Page 27 of The Sweetmate
Chapter 9
Casey
Jensen arrives to help us pack and load the car. He gives me a skeptical look and then makes a point of turning his eyes to Lisa. I shrug and smile, to which he shakes his head.
“Be careful with her,” he warns.
“Yeah, I know. Something tells me she’s going to break my heart.”
“No,” Jensen whispers in a deadly calm voice. “I meant for you to be careful with her.”
“Me?!”
“She’s a nice lady. If you hurt that sweet woman, then I’m gonna hurt you, Casey.”
Lisa’s words from last night come to mind. “She’s not sweet.” Jensen looms over me. “Her words, not mine.” I take a step back. “Down, boy. Jeez. Note. Look, I care about her, too. Like I said, she’s more than likely the one who’s going to break me. That woman is probably going to do more damage than even you’re capable of doing.”
The faintest smirk tugs at Jensen’s lips. “True.”
The woman we’re discussing comes to stand with us at the door. Jensen takes her suitcase, and we leave the suite.
“I can’t believe you drag this poor man around just to help you get from point A to point B.” Lisa says in the elevator.
“You can’t believe I provide Jensen with a job. He gets paid good money to put up with my shit.” I pat Jensen on the shoulder.
The elevator dings and Lisa continues as we step off. “Speaking of your shit, I sent my formal resignation letter. Then I called my boss this morning and told him I was going with you,” she says. “He demanded I return to the office, but I refused. It felt good, actually.”
“I figured. Uncle Brox has been trying to reach me nonstop for the last twenty minutes.”
She essentially quit her job for me. Put her life on hold to go with me on this trip. There’s an ache developing in my chest, and for some reason, it all unnerves me. One could argue it’s because I told the media she’s my girlfriend and she wants to keep up the ruse. That I’m paying her. But I don’t think this isall business for her. Despite everyone assuming I’m an idiot, my gut is typically never wrong. Right now, it’s telling me she feels our connection and wants to explore it just as much as I do. Lisa wasn’t ready for our time to end either. I can live with her being in denial, for now. I’ll give her time to process her feelings, but the truth is, she likes me.
Jensen gets us past the paparazzi and into the car to JFK International Airport. Lisa mocked me earlier today about needing a babysitter to get me from point A to point B, but I think she now appreciates my “sitter.” He sits in the driver’s seat, while Lisa is in the back with me. Her entire body is pressed against the door—as far away from me as possible.
Time for some fun.
“What do you think, Jensen? Did you see it coming from the first day Lisa and I met? That we were destined to become lovers? The chemistry was there. You saw it, right? I think everyone did.” And then I wistfully say, “But us.” I sigh and look out the window. “Everyone but us.”
I’m being completely ridiculous and dramatic as fuck, but I get my desired result. Lisa is fighting back a smile. Jensen is shaking his head, and there’s the slightest movement from his shoulders. He chuckled. I didn’t hear it, but I saw the movement. The tension in the car has already improved. Jensen doesn’t answer, and that’s all the answer I need.
Dramatic or not, he agrees with me.
“Listen,” I turn to Lisa and take her hand before we go through airport security. “Your about to see a side of me that I’m not proud of her. I hope it doesn’t change your opinion of me, even though the bar is already set fairly low.”
“Are you a diva going through security?”
“Worse. It’s like road rage but walking. I basically hate everyone when we get in that line. I apologize in advance.”
“We all have our flaws.”
“And I bet you didn’t think I had any. I’m sorry I crushed that image. You can take me off the pedestal. I am human.”
“So humble.” She points toward the already infuriating long line. “Get in line.”
“What’s the point of having all the security special privileges if the line is still painful.” I grumble.
“We could be with the commoners, m’lord. Look at the line of peasants.”
I pause and turn to Lisa. “Did you just do an English accent?”
