Page 387 of Seasons of Love
“This is too much. I never thought I’d see you again—”
The sound of keys in the door stopped Jake.
“Babe, are you in? Guess who forgot his papers, just like you—”
Mal stopped by the archway that divided the kitchen from the rest of the house.
He looked at Jake and then at me. I didn’t need to be a mind reader to see the confusion in his eyes, the hurt in his body language, and the desire he was desperately trying to hide.
6
MAL
When I realized I’d left some papers at home, several options came to mind.
The first was that I could just work from home for the rest of the day. After that thought, more options came to mind.
Wait for Griff to come home and take him out to dinner.
Cook Griff a nice dinner…naked, of course.
Pick out a random sex scene from one of his books and reenact it later tonight. That option seemed to be compatible with all the other options, so I’d decided it was definitely happening.
What I had not expected when I got home was to see my husband and Jake sitting at the breakfast counter, with a coffee cup in hand, looking like they belonged there together.
Griff’s loving smile as I turned the corner toward the kitchen had the same effect on me as on the very first day we’d met. It took my breath away.
Jake turned around slowly. His anxiety was clear in the way he gripped the coffee cup and his frame tensed.
“Hi,” I said after what felt like a lifetime.
Griff came over to give me a small kiss. “Would you like a coffee?”
“Sure,” I said. “Did you finish your manuscript?”
He groaned and pulled away. I grabbed his arm to pull him back to me.
“What’s the matter?”
He gave me a look that said, tell you later, so I gave him a soft kiss on the lips and let him go.
“So, Jake, what brings you here?” I said, trying my best to be nonchalant.
He was still looking down at his now-empty coffee cup as Griff handed me mine. I took a sip and leaned against the counter. As if he knew I needed him there, Griff leaned right against my side.
“Jake was looking after the roses in the front garden when I got back. Did you know Annie planted them years ago?” Griff said.
Jake looked at Griff and then at me. The uncertainty in his eyes made him look so much younger than his twenty-nine years.
“Actually,” Jake said, speaking for the first time. “I wasn’t here just for the roses. I mean, I was, but not just…um, I came here before…”
“You did? When?” Griff asked.
“The day after the lunch at my uncle’s place. I wanted to talk to you, but then…” he trailed off and looked down at his cup again.
“But then you didn’t know how to do it,” I said, finishing his thought for him.
“Yeah. I mean, this whole thing is weird, right?” He sighed. “I don’t know, I just felt awkward, so I left and then came back a couple of times, but you weren’t here. Today I got distracted by the roses, so I guess I was caught.” He laughed.
