He smirks and gives me a funny look. “So you said you gave up your dream to travel. Where did you want to go?”
I dive in and tell him about my Paris dreams, of eating a scone and baguette on a cute little street with flowers in my hair and a French cigarette between my fingers. “Not that I would actually smoke it. I just feel like it completes the vision.” We laugh, and I find myself opening up to him about my father cutting me off financially. “He calls maybe once a month, I think, to make sure I’m still alive. But I’ll never forget what he said the last time I saw in person. Said I ain’t nothing but a black hoe statistic.”
“Fuck the type of man who could say that to his daughter.” Jake curses. “I’d like to beat the shit out of him.”
He moves his arm to rest besides me on the couch, and without realizing what I’m doing my hand reaches out to trace a thick, black tattoo that swirls from his hand to his biceps. He draws in a breath and I pull back, but a strong hand grabs mine and puts it back on his arm where I can feel his muscles bulge beneath the skin. I squirm against the couch as his fingers close around my wrist.
Just a few hours ago I was cursing this particular Kennedy brother, but now all I want to do is find out how the rest of his skin would feel beneath my touch. His clear blue eyes meet mine, and I realize he is going to be a lot more complicated than I initially expected.
Chapter Five
Jake Kennedy’s right arm circles around my shoulders, his fingertips tracing the top of my blouse. It makes me shiver, but I don’t want to move.
“Remy,” He says, and I want to hear my name on his lips again. Jake locks eyes with me and opens his mouth as another door slams shut. We both jump to our feet while putting distance between us as Emmet casually strolls in. He notices us and takes a double take before smiling pleasantly.
“I was worried I’d find the two of you in a wrestling match. This is unexpected.” He hands a folder to Jake who opens it. “I went ahead and got a few character testimonies from Miss Lewis’ coworkers, and a record of her employment. She’s never called off in over a year, and comes in about eighty percent of the time that someone else calls in sick.”
Jake nods, his eyes glancing over at me.
“Thank you.” I turn to Emmet. His eyes are even lighter with the soft gray sweater he wears, and dark slacks compliment his shiny business shoes. Even with the thick fabric the muscles on his arms are still visible and I force myself to look at his face. Which also isn’t a hard thing to do. “I didn’t even think to bring a copy of that.”
“I wanted a convincing argument. Shall we take a seat?” He gestures to the couches as Jake hands him back the folder and shakes his head.
“She keeps her job.” He says.
“And what we talked about earlier?” Emmet raises his eyebrows.
“Yeah, that’s fine.” Jake crosses his arms.
Emmet sighs in relief and turns back to me.
“Somehow you and I both have not only managed to convince Jake to keep your job, but we also wanted to offer you a raise. An extra ten thousand a year.” He tells me. I cover my mouth with my hands and take a seat behind me.
“What? Why?” I say between my fingers. An extra ten thousand? That would cover the rest of my tuition easily.
“You’ve done an incredible job at the restaurant. David and all your coworkers vouched for you, saying you bring in the most tips. Honestly, I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone as dedicated as you are.” Emmet turns to Jake and suggests he adds something but his twin merely shrugs.
“You’re saying it all.” He mutters.
Emmet kneels in front of me and puts a hand on my knee. I gasp lightly, squeezing my thighs together so he doesn’t see the effect he’s giving me.
“Thank you.” I whisper. Emmet praises me even more, but I can barely understand anything. Instead I’m watching his mouth as he speaks, fascinated by his heart shaped lips. I notice a tiny dimple when he smiles, and I glance over to Jake to see if he has one as well. But Jake is scowling and watching Emmet intently, and as our eyes meet he straightens his face and looks away. But I can’t help but feel his usual animosity in the air towards me, despite our bonding not that long ago.
“We decided to stay a bit longer.” Emmet finally says. “There’s a building we’re looking at to open the second Kennedy’s about an hour away, and the negotiations are taking longer than expected so we’re going to be visiting the restaurant a few more times.”
“Hopefully you can manage to not ruin a paying customers’ dinner and actually show us why so many people are impressed by you, because I’m certainly not.” Jake says. I bite my tongue from a response, knowing how thin the ice is with him.