Heartstopper(26)

"You said dress like a princess, and when I dress up, I go all out," Roxy says. "So thank you."

I go around to my side and get in, still so drawn by her looks that she  has to clear her throat and give me a raised eyebrow. "I hope you didn't  mean just getting dressed up to sit in the parking lot and make out. I  don't do back seats. Well, not anymore anyway."

Her joke breaks my paralysis and sends blood to my cock, and I grin. The  back seat-that sounds fun. But I turn my attention back to the road.  "You'll see."

The drive takes a while. When I told her not to worry, I made sure of  it. She's giving me a look when we pull up and I hand my keys to the  valet. "What's this place?"

"An exclusive, private members-only restaurant," I tell her, leading her  through the plain, unmarked door. "We're totally safe here."

The maître d' checks my ID against the reservation list and seats us. As  we make our way through the small, ten-table place, Roxy stops. "Is  that . . . no way."

I glance over, seeing who she's talking about. "Kevin? Yeah, he's a  member. Now, one of the rules is that everyone in here is equal, so he's  just a guy."

"Okay," she says uncertainly. We sit down, and she looks around. "Wow. The decor here . . ."

"Is what gives the place class. This is one of those places where you  get what the chef prepares. You just have to trust his judgment. But I  checked the menu, and we're getting surf and turf with matching wines.  So enjoy."

"Thank you," Roxy says, sipping her water. "So, Jake-"

"You can ask me anything you want," I say, cutting her off. "Come on, I  can see it in your eyes. You've got a thousand and one questions about  me. Now's the time for them."

"Well, okay," Roxy says, blushing. I understand. We've been having sex  for weeks, and while I know a lot about her, she's not heard my story as  much as she might like. "Well, you told me about your sister and how  she came to live with you, but . . . well, you don't strike me as a rich  boy."

"I'm not, if you mean whether I inherited my money," I tell her. "My  mother came from a rich family. But she met and fell in love with my  dad, who was a working-class guy. They defied my grandfather to get  married in Vegas, and there were a lot of hard feelings for a long  time."

"Hard feelings?" Roxy asks, and I laugh.

"Well, actually, hard feelings as in a fist fight between my father and  grandfather." I chuckle. "They buried the hatchet after I was born, but  Dad was stubborn. He never let my grandfather shower me with gifts or  anything like that. He did let Grandpa set up a college fund for me and  for Sophie, and of course, his name helped open some doors."

Roxy nods. "Sounds like John, my stepfather. When he and my mom got  together, I could have just mooched off him, but I had some good role  models. I mean, after my biological dad died, Mom had to make it on her  own for a long time. It taught me to be independent. What about you?  What drives you?"

"Sophie," I say immediately. "Our parents died just after I finished  college, and it pushed me. I mean, Dad always made sure I knew what a  real day's work was. I did plenty of afternoons splitting logs for the  fireplace, mowing lawns, stuff like that. But when I was literally a  month after graduation and suddenly, I've got a little sister to take  care of . . . it made me grow up a lot faster."

Roxy's eyes tear up, and I tilt my head, worried. "Are you okay?"         

     



 

She nods. "Just . . . I can hear it in your voice. You miss your parents."

I stop and have to look down at the table. She's right. "There are times  I don't like thinking about it. I try not to remember the hard times. I  just try to remember the stuff they taught me. My dad taught me how to  be a man. My mom . . . well, if I'm not a total asshole, that's her  doing."

"Well thank you, Mrs. Stone, then," Roxy says. "Because I think you're anything but an asshole. Most of the time."

I laugh. "Most of the time."

"Oh, yeah. You know, if you want to meet an asshole, you should see my  boss. Always making demands of me in the supply room, calling me into  his office . . . total asshole."

I chuckle. Our food comes, and it's as delicious as I expected. As she  chews the last bite of her seared scallop, she sets her knife and fork  down, looking directly at me. "Jake, thank you for letting me in more."

I reach across, taking her hand. "You're worth it. You're pretty special, you know that, right?"

She blinks. I know I touched her, and it takes her a moment before she  grins. "Yeah, well, you just remember that or else I'll break a high  heel off in your ass!"

I laugh. "Come on, time for dessert."

"Wait, we're not having dessert here?"

"No, the real dessert," I tell her, taking her by the hand again. We  drive to Club Jasmine, where I lead her in through the back.

"Here we are."

"What's this?" she asks, eyeing the door that has a star with her name  emblazoned across the center. It hasn't quite dawned on her yet.

"Open the door and you'll see."

She looks at me, looking like her heart is suddenly racing, and opens  the door. The breath escapes her lungs as the door swings open. "Ooh."

We step into her new dressing room. It's equipped with a high chair,  mirrors, a professional vanity for hair and makeup, and a clothing rack  that is already filled with show dresses. "I checked your size and got  you an entire wardrobe. Of course, you can pick and choose what you  want. Roxy, you may not be a star yet, but you will be, and you're  already a star in my eyes."

"Oh, Jake . . ." she says as tears fill her eyes. "How?"

"I had the crew paint and do all this during the day so I could surprise  you. It only took them two days. I couldn't wait to show it to you."

"Oh, my God," she whispers. She turns and pulls me into a tight embrace. "This is so sweet of you."

"Wait, that isn't all," I tell her. "I have better news."

Roxy pulls back, staring at me. "Don't fuck with me. How can it get any better?"

I tell her about Nathan's call and the talent scout coming Saturday, and  her jaw drops. "You're kidding, right?" I shake my head. "I can't  believe it."

"Believe it, darling, because it's happening. You've got a shot."

She presses back up against me, a tear escaping down her cheek. "Jake,  all this . . . but what I want-I want to be with you. Your girl, and  none of this hiding in clubs or private dinner restaurants, even if the  food was orgasm-worthy. I don't want to abide by the rules."

In this moment, I want to give her everything she wants. The whole  world. I nod, pulling her close and kissing her tenderly on the lips.  "You are my girl. But we still have to try to play by the rules in the  office, at least for a little while longer. At least while you're  working there."

Roxy looks at me with hope in her eyes. "Oh, my God, do you think it can happen?"

"I know it can. I have faith in you."

She shakes her head, tears swimming in her eyes. "I . . . I don't know  how to thank you. You've done so much for me. Thank you so much." Roxy  swallows, then wraps her arms around my neck.

She kisses me on the lips, and I pull her close. "You are more than  welcome. Now blow their minds so I never have to see your ass around the  office again."

She grins, giving my ass a squeeze. "That'll be one thing that'll suck  about getting a deal. I won't be seeing your cute ass around the office  either."

"Nope," I say, patting her ass back. "But you'll get to see more of it."

"Then they won't know what fucking hit ‘em."





Chapter 18





Roxy





"Your own dressing room?" Hannah asks in disbelief as we step inside.  She looks around, her eyes going to the clothes rack. "Whoa. This is  fucking amazing."         

     



 

It's Saturday, and my nerves are frazzled. I'm trying to get ready to  perform. Except this time, the stakes are higher. I couldn't believe  when Jake told me about the scout. This is all happening so fast that I  feel like my head's spinning.

Hannah is in shock too. "It's gorgeous!"

"Isn't it?" I say dreamily. "I still can't believe Jake had all of this done for me."

"Hmm," Hannah says, tapping her lips, her eyes flashing.

"What?" I ask.

"Nothing, I'm just not surprised at all. Have you seen the number of  people who are packing in here to see you?" She turns around, checking  out the rack of dresses, and I can tell that she thinks there's more to  it than that. She's just giving me time to come out with it.

My phone buzzes, and I see it's Mindy. I'd texted her about my show. "Hey, it's my sister."