Page 61 of Our Sweet Destiny
Chapter Thirty-One
REX’S PHONE RANG at seven fifteen, after he and his family had finished dinner. He was surprised at the surge of adrenaline that ran through him. He hadn’t been excited about a phone call for as long as he could remember, and as he spoke softly into the tiny, strangely shaped phone, he was glad to hear Jade’s voice.
“Hey, babe,” he said.
“Hi. How’s Hope?” Jade asked.
Her voice was so sweet and she was asking in such a tentative fashion that he had to sit down on the grass and just drink it in. “She’s not herself, that’s for sure. Dad’s gonna stay with her.” He and the others had discussed staying around in case his father needed help with Hope, but his father had waved them away.I’ve been taking care of horses all my life. Go to your silly concert. Have some fun.
“Is she lying down? Because you can’t let her y—”
“Jade.” He smiled at her caring nature. “Dad’s been breeding horses since he was a kid. He knows what to do.”
“Right. I’m sorry,” she said. “So, you’re coming tonight?”
Why does that word coming from those lips turn me on?“If you mean to the concert, yes. If you mean that some other way, not unless it’s with you.”
She was silent, and Rex worried that he’d overstepped their playful bounds. He had no idea what would be considered appropriate cell phone etiquette, and going with his feelings had seemed right at the time. Now he worked to cover his tracks.
“I’m sorry; that was crude.”
“No, it was sexy,” she said in a hushed tone. “I just…You always take my breath away. I feel like a fifteen-year-old when I’m with you, even on the phone. When I dialed your number, my heart was racing. I swear, Rex, it’s so weird.”
“I know, babe. I feel it too, and I have no idea how I’m going to stay away from you tonight, but I still want to be there and see you.” Could he do it? he wondered. Could he see Jade at the concert and not be with her? Not hold her hand or put his arm around her? Not talk with her alone in a dark corner, lest someone see them and their fathers get wind of their relationship? At this point, he wondered if he even cared. Then his loyalty rose to the surface, and he knew he did.
“Me too. Maybe we shouldn’t go.”
“No, not seeing you is worse than seeing you. Besides, Max’s friend Kaylie is singing tonight, so everyone is psyched to go. We’ll just be careful. Are your parents going? Your brother?”
She laughed. “My brother hasn’t been to a community event in years, and my parents are too wrapped up in their own stuff right now to want to go, so no, they won’t be there. Meet me by the entrance?”
“Yeah, I’ll be there at eight. Jade?” he asked. He debated telling her about the conversation he’d had with her mother about how she and his mother had remained close and that she supported their being together and finally decided to do it when they were face-to-face.
“Yeah?”
“I miss you.”
A simple, quick intake of breath told him that she was feeling the same longing as he was. “Me too,” she said.
“Jade?”
“Yeah?”
“I love you.” Telling her he loved her was still so new to him that he held his breath until she said it back.
“I love you, too, Rex.”
TREAT AND MAX sat in the back of the SUV, snuggled against each other like they were keeping warm during a winter storm. Rex tried not to keep looking at them, but how could he not? The way Max gazed into his brother’s eyes and touched his cheek, like the sun rose and set around him, made Rex long for Jade’s touch.
“Savannah, what’s happening with Connor?” Rex asked, to distract himself from Treat and Max.
Savannah made her living as an entertainment lawyer, and she’d been A-list-actor Connor Dean’s attorney for the past few years. She’d also been his on-and-off-again lover for the past several months.
“Nothing’s happening,” she answered.
“Are you still dating him?” Rex asked again. He’d always been protective of Savannah, and even now, as an adult, he liked to be sure she was okay.
“We’re…It’s complicated.” Savannah turned toward Rex and asked, “What’s the plan tonight with Jade? I mean, how do you do this not-tell-anyone thing in public?”
