by C. R. Ellis
“Speaking of the wedding…” she turned, looking behind me and waving someone over. “This is our wedding planner, Jasmine,” she finished as the very blonde I’d just been daydreaming about walked over to our small group.
“Alexa, hi.” They exchanged a quick hug before Jas pulled back and smiled. “How do you know Dean?” she asked, turning her attention to me.
I could tell she was debating whether or not to give me a more intimate greeting, so I made the decision for her and pulled her in for a quick kiss. Her hesitation to be less than the perfect professional in front of a client was briefly forgotten when she let herself cup my face and crush my impatient lips with hers.
“Wait, how do you know Dean?” she asked, realizing that Jasmine and I were more than causal acquaintances.
“Dean is Jade’s brother. And my…boyfriend,” she added hesitantly. I reassured her by weaving my fingers through hers and giving her hand a light squeeze.
Alexa slowly nodded her head as she put the pieces together.
Charlie interjected before she could respond. “Wait, this is the Jasmine? How the hell did I not know that?”
I shrugged.
“I can’t believe I didn’t realize you’re the Jasmine Dean can’t stop talking about.”
I groaned. “Gee, thanks, Chuck. Why don’t you just tell her some embarrassing college stories while you’re at it?”
“Oooh, yes, please. I’m always up for an embarrassing Dean story,” Jas said.
I shot Charlie a glare that threatened retribution if he said anything.
He just laughed again. “Maybe we better save the humiliation for another time and let them get on with their dinner. Plus, I think Nate is seconds away from stealing left-behind pizza scraps from empty booths.”
Nate rolled his eyes but didn’t deny it.
Alexa nodded. “I’m afraid it is, in fact, Dean’s lucky day. We need to go meet my parents with the pizza.”
Charlie looked genuinely disappointed when he remembered their plans, and promptly promised he’d fill Jasmine in on all kinds of juicy stories soon.
I brought a hand down on his shoulder. “Yeah, how about you just don’t.”
Charlie laughed and shook his head, the bastard. “Not a chance. But hey, enjoy your day off on Monday. And, for Christ’s sake, take Nathan sightseeing. The good places.”
I gave him a sarcastic, lazy salute with the flick of my wrist and gave Alexa a quick hug.
“See you two at the wedding!” she called, looking from me to Nate. “And I’ll see you on Wednesday, right Jasmine?”
“Right,” Jas confirmed.
We walked back over to the table where Jade and Emmett were patiently waiting. If patiently waiting meant playing a game of “who can find the other’s tonsils with their tongue first.”
“All right, you two. Break it up. I don’t need this visual burned into my retinas.”
“Oh, you mean, like I didn’t need the visual of my best friend and my brother moments away from pulling a Shaggy at Mom and Dad’s?” Jade retorted after prying her lips from Emmett’s.
“Did you just reference a song about being caught having sex?” I asked, more out of amusement than annoyance.
“Ohmygod! FOR THE TWELFTH TIME, we were not about to have sex!” Jasmine exclaimed loudly.
I shot her an amused look. We may not have been caught red handed per se, but it was close enough that there was no mistaking the situation.
Nate, among other patrons of the restaurant, stared at Jasmine in disbelief. A mom at a nearby table used her hands as makeshift earmuffs for her seven-year-old son while the dad ear-muffed their daughter. A table of teenagers lifted their eyes from their phones long enough to ogle the woman they’d just heard shout. Leave it to teenagers to only pry their eyes away from social media when the word “sex” was involved.
We quickly dropped the conversation and picked up our menus, but I couldn’t hide my smile when I looked up and saw the slight blush still present in Jasmine’s cheeks.
She caught me staring and shook her head, leaning in close. “If you enjoy sex, I suggest you wipe that smug smirk off your face, Dean.”
Chapter 26
Jasmine
Who actually sits around watching collegiate bowling on TV? They should probably reexamine their lives for any other glaring errors in judgment.
