kissing!”

“Thanks for pointing that out,” Jake said. “We hadn’t noticed.”

Beth ignored him. “So, are you official now?”

I tried to shush her and said, “No,” just as Jake said, “Yes.”

Beth raised an eyebrow. “So, you’re still figuring things out.”

“Exactly,” I said.

Jake rolled his eyes. “She’s playing hard to get,” he told Beth.

“That’s not what it looked like to me,” she said, grinning.

“Oh yeah? Watch this.”

In an effort to calm down, I’d walked several steps closer to Beth, away from Jake, but as he said this, he came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist. He curved his body around mine, and nuzzled my neck. With an anxious eye on the stairs, I ignored the melting, sinuous reaction of my body and pushed away from him again.

“You see,” he said, as if he’d just done a clinical demonstration for Beth.

“Would you cut it out?” I glared at him. “If you haven’t noticed, we are no longer alone.”

“Beth doesn’t count,” he argued.

“Why not?”

“Because I’m on your side,” Beth said. “But I hate to break it to you—if you are trying to keep it a secret, you’re failing miserably. It’s so obvious.”

I pressed my palms to my cheeks, feeling how warm they were, and sighed. “This is not going well.”

Jake’s smile glinted. “I disagree.”

“You can’t just show up over here,” I told him. “We see each other all the time at the school.”

Jake moved over to a stool and sat down. “Yeah, well, we have to play it cool there too. For now. There’s a policy about teachers dating students.”

“What?” I asked.

“Yeah. I mean, I think we’re okay because you aren’t in any of my classes, but they’re apparently really sensitive about it because the guy I replaced got in trouble with a student.”

My brain felt scrambled. No wonder Rossi had been so angry that one day he’d come in when we were holding hands. But there was one point I was clear on. “We aren’t dating.”

He raised an eyebrow at me, but didn’t argue the point. “Doesn’t matter. Rossi’s watching us.”

Beth giggled as she poured a bowl of cereal. “What have you two been up to at the school?”

“Nothing,” I said. But I couldn’t meet her eyes.

She waved her spoon at me. “Oh come on. You’re going to give me the full scoop later anyway, so what’s the difference?”

“No, I’m not.”

“Oh, yes you are, girl.”

Jake chuckled and I glared at him.

“Regardless,” he said, “I have to keep my hands off you all day, so cut me some slack.”

Just then, Natalie came down stairs, thankfully making enough noise that we all stopped talking. She glanced at us, an odd expression on her face. “See you guys later.”

She opened the door just as the doorbell rang. She stepped back, saying “Wow. Hey, who are those for?”

A man on the porch said, “Delivery for Lauren West.”

“I’ll take it,” Natalie said, apparently having no qualms about accepting my delivery. She turned and came back in, her arms full of roses wrapped in cellophane.

I turned my head and directed a suspicious glare at Jake, even though my heart beat with excitement that he’d gotten me flowers. Except Jake looked seriously irritated.

“Those are beautiful, girl!” Natalie said. “And they came so early it must have cost extra. Hurry up and read the card before I go.”

With dragging steps, I went and dug through the roses till I found a little white envelope. Without thinking, I read aloud. “Sorry I wasn’t the boyfriend I should have been. Will you give me another chance? I promise it will be different. I miss you, Nick.”

Stunned, I looked at Jake and found his jaw clamped tight and his eyes slightly narrowed.

“Well, here. Take them, silly.” Natalie thrust the bouquet at me. “You have to hand it to Nick. This is super sweet. We’ll talk later. Bye.”

When she was gone, I dropped the flowers on the counter. We all stared at them like they were poisonous weeds. Jake was the first to speak, his voice flat. “Well this puts a new spin on things.”

“Why?” I asked, as my eyebrows furrowed in confusion. “It’s annoying, but surely you don’t think I care what Nick wants.”

Standing up slowly, Jake came over to me and took my hand. He kissed me gently on the forehead and said, “No, that’s not what I mean. I’d better get out of here before I put those flowers down the garbage disposal.”

“I wouldn’t care if you did,” I said. Then to prove my point, I took the roses and dropped them in the trash while Beth squealed in protest.

“I appreciate the gesture,” Jake said, “But it doesn’t solve anything. I’ll see you later, okay?”

“Yeah,” I said, feeling helpless. He felt so distant, even though my hand was still warm from being held in his.

The front door shut behind him, and I spun to look at Beth, who had pulled the roses from the trash and was tending them at the sink. “What was that all about?” I asked.

She rolled her eyes at me. “Did you expect him to be thrilled that your ex is trying to get you back? And, I might add, while you keep refusing to date him?”

“But you heard what he said. We can’t date. He could lose his job.”

She started filling a vase with water. “Doesn’t mean he likes it.”

I sighed. Only time was going to fix this. Nick would give up and eventually, so would Natalie. But I couldn’t put Jake’s job at risk.