Page 17 of Loving Jake

“I’m sure,” he responded, with what he hoped was a note of indifference. He searched the room again. “Kimberly’s a great photographer. I’m not surprised that they turned out well.”

Linda tilted her head, and her eyes sparkled when she looked at him. “George is over by the bar, if that’s who you’re looking for?

Jake glanced back at her. If she knew he had been searching for Kimberly, she had the grace to keep it to herself.

“Of course, it’s the birthday boy... who else would it be?” He looked across the room. “I think I will wish him a happy birthday now,” he answered before he excused himself and walked away.

“Jake. Glad you could make it.” George reached behind him and a grabbed a drink off the bar. “Beer okay? Or should I order you something else?”

“Beer’s fine. I heard you were rather surprised.” Jake laughed at the look of embarrassment on his friend’s face.

“Hell, yes. Although, I’m still trying to figure out why Linda decided on a surprise party for my thirty-fifth. I’ve narrowed it down to either she thinks I won’t make it to my fortieth, or she’s expecting me to throw her a surprise party for her birthday next year.”

“Let’s hope it’s because she wants a surprise party.” Jake reached out and patted George on the back. He took a drink of beer as he glanced over George’s shoulder to a group of people standing behind him.

“Linda tells me you have been staying with Kimberly since you’ve been in town? Funny, neither of you mentioned it until recently.” George turned around and grabbed a beer for himself off of the bar.

Am I that easy to read? Jake thought crossly, even as he caught himself taking another quick sweep of the room in search of Kimberly. He needed to seriously question how it was that he made a living as an investigative reporter, if he was as open of a book as the Urbanes made him feel like tonight.

“Ah, yeah, I am. Probably for another month. It’s close to my grandfather’s rehab center, and I had been having a difficult time finding an apartment that I liked.” He swiftly drained his glass and placed it on the bar. The bartender caught his eye, and Jake declined the offer with a shake of his head.

“That’s what Carly’s been telling me. So, what house repairs has Kimberly conned you into doing?” George chuckled in response to Jake’s startled expression.

“Come on, Jake, tell me. Have you replaced the deck off of the kitchen? Or how about repairing the crack in herdining room ceiling? I know there has to be something that she hasn’t swindled Dad or me into doing yet, especially since I haven’t heard from her in over a month. I should have known something was up, just by that alone.”

Jake mumbled the list of repairs he willingly volunteered to do around the house and admitted that half of the time, he had had to argue with the little con artist to convince her to let him do them. He accepted that he had been duped and joined George in a good laugh at his own expense. Kimberly, he learned, was excellent at twisting the men in her life around her little finger. When George finally steered the subject away from his sister to something else a few minutes later, Jake was grateful. George could have delivered the “I’m her big brother/she’s my little sister, and I’ll kill you if you hurt her” speech to him, and it would have been deserved, especially after their encounter in the kitchen last week.

“That gift wouldn’t be for me, would it?” George asked with a wide grin and a nod to the package Jake had placed on top of the bar.

“As a matter of fact, it is.” Jake nodded and handed him the gift.

“Jake, this is great.” He set the discarded wrapping paper on the bar. “I don’t know what to say. How did you get your hands on this?” He asked with a tinge of awe in his voice, his eyes glued to the autographed baseball.

“A couple of New York Yankees live in my apartment building. I explained your lasting devotion to their team, and they happily obliged me with some signatures.”

“I can’t wait to show this to Bob Carlson. He’s always bragging to everyone about his baseball collection. Excuse me Jake, while I run over to Bob and do a little boasting. Thanks again!”

Jake smiled at George’s eager departure, pleased that he appreciated the gift as much as he did. Jake laughed to himself.His doubts about giving a grown man an autographed baseball were all for nothing. He decided to walk the room when he spotted her.

His eyes nearly doubled in size when he saw her walk across the room, deep in conversation with an older woman whom he didn’t recognize. He smoothed a trembling hand across his jaw line. Kim took away his breath. Her hair was pulled into a loose chignon at the back of her head. Several long, curly strands of hair escaped the upsweep and cascaded down her back.

He had thought nothing could be more enticing than seeing her poured into a pair of tight jeans and a snug fitting shirt. He now knew that he had been wrong. Dead wrong. He reached for his beer before he realized he had put the empty glass down and hadn’t ordered another one.

Two thin straps held up a black dress that clung to her. The dress’ tight bodice accentuated her full, ripe breasts, before it narrowed to emphasize her slim waist. The silky material ended at the middle of her thighs to reveal much of her long slender legs. Her only jewelry was a pair of earrings, dozens of tiny freshwater pearls that sparkled against her golden skin and black hair.

Jake swallowed uneasily as he followed her progress. His pulse raced as he watched the older woman leave Kimberly’s side to be replaced by a man he didn’t recognize. He clenched his fists at his sides as he witnessed the stranger remove the champagne glass from her hand and escort her onto the dance floor. Disgusted by the tender smile she provided her dance partner as he whirled her around the room, Jake decided to take a walk out onto the terrace to grab some fresh air.

“You’ve been here less than half of an hour, and already you're hiding out on the balcony?” a familiar voice asked him.

“I’ve never been one for crowds.” Jake turned his head to the side to look at Carly. Dressed in black also, it was obvious whyshe had been a successful model for so long, before she gave it all up for motherhood. Her wholesome, Christie Brinkley looks contrasted perfectly with her floor-length gown. Stunningly beautiful, she was simply Carly in his eyes, the little sister he never had.

“I saw the autographed baseball you gave George. He’s running around the party like a little kid showing it off to everyone.”

“Good, I’m glad he liked it.” He turned to lean on the balcony railing and inhaled a deep breath of air.

“Jake, I saw you watching Kimberly on the dance floor.”

He kept his gaze locked on her. Her blue eyes stared directly back at him, her brows furrowed with concern. “And?”

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