Jasmine Winters, channel surfing between episodes of Gilmore Girls
Before speaking them aloud, having the words “Dean” and “boyfriend” in the same sentence would’ve been enough to send me into total panic mode. Maybe it was the fact that we hadn’t exactly discussed it before I boldly made the declaration. Maybe it was the fact that some stubborn part of me had refused to give up on finding happiness with Dean, even after everything. Whatever the case, where there should’ve been knots of anxiety in the pit of my stomach, there were only thousands of tiny butterflies fluttering around every time Dean flashed his panty-dropping smile and dimples my way. I knew it was probably the calm before the storm, but I’d deal with that reality later.
I had more pressing issues to think about, like what kind of pizza to order. I’d been on my feet, running around, since 9 a.m. and the protein bar I’d scarfed down around lunchtime was long gone. The restaurant had various sizes of pans, depending on the number of people eating, ranging from 8” personal pizzas to 16” family-size pizzas. I split the difference and ordered a twelve-inch supreme.
Dean eyed me skeptically.
“What? I’m hungry,” I said with a shrug, as if that should explain my need for consuming a medium-sized pizza by myself.
“Just trying to figure out where it all goes, and how you look the way you look when you eat more than Nate.”
I shrugged. “Beats me. Genetics? Good luck? Hollow leg?”
He just laughed and ordered his own medium meat lover’s pizza.
By the time our food came out we’d talked about everything from Jade and Emmett’s wedding to Nate’s plans before heading off to Boston. I was pleasantly surprised at how comfortable I was around Jade being couple-like with Dean. She’d known about us for weeks, but our schedules had been so hectic that we hadn’t actually been all together since Dean and I decided to give us a chance. I could tell by the way Jade watched us that she was curious about how things were going, but she kept her questions to herself. It wasn’t so much that I didn’t want her to know anything; I just wasn’t sure how to have that conversation with her.
I’d always been completely open with her about guys in the past, but that’s mostly because a part of me always knew those “relationships” were never going to last. There was no risk in being honest with her (and with myself) about a relationship I wasn’t invested in.
But this?
There was no deluding myself into believing my relationship with Dean wasn’t different than the rest. As soon as I verbalized everything I felt about Dean it would make things too real, it would cement the fact that I was beyond simply falling for him; I might as well have branded his name onto my heart. Sure, he was now apparently, officially my boyfriend, and sure, he seemed genuinely happy with the way things were with us, but that didn’t mean things couldn’t fall apart in an instant.
Our past was proof enough of that.
I was too lost in my own thoughts to realize Dean was staring at me with concern in his eyes.
“Hey. Everything okay?” he whispered sweetly into my ear.
A smile formed on my lips, and I was pulled back to reality, where a gorgeous man was by my side and my best friend was across the table from me. I shook off the wandering thoughts lingering in my mind and focused on the present.
“All good.” I turned to plant a kiss on his cheek. “Just thinking.”
“About wanting to get me home and having your way with me? Funny, I was just thinking the same thing,” he murmured so I was the only one to hear it.
“You wish,” I replied, poking him in the abs. Big mistake. Now I couldn’t stop th
inking about licking his washboard abs. They were the most impressive part of his physique. Well, second most. “Frankly, I’m surprised there’s enough room for all three of us on the bench. You know…you, your ginormous ego, and me.”
“You didn’t seem to mind my ego so much last night. In fact, you were pretty vocal with appreciation for it if I remember correctly,” he reminded me with a smirk that both irritated me and ignited a flame of desire.
I shook my head, but couldn’t contain my smile. “I don’t think we’re talking about the same ego.”
A low rumble of laughter came from Dean’s chest, and his eyes glinted with humor and mischief. I didn’t know whether to smack him or drag him into the bathroom to have my way with him before we even made it home. It should’ve alarmed me that a single look from Dean could reduce me to a jumbled mess of hormones, incapable of holding on to a grudge for more than a matter of seconds.
