Page 75 of Of Heartbreak and Harmony
“Oh.” He opens the door to a black SUV, and I climb in. He climbs in after me. When his security starts to drive, I turn toward Jonah. “Isn’t Torren coming?”
Jonah shakes his head. “Invited him. He said no.”
Oh. Okay then. I try my best to ignore the way my excitement deflates. I guess he’s not up for pretending today.
Jonah doesn’t speak for the whole fifteen-minute drive, but it’s not an uncomfortable silence. It’s actually refreshing, despite the fact that I’m in another vehicle when I was looking forward to being stationary for a few hours. He doesn’t probe me with small talk, and his presence doesn’t make me nervous like Torren’s does. I’m almost grateful for my fake boyfriend’s absence.
The SUV pulls up to a small sushi restaurant in a busy strip mall. We get out on the sidewalk, and I notice a sign on the door that saysClosed For Private Event.
“Um, I think we need to find somewhere else,” I say as Jonah opens the door and ushers me inside.
He laughs. “You’re cute.”
And then an older woman greets us and shows us to a table. I know immediately she’s the owner. I see no waitstaff in the whole restaurant.
“Welcome back, Mr. Hendrix. It’s good to see you again.”
“Thank you for doing this on such short notice.”
“Of course. Anything for you.” The woman waits while we sit, then she and Jonah exchange a few more pleasantries. Jonah introduces us, then asks for a single menu. Just for me.
“Take your time,” he tells me, sitting back in his seat and crossing his arms.
“You don’t need to see it?” I ask, and Jonah shakes his head slowly.
“I know what I want.”
The comment seems suggestive, summoning a chill across my skin, and Torren’s words from before flash in bright neon.He’s not nice. He just wants to fuck you.
And then I think of something else.
The sharing.
I blush crimson, my cheeks flaming with heat, and Jonah’s responding Cheshire grin makes me nervous in the most confusing way. So much so that I tear my eyes away from him and don’t look up from the menu again until we’ve ordered.
“So how are you liking being part of the band, Callie?”
I take a sip of my water before answering, flicking my eyes from his face, then to the paintings on the wall. “It’s been an adjustment.”
“It’s fucking chaos.”
I laugh. “Yes, it is.”
“Sorry if Torren’s been a dick.”
“He’s not been a dick,” I say, and Jonah smirks. “Okay, fine. He’s been a dick. But I don’t know, he’s coming around.”
It’s not a lie. Torrenwasa dick, but he’s been kinder. Softer. And unfortunately, it’s softening me, too.
“Sometimes he takes a bit of coaxing.”
I arch a brow at Jonah’s comment. “What do you mean?”
He shrugs. “To get out of his own head.”
“I still don’t understand,” I say slowly, frowning at his smirking face.
He doesn’t clarify. He checks his watch, then changes the subject, but it takes me a minute to catch up. I’m still puzzling out his meaning when the door to the restaurant opens and I glance up to see Torren heading in our direction.
