“On the rocks?”
“Of course.”
Mark waved to attract their waitress’s attention while Jake moved to make room for her on his side of the booth. After a moment’s hesitation she slid in next to him. The booths were small and her leg bumped his, and the slight contact was enough to send her pulse racing.
“So how’s the website coming?” Mark asked. “I love your ideas so far, and the sample pages you sent. Do you need any more photos or anything from us?”
“No, I’m good. The site’s just about finished. I was going to call tomorrow to set up a meeting.”
“That sounds great.”
She and Mark did most of the talking for the next few minutes. Jake didn’t say much, but she was acutely aware of him next to her. He was wearing jeans and a black tee shirt and even though the shirt was clean he must have come from work, because he smelled very faintly of metal and engine oil.
It was an extremely masculine scent, and it made her think of Jake with tools in his hands, fixing things…
She lost her place in the conversation with Mark. She glanced at Jake and saw that he was looking at her, and the sight of his blue eyes so close made her breath hitch in her throat.
The waitress came by to clear their dishes and Mark handed her his empty glass. “I’m going to head home,” he said, standing up and pulling out his wallet. “You guys should stay, though. Erin, if you can hold out for another ten minutes, the Cubs game should be over and you can make sure Jake isn’t too blinded by tears to drive home.”
That made her smile. “I didn’t think he and his dad actually cried about the Cubs until at least July.”
“It’s gotten worse over the years. Now they start during spring training.”
As soon as Mark left Erin slid out of the booth and sat down across from Jake, pulling her mug of root beer to her side of the table. She felt a little more poised once his big body wasn’t looming beside her, but now that it was just the two of them the conversation stalled. She took a drink of root beer and glanced up at the TV. The Cubs’ pinch hitter had just grounded out to the short stop.
“They’re losing fourteen to two,” she said.
“Yeah.”
“I can’t convince you to root for another team? The Twins? The Brewers? Anybody?”
He shook his head. “I’ve been a Cubs fan for thirty years. I’m not giving up on them now.”
She held up her mug. “Here’s to loyalty and lost causes,” she said, and Jake smiled as he clinked his glass against hers.
She liked seeing him smile. It gave her a glimpse of the old Jake, even if there was still something guarded underneath. They watched the game in companionable silence until the second baseman struck out to end the inning.
“So how was your date?” Jake asked when the commercials started.
After spending the last twenty minutes with Jake, it was actually hard to remember. “It was fine.”
“I knew Patrick in high school. I’ve got to say, he doesn’t seem like your type.”
She frowned. “What do you mean by that?”
“He was a jerk,” he said bluntly.
His tone made her feel defensive. “People can change after high school.”
“He’d have to change a lot to deserve you.”
She supposed it was only a matter of time. He wasn’t being as confrontational as that day at the garage, but Jake had once again gone into big brother mode.
She leaned back and folded her arms. “Believe it or not, I’m actually a pretty good judge of character. If Patrick really is a jerk, I’ll figure it out on my own at some point.”
He didn’t look convinced. “You said yourself you’re inexperienced.”
She glared at him. “I might be inexperienced in one aspect of dating, but I’m not inexperienced with people. No one’s taken advantage of me yet and no one ever will. I don’t need you to protect me from the big bad world, Jake. I’ve been taking care of myself for a while now.”
For a second he looked like he was going to argue with her. Then he shook his head slowly, and his face relaxed into a reluctant smile.
“I did it again, didn’t I?”
His wry admission made her smile, too. “Yes. But I’ll keep calling you on it when you do. Maybe in fifty years or so you’ll stop treating me like your little sister.”
He didn’t say anything to that. His smile faded a little as he looked at her, his blue eyes hiding rather than revealing his thoughts.
Something about his gaze made her feel vulnerable, and she broke eye contact to grab a pretzel from the bowl on the table. A lock of hair fell across her face, but before she could brush it back Jake’s hand was there, tucking the errant strand behind her ear.