It didn’t.
It made my heart race with anticipation, my mouth go dry, and my hands itch to find their way to the hard plane of his chest.
“…what do you think, Jas? Dean? Are y’all in?” Jade called from across the table. A similar look of mischief was now painted on Jade’s face.
My eyes flickered to Emmett, hoping he might throw me a lifeline and fill me in on the topic of conversation.
He didn’t.
I had two choices. I could fess up to the fact that I’d been too entranced with her brother to listen to what she’d said, or I could deny that fact and just pretend I was totally on board with whatever she’d said.
Denial is always the answer, right?
“Sounds good!” I nodded, not fooling anyone into believing I knew what I’d agreed to.
“Jas, you do realize you just agreed to camping tonight, right?” Dean asked through a grin. His arm draped around my shoulder, pulling me close.
Son of a bitch.
How did he know what they’d been talking about?!
More importantly—why did he let me agree to that?!
I swallowed my shock and tried to play it cool. “Uh huh. Yep. Camping. Totally knew that. I love camping. It’s just so much fun, you know? The best. Who needs electricity, amenities, or running water? Not this girl. Can’t wait!” For the love of all things Kate Spade, somebody stuff a piece of pizza into my mouth before I can say anything else.
Jade snorted a laugh, but she didn’t call my bluff.
Emmett buried his smile by raising his beer for a drink.
Nate narrowed his eyes skeptically, like he was debating whether it was possible for a girl who practically lived in dresses and high heels to actually enjoy camping.
FYI—for this particular city-dwelling, high heel wearing, makeup loving girl, it’s not. I might’ve enjoyed camping out as a kid, but I’d left all my desire to spend a night outdoors in my childhood.
Dean stared at me with unconcealed amusement written across his face. His dimples taunted me, like he was waiting for me to continue digging myself into a deeper hole. I was drowning in the words of my own babbling nonsense, and did he throw me a lifeline?
No. The bastard.
He sat there watching the show with his tree trunk arms crossed over his stupidly perfect chest. After several long, torturous seconds of forcing myself to stop rambling, Dean broke the silence.
“We’ll meet y’all out at Mom and Dad’s in a bit. There’s something we need to do first,” he announced.
Jade made a fake gagging sound. “Oh god. Say no more. I don’t need to hear about my brother’s sexual escapades ever, but especially not when they involve my best friend,” she groaned, waving her hands in the air before cupping them over her ears.
Emmett and Dean both burst into laughter. I should’ve been mortified that everyone at this table now thought we needed some alone time because we had no self-restraint when it came to sex, but my willpower to resist Dean was already dwindling.
I’m such a mess.
Dean finally put a lid on his laughter. “For your information, smart ass, it doesn’t have anything to do with getting your best friend naked. It won’t take long. We’ll meet y’all in an hour or so.”
He took my hand and tugged me to my feet, throwing a wad of cash down on the table and dragging me behind him.
I tried to convince myself the emotion that felt a lot like disappointed confusion was actually relief. If he didn’t want an encore of last night’s sexcapades, what were we doing?
“Meet me back at the apartments? There’s something I need to show you on the way to Mom and Dad’s.”
My brows furrowed. “Dean…” I cautioned. “You know how I feel about surprises.”
“I do. But as your boyfriend I’m asking you to just go with it. Promise you’ll like it.”
“Um, about that…it just sort of came out. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to…” I stopped, not sure where exactly to take the rest of that sentence. I didn’t mean to put you on the spot? I didn’t mean to declare that we’re an actual couple?
But…weren’t we an actual couple?
He shook his head quickly. “Jasmine, don’t apologize. I told you, I’m not going anywhere. A label doesn’t define my feelings for you,” he explained, gently brushing his lips against mine. He brought his forehead to rest on mine and cupped my face between his hands. “I don’t need the boyfriend label if you’re not comfortable with it, but I’ll happily take it if you’re offering.”
Well then.
