Naughty Neighbor - Lauren Runow Page 0,79
who was my neighbor. This is all too easy. It’s as if he’s giving me an out. If I want to end things, then he’ll let me, and he won’t make it awkward.
I should be grateful. Yes, I’m happy with this turn of events.
Taking my flowers, I thank him again and then smile at his friends. That’s what normal people do.
I turn around and head toward the door, pushing it open and hearing that bell chime.
Then, it hits me.
This is all wrong.
We’re not friends. We’re not casual. And we certainly aren’t cordial.
We’re fire and ice and everything in between.
“I’m rewriting my book,” I say with my back still to him.
Closing the door, I turn around and see he’s looking up at me. A pen is in his hand, like he was about to get back to working on his friend’s arrangement.
They’ll have to wait.
“The ending wasn’t right, so I’m revising it,” I say.
Kent turns to Sydney. “Um, maybe we should come back, let them have their time.”
Sydney shushes him. “Are you kidding? Once Jake told us about her, I read her books. I need to know how this one ends.”
I can’t help the slight laugh that escapes my lips.
Jake leans back on his heels and crosses his arms in front of his body. “Oh yeah?” He seems intrigued. “How does it end this time?”
“Well …” My hands fiddle with the flowers I’m holding. The cellophane crinkles with every push of my fingers. “She walks into his flower shop and buys a bouquet of flowers. Daisies, to be exact, because he once told her they were the best way to show your love.” I turn to Kent and Sydney and explain, “They’re actually made of two flowers—the yellow middle is one, and the white outer ring is another. Together, they become one.”
I take a sure, steady breath and walk closer to Jake. “You see, she was wrong. It’s not the longevity of the relationship that makes it more likely for the couple to have true love. It’s the depth. It is lust and great sex and witty banter and laughs. It’s listening to the other when they open up to you and being there when they need a friend.” I step forward. “It’s showing up at his place of work and making a complete fool of yourself because you’re sorry for acting the way you did.”
The air in the room feels ripe with tension as I stare at Jake while his eyes travel over my face, searching for something.
“So, the ending to your book,” he says, “she walks into the shop because she knows all of these things, but what does she tell the hero?” He looks to Sydney and winks. “That’s me, by the way.”
I’d roll my eyes if I wasn’t so damn determined to get this guy to realize how serious I was about him. He’s not making it easy though.
“She could say …” I pause and swallow, looking up to him. Then, I say with conviction, “I haven’t changed my view on if a forever kind of love exists because the past hasn’t been kind. However, I can’t deny how truly, madly, deeply in love I am with you, and I’m willing to lay it all out and see where this love takes us. Because I’d rather be scared and in your arms than safe and lonely because you’re gone.”
His mouth rises in a genuine smile as he lays his hands on the counter and asks, “Is that all?”
Jeez, he’s not going to let me off at all. I have many more things I should say. A thousand things I feel. But I’m wiser than he thinks.
With a lift of my chin, I say, “Then, she asks him to tell her how he feels. I didn’t know what to write, so I thought I’d ask you for some input.”
Seeming intrigued, he nods with a grimace as he looks down. “Interesting. You know, she did break his heart pretty bad. Everyone saw how in love she was with him, except for her.” He turns to Sydney. “Even her best friend was on his side.”
Jake stands tall and slowly walks around the counter. “His sister, however, gave him a task. She told him to read the books. So, he did. He read all of her self-published romances with an open mind, and an open heart.”
“You really read them all?” I ask, dumbfounded.
“I did. Well, the hero did, and he’s exhausted. Stayed up way too late last night, reading the last