“I can’t explain much,” I whisper, afraid I’ll wake up Jacob or his brother. Snuggling under the blankets of his bed, I continue my conversation with Maeve. “Please just be happy for me, Mae. I need a couple of days.”
“Can’t or won’t explain?” Maeve whispers back with an irritating tone. It’s ten in the morning, and a sharp edge glides through my chest. Mom must be around. “I’m risking my skin here, Pree. I deserve to know what you’re going to be doing those two days.”
Risking her skin—as if. Mae has our parents eating out of her hand, but I yield to her drama and approach her in a different way. “Later, I swear. But help me out here. It’s just for a couple of days. Without you this won’t work. After all, this was your brilliant idea.”
Giddiness brews inside me as I envision the moment when we’ll discuss Jacob and his sweet, passionate kisses. My Friday night deserves better than a quick chitchat over the phone. It deserves to be told over a pint of ice cream. Agreeing to her demands wouldn’t do justice to what I experienced, which I can describe as life-changing and utterly exhilarating. From this moment forward, any guy who kisses me will be measured against his skills.
Ah, Jacob!
A creaky noise forces me to uncover my head and check the source of the disturbance. Dreamy, handsome Jacob approaches the bed sporting that signature cocky smile I’m beginning to really dig. I'm crushing hard. He holds a tray containing some food.
“Hey, sis, I have to go.” I don’t wait for her to say a thing and end the call.
“Did you clear the weekend?” Jacob asks, lowering the tray on top of the bed. Yummy. Pancakes, blueberries and orange juice. Eagerly I nod. “Good,” his face lights up. “I have plans for us. Did you have a good night’s sleep?”
“Yeah, where did you sleep?” Around three in the morning we came back downstairs; he handed me a T-shirt, showed me his room, and left for the night.
“With my brother.” He slides next to me, gives me a chaste kiss on the lips, and takes one of the glasses. “Yesterday I promised not to cross any lines unless you wanted me to. Wait, I forgot. Is there something specific you’d rather do today?”
I ponder his question. Mae didn't confirm, but I'll risk it and assume she'll cover for me. Today I can do so many things, but...
“Mind if we head to my dorm room? I don’t have any clothes with me.” I cut a piece of pancake with a fork and take a bite. They don’t have syrup, but they taste mapley. “Who cooked?”
“I did. I’m a man of many talents.” He downs his juice, grabs his plate from the tray, and begins to eat. But not before giving me a kiss that curls my toes, my fingers, my hair, and my heart. “Yes, we can hit the dorm, pick up your crap, and start our fun weekend. Any requests? Or do you want me to choose today’s activities?”
I shrug due to my lack of coherent words. The combination of magnetic eyes, musky scent, firm features, shirtless torso, and that kiss prevents me from putting together a sentence. It’s the effort I make to stop myself from drowning in those blue pools.
“Pool.” I slam a hand against my mouth. Idiot. “Maybe tomorrow we can head to the pool?” Nice save, Pria.
“You’re fucking kidding me!” I hear a scream coming from another part of the apartment. “Where’s my freshly squeezed juice? My breakfast?”
“Oh, the owl is grumpy today. Mind if he joins us?” I tilt my head to observe him. “He’s great at packing shit.”
I roll my eyes as I look around, because if the debris on the floor, along with the dirty and clean clothes hanging from the scant furniture they own is any indication, I could do better without their packing skills.
“Yeah, why not. It’ll be fun.” I regret those words the moment they leave my mouth. Jacob’s fun, but his brother might be the entire opposite.
Born on the mystical day of October 30th in the not so mystical lands of Mexico City, Claudia grew up with a childhood that resembled a caffeine-injected soap opera. Seventeen years ago she ventured to the lands of her techie husband—a.k.a. the U.S.—with their offspring to start a new adventure.
She now lives in Colorado working as a CFO for a small IT company, managing her household filled with three confused dogs, said nerd husband, two daughters wrought with fandoms and a son who thinks he’s the boss of the house. To survive she works continually to find purpose for the voices flitting through her head, plus she consumes high quantities of chocolate to keep the last threads of sanity intact.
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