Chapter 21

I’m sitting across from Jake at Eleven Madison Park, a bustling popular restaurant and his current favorite, watching him mess with his cell while we wait for our food.

“Jake?” I interrupt gently.

“Emma?” he responds without looking up. He’s deliberately being evasive.

“The Hunter merger?” My curiosity has been niggling at me all the way here, and I have been extremely patient. He sighs, puts his cell inside his jacket, and brings his steady green gaze back to me, his face unreadable.

“My father and Hunter are not what you would call the best of friends anymore,” he mumbles quietly, sighing that he can’t avoid this explanation any longer.

“Anymore?” I repeat flatly.

“Yes, Emma, anymore. They used to be as close as Daniel and I are.” He leans back, sliding down into his chair a little, and shifts his feet to cage mine on either side under the table, our upper ankles connecting slightly. Jake is a toucher; he always has to have some contact. It no l