That wassoseriously messed up.
Jake's voice interrupted my thoughts. "Get mad all you want, but that's the way Moe talks, which means it's what he understands."
"Oh." I guess that made sense in a weird, twisted sort of way.
"And," Jake continued, "I sure as hell wasn't gonna waste time looking for a nicer way to tell him hands-off." He gestured toward his phone, still cradled in my hands. "Now, go on. Finish the rest."
I scrolled down and winced. This text was from Jake to Moe. Reluctantly, I said, "And you say, 'Where the fuck is she?'"
I looked up, meeting Jake's gaze. His eyes looked haunted for reasons that I was only beginning to understand.
Lamely, I mumbled, "I just went for a walk."
"Yeah. So you said."
"You think I'm lying?"
He closed his eyes for a long, painful moment. "I thought you were upstairs."
Something in his voice caught me off-guard. "What?"
"When you left my office, I thought you were going upstairs."
"To your penthouse?"
He shook his head. "Not my penthouse.Ourpenthouse."
"Oh come on, Jake. That's really nice and all, but you don't have to put it like that. I mean, I know it's yours. And that's okay. Really. I'm just glad you let me stay there. Honest."
It was true. The place was a palace. I'd arrived as a house guest, and hadn't quite left. Part of me was thinking I might never have to leave – the penthouseormore importantly, Jake. But it seemed a supreme arrogance to simply assume so.
Inside the elevator, Jake was looking at me like I'd lost my mind. "Letyou stay there?"
"Well, you know…"
"No. I don't." He made a scoffing sound. "But forget that. We'll talk about it later." Again, he gestured to the phone. "Keep reading."
I scrolled lower. The next text was from Moe. Looking at it, I felt myself frown.
"What?" Jake said. "You wantmeto read it?"
"No." I squared my shoulders. "That's fine. I'll do it." Trying to sound casual, I read the message out loud. "Bitch gonna get herself killed."
In truth, I wasn't sure what bothered me more – that he'd called me a bitch, or that he had such low expectations for my survival. After all, I'd made it back to Jake's place just fine, a little soggy maybe, but thankfully unharmed.
I looked up, wondering what Jake would say now.
He said nothing, and the silence stretched out.
Trying to make a joke of it, I said, "Well, he seems nice."
"You think it's funny?"
"No. That's not it." In a softer voice, I added, "I know you were worried, but everything was fine." I tried to smile. "See? Here I am. All in one piece."
Jake's gaze slid down my borrowed hoodie, and then lower, as if recalling how I'd looked in that stupid picture. Even now, I wasn't quite decent. Vince's hoodie, as large as it was, fell nearly to the bottom of my shorts, which to be honest, were a little too short for my own good.
Probably, I looked half-naked, even now. I shifted uncomfortably, wondering what Jake was thinking. From the look on his face, it couldn't be good.
