Page 91 of A Better Place

“Works for me, kid. Anytime.”

“So cool. What else did you do? Eat anywhere?”

Of course he’s interested in our dinner plans.

“We went to The Shore.”

“Nuh-uh.”

“We did. James worked with the owner a few years ago. Jack, you would love it. The calamari?” she moans, and I almost come unglued. “And I had this filet and scallops — holy crap, kid — melted in my mouth. You would not have believed the dessert, either. We’re going there again, too.”

“I find it a little creepy that I’m this jealous of your date tonight,” he tells her.

She giggles. “You should be. It was fantastic.”

“At least I got a gift,” he says, reminding me of the black box I have in my jacket pocket.

“Actually,” I say, gaining both their attention. “Carly has a gift, too.”

She gasps when I pull out the small black velvet box from my pocket and place it on the coffee table. Her eyes are trained on the box, but she hasn’t made a move to pick it up. “James! You didn’t need to do that!” she says, pointing to it.

“Shh. Don’t you know it’s rude to not graciously accept a gift? Come on, it’s not gonna bite ya. Go on.”

“Dude, that’s the only thing I had on her tonight,” he says, shaking his head.

I look over to see Jack curiously watching. It’s obviously a jewelry box. For a brief moment, I panic that maybe it’s too soon for me to be giving her jewelry. But it’s not that kind of jewelry. Yet.

“Go on,” I repeat, nudging her with my knee.

She timidly reaches out and picks up the box. Her eyes flit to Jack who smiles reassuringly at her. Then she shifts her gaze on me. I nod toward the box, encouraging her.

“Open it,” I tell her quietly.

I hear the subtle squeak of the box and watch as her eyes shift downward. Nestled inside is a simple gold necklace with an arrow pendant sitting horizontal. The arrow is similar to the ones I saw hanging on the wall in her bedroom.

“James,” she whispers.

“Good?” I ask her, the small panic I felt earlier threatening to take over again.

She slowly shakes her head but quietly says, “No. Great. I love it.” Her voice is so sweet I almost taste it. “Put it on me?” She lifts it from the box and hands it over then lifts the back of her hair.

I unclasp the hook, reach around her front to loop the necklace around, and fasten it around her neck.

Never in my life have I wanted to kiss the subtle curve of the back of someone’s neck like I do in this moment. Even though it takes everything in me, I refrain, knowing Jack is sitting in the same room. He may know that his mom and I are officially dating now, but that doesn’t mean he wants to see the parts that only Carly and I enjoy.

After it’s secure, she turns around and throws herself into my arms. She loops her slender arms around my neck and hugs me tightly.

“Thank you,” she whispers into my neck, sniffling.

I squeeze her tightly. “You’re welcome, beautiful.”

We pull back, resting our foreheads against each other, sharing our breaths. My hands drift up to cradle her neck, and I want so badly to kiss her, to let her know what I feel in my heart.

But Jack clears his throat, reminding us that we’re not alone. “Let me see?”

Carly bites the corner of her lip and leans up and touches her mouth to mine, the kiss light and sweet. She pulls away and turns toward Jack. “Yeah, buddy. See?” She lifts the thin pendant off her chest and holds it out for him to see.

He looks down, up in her eyes, then shifts his gaze to me. “Moving forward,” he murmurs.

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