Chapter 141

The hotel restaurant is bustling despite the earliness of the day. Daniel was quick to invite a leggy
blonde beauty to join us for breakfast and is currently trying to feed the poor bimbo strawberries,
managing to drop most into her exposed cleavage and fish them out manually. It’s cringe worthy. Jake
watches him with a serious frown creasing his brow and he eye rolls every time Daniel swoops in for
another berry. We both know he’s using the girl as padding, so Jake won’t bring Leila, up again. That
sweet bundle of blonde, Daniel is hopelessly in love with. Jake has pretty much got nowhere with him
on that front.

The girl giggles hopelessly, pretending to be embarrassed but the look on her face shows she isn’t shy
about it at all. Jake looks down and starts flicking through his phone with one hand, answering
messages from his little brother, coffee held in the other while I eat my pancakes beside him. We’ve
been here around a half hour and conversation has been strained. Jake stuck on wanting to talk and
Daniel doing his absolute best to make it impossible.

I’m tired today, happy to sit in silence and eat while Jake’s beside me, absorbed in Arrick, on his cell
and Daniel’s acting like a complete sleaze in a five-star hotel’s dining room.

I catch the girl throwing a flirty look Jake’s way for the fiftieth time as Daniel’s mouth heads back to her
cleavage, my inner rage washing over me. It’s obvious that despite being Daniel’s date and allowing
him to eat food from her boobs she has the hots for Jake and a hope he might be interested.

My Jake … My man!

I glare at her coolly, wondering if stabbing a fake breast with a fork would cause an explosion of silicon.
I’m hardly able to conceal my jealousy as I stare at her across the table, yet she seems completely
oblivious or just doesn’t care. Jake’s movement catches my eye, he puts his cup down, scratches his
chin absent mindedly, stretches out his jaw in such a typically male way, his eyes still glued to his
phone, unaware of the devastating effect any of his little macho mannerisms have on the female



population. I catch her staring openly at him, her lips parting, her eyes growing heavy with desire. The
anger inside me snaps finally and I throw down my fork and stand up fast.

“I’m going to the bathroom.” I smile tightly, voice laced with venom. Jake’s questioning look comes to
meet me, seeing the direction of my glare, he looks across and catches the she devil’s lusty focus on
him. She has the nerve to bite her lip and wink, Daniel’s face fully buried in her bust.

Ugghh.

Jake turns back to me quickly with a raised eyebrow and I smile as if to say ‘yup’ before I turn to leave
but he catches me by the wrist, yanks me down toward his face and hits me with a jaw dropping kiss
that’s a bit too steamy for a morning breakfast table. It makes my knees go weak and I almost end up
in his lap, my face flushing with heat at having to grab his upper arms to steady myself. Releasing me
finally, I’m left panting, he smacks my ass firmly and loudly as I attempt to walk off, pulling a shocked
giggle from me. Jake’s devilish smile and wink, claiming his territory and sending the other girl a clear
message.

Not interested, sister!

A glance back shows he’s smirking to himself but fully focused back on his phone while the busty girl is
more than a little annoyed. She looks utterly disgusted. My inner Emma swells with satisfaction, he’s no
idea how much what he just did made me love him even more. Only Jake could understand what I had
needed in that moment, even if it was ridiculous.

It’s why he’s perfect for me. All my crazy fucked-up-ness and all.

On my return, I find Jake arguing with Daniel over some sport, something to do with the New York
Yankees no doubt. The girl is staring at the plate in front of her, oozing boredom now Daniel has lost
interest in her “assets” and Jake’s given her zero attention. I slide down beside him, instantly smiling as
his arm comes around my shoulders, pulling me over to him, he shifts in his chair so that he can stay



this way, me nestled in and continues talking to Daniel. I take a moment to look the bimbo up and down
and catch her doing the same to me. She’s wondering what I have that she doesn’t. She’s wondering
how someone like me has managed to pull Jake Carrero into an actual relationship. I smirk at her with
malice and turn my face into his shoulder to snuggle in. A huge surge of satisfaction at her expression
and the sheer envy she isn’t even trying to conceal.

“Emma could knock one out better than him.” Jake’s voice breaks into my inner dialogue and I look up
at him in confusion, he’s talking to Daniel about baseball still. “Guy hits worse than a girl.” Jake motions
for the waitress to refill the coffee mugs and sits back as she leans over to do so.

“You’re clueless. Just stick with jumping out of perfectly good airplanes and leave the baseball to real
men.” Daniel swipes his mug and starts downing the refill. I move to the side as the waitress leans in to
fill mine up with a gentle smile.

“You wouldn’t know how to be a real man even if Emma wrote you a checklist.” Jake leans out and
flicks Daniel on the forehead, Daniel’s delayed batting of his hand misses it entirely.

“Leave me out of this.” I shove Jake’s elbow playfully, catching his animated expression, he’s entering
childish Carrero mode and Daniel has no chance against that.

“Emma is way more man than you, Jake. Maybe get some pointers for yourself, I bet she talks sports
better than you do too.” He slides his mug back on the table and barely glances toward bimbo, she’s
making motions as if to get up. No one acknowledges her.

“I honestly don’t know anything about sports and trust me, he’s all man.” I smile adoringly at Jake. “You,
on the other hand …” I throw him a questioning look and smirk. Jake laughs heartily.

“Meaning?” Daniel’s retorts in defensive mode.



“Real men don’t sleep with girls they obviously have feelings for then leave them hanging.” Jake
interjects on my behalf, almost in tune with exactly what I was about to say.

“Pot, kettle, black!” Daniel frowns at Jake, his stubbornness veils his face.

“Okay, I admit, I fucked-up when it came to Emma but look where we are now. Man up, Daniel. Leila
isn’t always going to be available; some guy will swoop in while you’re busy chasing your own ass.”
Jake leans back in his chair, one arm draped across my back, so he can stroke my shoulder and the
other on the table, sprawled down in his seat casually.

Daniel sits up and tenses.

“Look, can we drop this?” Daniel rolls his eyes toward the bimbo, like she matters, and both Jake and I
smile in unison. Neither of us believe she cares; she’s absorbed in her phone with a face that pretty
much says she’s oblivious to anything we’re talking about. Disinterested.

“I’ll drop it when I know you’ve at least called her and groveled. She deserves more; you know it as well
as I do. You know her story.” Jake is fed up, sits back as his hand runs across my back. Daniel just
seems evasive.

“I will … When I figure out what to say to her,” Daniel mumbles and everyone is alerted to bimbo’s
leaving with the scrape of her chair and dramatic hair toss aimed at Daniel’s face. Daniel sees it as an
excuse to evade more interrogation and offers to walk her out. She doesn’t acknowledge us as he
guides her out, just a moody glare and she’s off. I have to admit, I do feel a little bit guilty that we were
just the most awful breakfast companions, but then she did spend most of it eye-raping my boyfriend.

“Do you think he’ll call her?” I ask when they’re gone, the look on Jake’s face says it all and I bristle in
anger.



“It is what it is,” he says tightly, still looking across the restaurant. “Daniel’s messed up in the head
when it comes to women; thank his mother for that. Leila is caught up with a guy who’s too afraid to
feel anything for her and too in love with her to stay away.” He puts down his mug without taking a drink
and picks up his phone instead, his little habit making itself known. Jake fidgets with things when he’s
being evasive, when something is really bothering him.


62fb1bb41dcb31934bd49bda