Page 58 of Fight for Me
“I can’t help it,” he whispered back. “It’s the dress.”
Lexie pursed her lips as though trying not to humor him, but he’d gotten what he wanted. Later, she leaned toward him when the lights came up for intermission, her index finger waving menacingly even though her face was playful.
“I can’t take you anywhere, can I?” she asked.
“Apparently not,” he quipped, grabbing the threatening finger where it hovered in front of his face. He kissed the tip of it, earning himself another of her beautiful smiles.
Lexie rolled her eyes good-naturedly, taking her hand back.
“I’m going to the restroom. If you get into trouble while I’m gone, you’ll just have to wait in the truck,” she said.
He scrambled to stand and let her by, brushing his hand across that tempting space on her back as she passed. When he’d lowered himself back into his chair, he felt a soft touch against his shoulder from the row behind him.
“Hang on to her, son,” said an older gentleman, the skin around his eyes wrinkled from years of laughter. He glanced at the elegant woman beside him, who looked on indulgently. “You remind me of us so long ago. We’re celebrating sixty years this weekend!”
Jake smiled, watching as the man took his wife’s hand and brought it slowly to his lips in much the same way Jake had just done.
“Congratulations, sir,” he said. “And I‘ll do my best.”
Jake’s headlights sweptacross the quiet lot as he parked in front of Lexie’s apartment hours later. She pulled the lapels of his jacket closer around herself, still floating on whatever cloud she’d been riding since the concert.
“So, are you not an Aerosmith fan? I noticed you weren’t paying much attention during that part,” he said, turning toward her as he unfastened his seat belt.
Lexie snorted. “That’s because somebody was distracting me,” she said.
“Oh? Well, you’ll have to tell whoever that was to behave himself next time.”
“Idid! It didn’t work.”
“It doesn’t sound like you tried very hard,” Jake teased, and he opened his door and jumped from the cab.
Lexie shrugged out of his jacket and folded it neatly, laying it on the seat beside her while he made his way around the front of the truck. He opened her door with a flourish and held out his hand.
“Can I walk you up?” he asked, steadying her as she climbed to the ground.
The happy glow in Lexie’s chest vanished, replaced by uncertainty. She glanced toward her unit’s assigned parking spaces. The spot where Olivia’s Mustang usually sat was vacant, which meant the apartment was empty.
“Yeah, sure,” she answered, though her thoughts weren’t as simple as her words. In her experience, relationships were always transactional; men expected certain things in exchange for the time and attention she craved. Jake had always given those things freely, even when he couldn’t ask for anything in return.
But now that he could, would he?
And what would she say if he did?
She knew how easy it could be for a single stone to become a rockslide, hurtling out of control until she lost sight of herself in the wreckage. She’d let it happen before, and she didn’t want to make the same mistake again. She wanted someone to stay for more than what she could give behind closed doors. She wanted to be special, to be important, to be treasured... and as comfortable as she was with Jake, she wasn’t ready to give up that much of herself.
Not yet.
Lexie was so lost in thought she didn’t realize they’d climbed the stairs and reached her apartment until Jake stopped walking.
“You okay in there?” he asked, his soft eyes searching her face, and Lexie swallowed hard.
“Yeah, I’m just thinking,” she said, unsure how to put her concerns into words. She didn’t want to disappoint him.
“I can’t come in,” he said, shifting awkwardly from one foot to the other. “I mean, if that’s what you were thinking about.”
Her eyes snapped up to his.
“Oh.”
