He pouts. “Do you always have to make things so hard on me?”
“I don’t know. Do I?” My question is asked with every sexual innuendo in mind.
He gets the joke and laughs out loud.
I lean my head back as the jets push against my back, relieving the tension I didn’t even know I was holding.
He wraps his hand around my foot and pulls it onto his leg, massaging the pad.
“A girl could get used to this,” I sigh and close my eyes. With my hands floating on the water, I let the bubbles pop under my palms as I take in the peaceful feeling surrounding me. Nothing but the crickets in the background and the hum of the jets fill the air.
“What are you thinking about?” he asks.
“How peaceful this is,” I respond without having to think.
“Yeah, I’ve always liked it out here.”
“I meant, with you.”
My admission has me popping my eyes open. It’s my truth, yet saying it out loud makes me feel awkward and vulnerable.
I sit up a little, but he squeezes my foot, relaxing me.
“I’m happy when I’m with you too, Lace.”
My face heats as I look at him. His hair is wet, slicked back with his fingers. His skin is glistening in the soft glow of the lights. He comes off as ethereal. A beautiful man massaging your feet in a hot tub is something women dream about. If I stare at him too long, I’ll never want to wake up.
Leaning my head back, I stare up at the sky. It’s a pitch-black night with every star illuminated.
“Wow,” I breathe. “You don’t get this in Chicago.”
“The queen is out tonight,” he says, making my eyes gaze over to him. “Cassiopeia. You can see it easily. Just find the Big Dipper—”
“I have no idea where that is.”
Jake’s jaw falls. “Baby, we have to get you a tutorial on the stars. Come here.”
He motions with his finger for me to join him on his side of the tub. I swim-walk over, taking a seat beside him, and he swings an arm around my shoulder, pulling me in.
We lean back, and he takes my hand, lifting it up to the sky and using it as a pointer. “The Big Dipper rotates around the North Star. At any time of the year, you can use the Big Dipper to find Cassiopeia. They’re like riders on opposite sides of a Ferris wheel.”
“How so?”
“They’re part of the spinning wheel of stars that move around the North Star. Cassiopeia rises up while the Big Dipper plunges down.” He moves my hand to the place where the star formations are in the sky. “That W-shape is Cassiopeia.”
“You know, there is something inherently romantic in the stars. I bet this queen was so beloved by her people to have been placed there.”
“Um, no. Long story short, she was incredibly vain. Went to the seashore and told Poseidon, god of the sea, that she was more beautiful than his wife and all his daughters. Pissed him off. Then, she went to Hera, queen of the gods, and said the same thing to her. Hera grabbed some rope, tied Cassiopeia in her throne, and launched her so high in the sky that she got stuck upside down. Hera pretty much shouted, ‘You think you’re beautiful? Now, you can show the whole world for all of eternity!’ And now, she does. Just upside down and tied to her chair.”
I let out an awkward laugh. “That’s horrible. I thought constellations and stories of the gods all had romantic meanings.”
“This one still does.” He taps my nose and looks back up at the sky. “Cassiopeia’s husband was so grief-stricken when he heard about what had happened to her that he asked Zeus to send him to the sky with his wife. Like a good friend, Zeus did, flinging Cepheus right next to his wife.” Jake points to the left of the W-shaped stars and says, “They’re still clinging to each other. Cepheus kinda looks like a stick house that children draw.”
“I see it!” I say way too loudly when I map out the stars he’s talking about. I turn my head slightly, so I can see him. “You’re really smart, Jake.”
“I wouldn’t say that. But when I like something, I study it well.”
“What do you like? Other than stars and flowers, of course.”
“What do I like?” He taps his chin, as if pensively thinking. “Good wine. A great book.” He winks, and I roll my eyes. “Clothes. Now, I know my dad teases me about this, but I really do appreciate a finely made shirt. Music. I follow a lot of underground artists around the city. And most importantly”—he places his finger under my chin and tilts my head, so our lips align perfectly—“I like you.”
“Does that mean you study me?”
“Daily.”
His lips are warm as they place the softest of caresses against mine. My skin prickles with gooseflesh as his mouth lowers to my jaw and sucks lightly when he moves to the tender skin on the side of my neck.
“You’re an introvert, but when you let someone into your world, you light up the darkest rooms.” He stops kissing me and looks in my eyes, as if his words shouldn’t be overlooked by his actions. “I mean that. You hide behind your computer, but when you step outside of your walls, you’re witty and entertaining. You’re bright, and I haven’t had this much fun, just talking to a woman, in a long time.” His tone is deep, and his face is serious.
My heart stills, as does my breath, at his very sweet words. It’s not just what he said. It’s how he said it. He stares into my eyes. I feel the heat of his gaze, and I know there are more words he wants to say, but he’s holding back. Not because of his own insecurities, but because of mine.
“So, you like me for
