Page 37 of Their Broken Tears
I nod, not knowing what else to do. My breathing only calms when he leans back over to his side of the car.
“Now, about this weirdness that’s settled between us. I don’t like it. We’ve been friends for as long as I can remember, so no more awkward moments, okay?” His slight chuckle has a smile springing to my lips.
“Okay.” I lean forward. “You’re right. It’s just…” I shake my head. How the hell do I explain the ball of emotions coiling inside of me?
“It’s just what?” he asks quietly, as if he senses my will crumbling.
“I don’t know how to handle what I’m feeling for you,” I finally admit. “You used to be one of my best friends, but now, I mean, you still are, but it’s changed. There are all these emotions I don’t know what to do with, or how to act on, or whether I should act on them. It’s all so confusing.”
“I know exactly how you feel, pretty lady.” He takes my hand. “You just described everything I’ve been bottling up since our sleepover.” He studies me, seeing all the longing I’ve been hiding, and growls. “You’re driving me fucking crazy, looking at me like that.”
The small smile that tilts my lips does so on its own accord. Everything I’m suffering through is reflected in his stare. He drives me crazy with his long lashes that shadow his cheeks and surround his giant blue gems. His ebon hair sliding to obscure my view enough for my fingers to itch and brush it aside. But the most irresistible attribute is his kissable pink lips, plump, and waiting for attack.
Jace growls, “I said stop looking at me like that.”
“I don’t think I can,” I whisper, finally having the courage to admit.
He’s silent, observing, and then leans over slowly, touching my lips softly with his. “Don’t decide now, but I want an answer before we leave this weekend. I want you. I want you to be mine. I’m willing to risk everything and take a chance on us. The only question you need to ask yourself is, are you?”
“I will,” I tell him before he moves back into his seat. A shaky breath escapes as I pull myself together and get us back on the road.
Once we pull under the porte-cochère, I sprint inside, leaving Jace and our intensity sitting in the car. I can barely concentrate when he’s around. The check-in process should be swift since my parents booked and paid online already, but wanting it to last longer to offer extra time to decompress.
What seems like seconds later, the key cards are in hand and I’m about to thank the clerk when a muscular arm drapes over my shoulder, pulling me close.
“Did you get our keys, darling?” he asks in the most pathetic country accent I’ve ever heard, made worse by the serious expression on his face. He’s waiting for my reaction.
“Yes?”
“Marvelous!” he shouts, drawing the attention of other guests in the lobby. Oh, great. “I can’t wait to get you upstairs.”
Laughter explodes out of me. “Oh, believe me, you’re in for it, too.”
“Darling,” he coos, “married for a few hours and already trying to seduce me?”
What! “Jace.” His name a warning on my tongue.
“It’s all right now, doll. There’s nothing anyone can do to keep us apart anymore. Running away was the best thing we could’ve done!” He’s still speaking loud enough for everyone to hear when he turns back to the young man at the desk. “Her daddy never liked me, but that didn’t stop this one. She was persistent, I’ll tell you that.” He ignores my shocked gasp. “Her mama begged her not to leave, telling her she didn’t have to marry her second cousin. She could stay and help at the farm for as long as she wanted. But none of that’s good enough for my girl. Right, baby?” He’s looking at me expectantly with stars in his eyes, selling this story for all he’s got.
How in the hell am I supposed to reply to this weird-ass narration? “Right, babe. I mean, I don’t know what I’d have done if I had to keep it all in the family, as daddy likes to say. So, when Jacey here came along, promising me a future without having to marry one of my cousins, well heck, I was all for it. Now we’re married, expecting twins in six more months, and I couldn’t be happier.” I beam up at Jace, blinking my eyelashes like a southern belle, hitting him back with a bit of his own sarcastic nature.
A smirk tilts his lips. “Couldn’t be happier,” he repeats. “Now, let’s get to our room.”
A giggle burst free, surprising him. Normally, I’d freak with embarrassment. Who the hell thinks up a story like that? Instead, we stand in the foyer, gazing at each other like star-crossed lovers, until the desk clerk clears his throat.
“Yeah, okay. Enjoy your stay.” The clerk watches us nervously, wishing for our hurried retreat.
“Thank you.” We let the poor guy off the hook and rush back to the car.
Once we’re safely inside, we crack up laughing.
“I can’t believe you!” I growl, throwing a half-hearted fit. “Now he thinks there’s some incestuous shit going on. Then add in the farm… What the hell, Jace!” Each word is cracked with laughter, the entire episode ridiculously funny. “The look on that clerk’s face.”
It’s all I have to say before another bout of laughter strikes, distracting me from opening the trunk as tears pool in our eyes.
“Priceless.” Jace takes the keys from my shaking hand and pops open the back, grabbing our bags, and slamming it closed faster than I can react.
“Ass.” The one word is fitting enough. “You can carry my stuff in, husband.” With the last word, I haughtily turn and walk towards our room, leaving Jace to grab all our stuff.