Chapter Twenty

Adam stared at his drink, feeling like a jackass. Jules had been right—things went weird as soon as they got into his truck. He’d known it, and he hadn’t done a damn thing to stop it, not with Quinn’s words still ringing in his ears, joining the chorus of everyone else who’d warned him away from her. Instead of making her comfortable, he’d let the silence draw on, punishing them both for thinking they could do this.

And then Jules had taken matters—and him—into her own hands. She was right—if there was one thing they knew how to do, it was have sex. They’d been doing just fine before becoming official and there was no reason anything had to change.

“You’re thinking awfully hard over there.”

He looked up to find Jules crossing her eyes at him. Adam laughed. “Life is never boring when you’re around, is it?”

“On the contrary, most people think my life is incredibly boring. Or at least proceeding as expected.” Her smile dimmed, but she seemed to make an effort to reclaim it. “But it’s mine, and that’s all anyone can really ask for, right? I like Cups and Kittens and I like my best friend, even if she’s a bit on the antisocial side, and I maybe I don’t have a ton on the horizon when it comes to my love life, but I’m only twenty-six. I’m hardly a spinster that should just swear off the whole thing now—especially since we’ve been running around causing a ruckus. That’s sure to open up some new avenues for me.”

He started to point out that they were, in fact, on a date right now, but the truth slammed into his chest all over again. I’m not what she wants. He’d known it before—it was a truth he hadn’t been able to escape from the very beginning—but somehow hearing her talk about potential prospects while sitting across the table from him made him sick to his stomach. He didn’t want to think about her going out with another guy, or her sharing her goofy smiles with some other dude, or, fuck, her letting someone else between those sweet thighs.

“Adam?”

He realized he was clutching his cloth napkin in a white-knuckled grip. “Yeah, sorry.” He had to get it together. He didn’t have a goddamn right to be jealous of some future guy. He was here with her now, but he wouldn’t be forever. That was his choice.

He just had to remember that.

“Why a cat café?”

She pressed her lips together but seemed to decide it wasn’t worth asking him what the hell was going on in his head. Which was good, because he didn’t fucking know. Jules took a sip of her water. “There have been quite a few studies done that show having a pet—any pet—is enough to combat everything from poor physical health to depression to plain old loneliness. Animals never ask for anything but love, and that’s a gift that a lot of people don’t have in their lives. But not everyone can have a pet of their own for various reasons—which is where I come in.”

It was so…Jules. Loving and thoughtful and kind. “You get a lot of traffic in there.”

“Yep.” She smiled. “Just being able to stop by, have a cup of coffee, and spend some time with a cat curled up in your lap is all some people need to restart their day. The cats love the attention. The people love the cats. And I love making people happy, so it’s win-win across the board.” She frowned. “Or win-win-win. Whatever. You know what I mean.”

“I do.” He’d always wanted a pet—though he was more inclined to dogs than cats—but his life made it hard to have one. There were other guys on the circuit who managed it, but to Adam, dogs represented stability. It wouldn’t be right to have one without a yard or property to let him run free on. Being cooped up in the truck for hours on end, or tied to a fence while he rode…it would just be wrong.

“See. This is nice. We can hold down a conversation.”

He chuckled. “And if the topics stall out, you can always slide on over here and offer up another solution.”

Her face flamed red. “Shh, someone will hear you.”

“I thought that was the whole point.” He couldn’t quite keep the irritation the thought brought out of his voice.

If anything, her blush got deeper. “That’s was before. That’s not what I want now.”

Well, hell, he liked the sound of that. He looked around. El Pollo Delicioso was hardly five stars, but it had cloth napkins and more on the menu than tacos, so they were on a real honest-to-God date. That didn’t mean he was going to stop giving her grief, though. “Come on, sugar. I’ll make you feel good—again.”

“You’re out of control.” She bit her lip. “I like it.”

He felt out of control, like one wrong step would send him hurtling into something that was completely out of his realm of experience. The jealousy from earlier hadn’t abated. If anything, it was getting worse with each passing heartbeat, because he knew this couldn’t last forever. The longer it went on, the more the loss bloomed in the back of his mind. He was going to lose her, and he was only just realizing how much he wanted her.

He didn’t want this to end.

Adam stared across the table at her, the realization a weight in his chest threatening to drown him. He couldn’t tell if it was a good thing or a bad thing. All he knew was that his life would be a sad specter without Jules in it. He opened his mouth to tell her that, but a shadow fell over their table.

“If it isn’t the cute couple.”

