His eyes finally shift down to the ground for a moment. “I’m just lucky your dad came along when he did. I could have perished out there.” The corner of his mouth pulls up in an attempt at a half smile. But his cheeky, unrelenting, and sometimes ridiculous, sense of humor is all but gone. At least, for the moment.
“Are you sure that’s all it was? Just a bet and getting stuck in the storm?” I ask.
His eyes flick back to mine and I gulp from the deep sense of intensity I find there. Jay seems so much older than his seventeen years. It’s like he’s seen everything, and nothing surprises him anymore.
“I had a fight with my mom, it’s no big deal,” he sighs. “And I have a lot of pressure on me going into finals, I shouldn’t have taken that stupid bet. I’m an idiot.”
“No, you’re not, don’t say that.”
“You should go back to bed, Little JJ.”
I nod, swallowing hard, my mouth suddenly feeling as dry as a sandy desert with no moisture in sight. “Are you gonna be okay?” I whisper.
Just like that, the grin returns, like he’s just unwrapped an exciting birthday present. It could win some kind of award because it’s that beautiful and convincing. His eyes even have a little of their sparkle back, just like that. “Of course I’m going to be okay, I always am.”
I smile, but it feels small. I have so much going on in my head from what I heard my parents saying, mixed with Jay’s rendition of what happened. A few things don’t add up, but I don’t say anything. Once again, I don’t want to upset him. “I’m glad,” I say, “Goodnight, Jay.” I push off the wall and take a step back down the hall towards my bedroom, not before he pushes off too, but as I turn away from him, I feel his warm hand grab me by the wrist again, halting me in my tracks. I whirl around, my heart in my throat as he looks down at me. I feel the heat rise over my body as I look up and meet his gaze, his lips part like he’s going to say something, but after a moment of pause, he doesn’t. He drops my wrist and makes his way back to the stairs to climb back down to the basement, his glass of water obviously forgotten. I’m halfway back to my bedroom before I hear him whisper, “Goodnight.”
I’ve read about the Washington Park Arboretum and researched it online, but until I see it in person, I clearly have no idea how magnificent it really is. I can see the outskirts of it now, sitting by the entry in Jay’s car.
Luckily, my get-up is pretty small and I just have one bag of equipment, plus my yoga mat and some blocks.
“You sure you’re not going to get lost in there?” Jay muses as he leaves the engine running by the gates and gazes out of the front windshield.
“I’ll be fine. Beth just texted to say she’s going to have a late lunch with me.”
“So I’m not invited?” he smiles, his eyes diverting back to mine as I unclick my seatbelt and get ready to exit the car.
“Of course you are, do you want to?”
His mouth pulls up in a grin. “I’d love to, but I’ve got training, remember?”
“Ah, that’s right.”
“We’re home this weekend if you want to come to the game. I’m away early next week.”
“That sounds good. I’d love to.”
“So, let me know if you need me to pick you up here later when you’re done, or if you’re going with Beth.”
“Okay, will do.”
“Don’t forget about our dance lesson,” he reminds me with a wink.
“I almost forgot about that.”
He laughs. “I wish I could, I mean, it’s not us getting married or anything. But I know the bridal party all gets up to dance after the bridal waltz, so it would be good to know what we’re doing.”
“And fun, too,” I add. “I’m looking forward to it.”
“I’ll make sure I limber up properly at practice.”
“You do that,” I chuckle, trying to imagine him doing just that. “We don’t want you hurting yourself.”
“Don’t worry, I’m better on my skates. Text me.”
“I will.” I smile as I reach for the door handle. “Thanks, Jay.”
“No problem,” he says. “Any time, I’m here for you. You know that, right?”
