want him to know I lived next door—maybe he was too much temptation for me, except that would be ridiculous.
Regardless, I didn’t want him to know. At least not yet.
“Do you read his stuff?” Gavin asked, putting his hand on my shoulder and moving me out of his way.
“No,” I told him truthfully. But I did remember hearing about him, which explained why he’d seemed so familiar. “I thought I recognized him.”
“He’s quite the celebrity around here,” Gavin explained, nodding toward Jake, who was now being slipped a piece of paper, which I assumed had a phone number on it—yep, definitely just like a rock star. “Especially since his movie premiered.”
My neighbor was a famous author. Huh.
“So, you’ve put him on the spot before?” I asked.
“Damn straight,” Gavin confirmed.
“Looks like he enjoys it.” I watched Jake chat it up with a few women, his lips curled up in a way that made me think of hot, sweaty sex.
“No, not at all,” Gavin said softly. “He’s quite shy, actually. I just like to ruffle his feathers.”
“Really?” I wouldn’t have guessed that Jake was shy. How could he be when it was clear people—namely women—obviously loved him?
A man approached Gavin, talking about an idea for a painting, and I stepped back out of the way, giving them room. I went over to the small booth that Gavin used to take payments and get mailing information. He had brought along a small propane heater, which I would definitely be utilizing since he’d had the forethought to set it up a few yards away. I could help and stay warm, without risking being turned into a fireball thanks to all the spray paint.
After familiarizing myself with everything, I hopped up on the wooden counter and watched Gavin work. A few minutes later, Jake made his way over, casually leaning against the post beside me.
I studied him momentarily. “So, you’re famous, huh?”
Those pretty eyes lifted to mine and I noticed the long dark lashes that ringed them. He really was attractive. Hell, he could’ve been a male model if the writing thing didn’t work out, but I figured he already knew that based on the trail of drooling women he left behind him.
“I’m not sure I’d go that far,” he said, voice low, gruff.
“Could’ve fooled me. Those women were quite excited to meet you.”
“They would’ve never recognized me if Gavin didn’t have a big mouth.”
I wasn’t so sure about that. Now that I knew who he was, I definitely remembered where I’d seen him. That handsome face had been plastered all over the news when they’d been making that movie, a few of the scenes shot right here in Austin. “Maybe not, but it doesn’t make it any less true. So how did you meet Gavin?”
Jake glanced down at his phone, then pulled his hood up over his head before changing positions, moving around to my other side and leaning back against the counter, crossing his arms over his chest. When I’d seen him in the coffee shop, I hadn’t noticed how big he was, probably because he’d been sitting down. He was on the very tall side, a couple of inches over six feet if I had to guess. To my five foot two, that was big.
“I met him here,” Jake said. “Well, technically at another location a block down, where he’d been set up. We’ve hung out a few times in the past year.”
“Really?” I glanced over at Gavin, who was currently going to town on another painting, completely in his element. Funny how my best friend had been hanging out with a celebrity for a year, yet he’d never mentioned it.
“And you? How do you know him?”
I smiled at the memory. “I beat him up in the third grade. We’ve been friends ever since.”
Jake’s rough chuckle made me cross my legs, the sound sending a strange shiver of awareness just beneath my skin. Not that I had any intention of doing anything about that, but I couldn’t deny that he made me very aware of how close he was standing, of how good he smelled.
We sat there in silence for a while, both of us watching Gavin, until a woman approached and I had to help her with a payment. I took the woman’s information down, ran her credit card, and told her the painting she’d purchased would be shipped out on Monday first thing.
Another couple came over and I helped them as well. By the time I was finished, I looked