Page 33 of Jake Forever
Chapter 13
Standing there, I craned my neck to look up at him. All the prior coldness – in Jake's eyes, in the office, on my skin – it was gone in a flash, replaced by heat so searing, I wanted to fan myself.
I was horrified. And thrilled. And just a little bit scared. Looking to tone everything down a notch, I said, "You mean rhetorically, right?"
He gave a shrug.
"That's no kind of answer," I said.
"Yeah? Well too bad. Because that's all you're getting."
I drew back. "Why?"
"Because there are some things you don't need to know. That's why."
Well, that wasn't ominous or anything.
I reminded myself that normal people – normal guys – they didn't think that way. And they sure as heck didn'tactthat way.
Over the years, I'd dated a lot, especially in college. Those others guys? None of them would do this. None of them would hint at dark and deadly things, and then refuse to discuss it afterward.
And what, exactly, was he saying, anyway?
Wanting a better view of him, I took a step backward. "Let me get this straight. Some chick can practically molest you in public, and that's okay, but–"
"I never said that."
Ignoring his lame protest, I continued. "But if the situation were reversed, if it were aguydoing the same thing to me, thatwouldn'tbe okay?"
His voice hardened. "What doyouthink?"
At this point, I didn't know what to think. But Ididknow it wasn't fair. It wasn't even logical.
Jake was smart. He might not always show it, but he was. Back in our hometown, I'd always suspected as much. But over the past few weeks, I'd seen a lot more of his business operations. I'd also seen a lot more ofhim.
He was sharp and had a real knack for numbers. Yeah, he spent a lot of money, but he invested a whole lot more. I wasn't a big numbers person myself, but I knew enough to realize that he could stop working at any time and still live like a king for the rest of his life.
I pushed those thoughts aside and focused on the present. "What do I think?" I said. "I think it's a double-standard. That's what."
"No," he said in voice that grew annoyingly calm, "because it'snotthe same thing."
"It is, too." I glared up at him. "What are you gonna tell me next? That you're allowed cheat or something? And I'm not?"
Probably, it was a stupid point. I didn't want to cheat. And the thought of him cheating? Well, it hurt. It hurt a lot. But if that was his attitude, I needed to know. "Well?" I said. "Is that the way it is?"
He gave me a look that I couldn’t quite make out. "You think I'd cheat on you?"
Did I? I didn'twantto think that. But how I could not wonder, especially after seeing him smile while another girl crawled all over him?
I closed my eyes and tried to think. That scene from the video – he'd explained that. And stupid or not, I believed him, even if I still didn't like it.
I opened my eyes and struggled to find the words. "It just sounds like there's one set of rules for you, and another set for me. You know?"
"That's not it."
"Well it sure sounds like it." I gave him a pleading look. "Come on, Jake. Look at it from my point-of-view. Some girl jumps you, and that's okay? But some guy jumps me, it's not?"
His expression darkened. "You really wanna go there?"