For fuck’s sake. Adam sat back and crossed his arms over his chest. “Grant. You know, you and Jules aren’t together anymore—haven’t been for years. Why the hell do you keep showing up every time I turn around? Stalking is frowned upon in these parts—not to mention illegal.”

Grant narrowed his eyes. “Jules and I are friends, aren’t we, Jules?”

“Actually—”

“I just came over to say congratulations. You’ve convinced me.”

“Great.” Adam rolled his eyes. “Of what?”

Grant looked from him to Jules and back again. “That you’re dating. A friend of mine saw you in, shall we say, a compromising position not more than an hour ago on the side of the road like a common—”

Adam felt like the top of his head was going to explode. “Boy, I suggest you don’t finish whatever you were about to say. I’m taking my lady out to a nice dinner, and you’re over here, fucking that shit up. Leave.”

“Yeah, well, I was just going.” Grant turned to leave, muttering, “I could never get her to fuck me in my truck.”

Adam didn’t make a decision to move. One second he was staring at the little pissant’s back, and the next he was on his feet and grabbing Grant’s collar. “Let’s take a walk.”

“Adam!”

He ignored Jules, walking Grant out of the restaurant by his throat and giving him a shake for good measure. “In what world would you think I’m the kind of man to let you talk about my woman like that?” Another shake. “Here’s a hint—I’m not.”

Jules burst through the door. “Adam, stop! Adam, he’s turning purple.”

He tightened his grip on Grant’s neck. “This is the last time I’m going to say this, so I suggest you keep from passing out long enough to hear it. Stay the fuck away from Jules. If you haven’t noticed, she doesn’t like you. She’s too good of a person to say that, but I’m not. You do or say something to hurt her feelings again, and I’ll put you in the fucking hospital.”

He let go. Grant dropped to his knees, clutching his throat.

“What the hell is wrong with you?”

He already knew, before he turned to her, that she wasn’t talking to Grant. Adam growled. “We’re leaving.” He didn’t give her a chance to argue, hooking an arm around her waist and practically carrying her away from her wheezing ex.

They were in the truck when she spoke next. “We just walked out on our bill.”

“I’ll go by tomorrow and take care of it.” There was no way he trusted himself to be within punching distance of Grant. Adam pulled out of the parking lot so fast, the momentum threw Jules against him. He knew he needed to slow down, to calm down, but he couldn’t get himself under control.

It felt like the entire night had been one giant avalanche to this point. He’d known it was coming, but he hadn’t been able to escape it. Jules was too damn good for him, and if she didn’t know it after that clusterfuck, then he was luckier than he deserved.

“Do you trust me?”

She huffed out a breath. “What kind of question is that? Of course I do, even when you’re acting like an idiot.”

“Good.” He turned off the highway, taking a little dirt road that hadn’t gotten much use in high school and didn’t appear to get much now. The truck bumped and shook over the potholes, but eventually spit them out in a field with nothing around for miles. “Come on.” He got out, grabbed the two blankets from beneath his seat, and walked around to lower the tailgate. Jules followed, but she didn’t look too happy with him. He laid the blankets out in the bed of his truck and turned to her. “I’m sorry. I was out of line.”

“You think?” She frowned up at him. “What was that? I know Grant’s an awful person, but he’s not worth getting brought up on assault charges.”

He let go of the steering wheel and realized his hands were shaking. “He shouldn’t have said that about you.”

“You’re right. He shouldn’t. But they’re just words.”

Except he’d seen her face the moment she registered what Grant had said. If there’d just been anger present, maybe Adam could have let it go—maybe—but there had been shame there, too. He reached for her, slowly, giving her time to decide if she’d let him touch her.

Jules didn’t move, allowing him to cup her face. He stroked her cheekbones with his thumbs. “I don’t want you to regret what we’ve done. There’s no shame in any of it.”

“Guess I can’t be scandalous without seeing some negative effects, huh?”

He shook his head. “Take everyone else out of the equation. Do you regret what we’ve done?”

“I…” She sighed. “No. I’ve managed to become a town scandal, at least temporarily. It’s going to change the way people look at me, and that’s something. These last couple of weeks with you…I’ll always look back on them fondly.” Her smile was a little bittersweet. “Though I think I’ll keep most of this out of the stories I’ll tell my grandbabies one day. They’re not exactly appropriate for tiny ears.”

There it was again—the ever-present reminder that this thing between them wouldn’t last forever. The knowledge that there would be another man Jules would fall in love with, a man who’d put a ring on her finger and who’d be there in the delivery room with her when she delivered their children. A man who’d get to spend the rest of his life by her side.

And it wouldn’t be Adam.

His chest clenched so tightly, he couldn’t draw a full breath. So he did the only thing he could think of.

He kissed her.