Chapter 24

“Dessert?” he gestures at me with a questioning brow. I shake my head; I’ve drunk too much wine, am feeling tipsy now, and need to get out of here. I need coffee.

“Back to the grind, Bella.” He offers me his hand as I get up, tossing my napkin on the empty plate. I take his hand without hesitation and let him pull me with him, then immediately wonder when this stopped being weird when we started holding hands so casually.

How often have I let Jake touch me without repulsion coursing through me? Or questioning it?

I walk behind him, contemplating this fact, staring at our loosely joined fingers. It’s become something as familiar as being around him now. Maybe it is just the nature of our relationship: platonic and safe. We are real friends.

The innuendos about sex, the best friend comments, and wife jokes are frequent, but I know it is all play. Jake is never anything but a complete gentleman, minus the manhandling, but even that is not so bad. I’ve never had