“You know…I don’t think I’ve ever been more comfortable with the label.” The admission was surprisingly easy to make.
Did we have everything figured out? No.
Did this mean we’d never drive each other crazy? Not a chance.
Was I foolish enough to think we’d have the perfect relationship? Hell no.
Did any of that matter? Nope.
“Jas, we’re going camping for one night, not visiting Paris Fashion Week,” Dean huffed, lugging my two overstuffed duffel bags to the car. “Please tell me there are hiking boots in here, not five pairs of high heels,” he said, eyeing me with doubt.
“Well…you never know what you might need! And no, I did not bring heels, smart ass.”
“You practically sleep in them, it was a valid concern,” he replied.
I lifted up a foot to shake one of my Keds at him. “I love heels. But I’m not crazy enough to wear them while we camp.”
Dean smiled and shook his head. “I think I like you in those more than in heels.”
“What? Why? Heels make it easier to kiss you,” I pointed out.
His eyes swept down to my chest and back up, and his smile broadened when I caught his wandering gaze. “Because you wear tennis shoes when you’re doing something out of your comfort zone, and I like bringing out the adventurer in you. You rock the hell outta heels, babe, but they’re kind of like a safety blanket.”
“Uh huh,” I said, arching a brow skeptically. “So the view of my cleavage has nothing to do with it?”
“That’s just an added bonus,” he said with a smirk.
I sighed and rolled my eyes.
“You’re cute as hell when you’re annoyed with me, you know that?” he asked.
“And you’re just annoying as hell,” I mumbled while he tossed our bags in the back of his Camaro. The low rumble of his laughter forced me to fight back a laugh of my own. And maybe a little bit cute.
After a few minutes in the car and about twenty guesses from me as to where we were going, Dean reached behind my seat for a discarded tie and tossed it at me. “Knew I should’ve blindfolded you from the start. Now I’m thinking I should’ve also gagged you,” he joked. I think. Hard to tell when his eyes were flickering over at me with a lot of heat behind them.
“Fine,” I acquiesced, knotting the silky material behind my head. “But you should know I won’t be the one of us sporting a blindfold later.”
“Goldie, you can blindfold me any time you want,” he offered with an unmistakably lust-filled, gravel
ly voice, like he was currently playing that scene out in his mind.
I was too busy practicing the act of self-restraint for the duration of the drive to realize that we’d turned down the driveway of my childhood home until the series of curves alerted me to our location. I was perplexed as to why we were there, but I decided to wait for Dean’s explanation before firing off a zillion questions.
See, I do occasionally learn my lesson.
He put the Camaro in park before reaching over and removing my makeshift blindfold. The questions about why we were here fell away when I looked up and saw my tree house. My renovated tree house.
My jaw dropped.
I turned to Dean. “What did you…how did you…?”
He looked more apprehensive than I’d ever seen him. The fact that he was nervous about my reaction to his surprise was beyond adorable.
“Nate and Emmett helped. It’s not done. I figured I’d see what else you wanted me to do from this point.”
“Dean, how…?” I tried again, staring out the window at the work he’d done. I threw open the door and turned back to Dean once more. A huge grin spread across my face. “Come on, show me.”
His grin matched my own, and he was out of the car, closing the gap between us before I had time to get more than ten feet from the Camaro.
When we got up close to the tree, I carefully inspected the new ladder that led up to the floor of the tree house’s balcony. I wanted to make a joke about having doubts that it was sturdy enough to support me, but I couldn’t. It was obvious that they’d put too much effort and work into it for me to ruin the moment with a joke.
Instead, I climbed up the ladder until I reached the top, admiring Dean’s work the whole way up. It was impeccable. I’d known the tree house needed renovations for years, but that had always fallen just short of the must get done part of my to-do list.
I reached the top and moved so Dean could step up to the balcony too.
“Dean, I don’t know what to say,” I uttered, running my hands over the smooth new wood in a spot that had once looked ready for the junkyard.