I laugh as the bell on the door rings, turning to see my leading man, dressed in his chinos and a sharp button down carrying a carrier of coffee.
“Hey, baby,” he says with that wicked grin that still melts my insides like molten lava. He shoves the carrier at Noah who rolls his eyes and grunts out something about no one appreciating him.
But whatever it is, I don’t make it out because Aaron leans down to kiss me and I crumble like a deck of cards. Seriously, this man is bad for me knees in more ways than one.
“So glad you could make it,” I say, my cheeks heating as I break away. Noah is restacking the copies of my book—The Boyfriend Deal—which I ended up actually writing after I cut down my hours with Foxy. I still date professionally—solely for women now— if only because I really do enjoy being able to give my clients their perfect dates and see them achieve their goals. And it isn’t terrible as far as marketing is concerned.
“You know, I wouldn’t miss this if the apocalypse was happening,” he says with a smirk.
“Still, I know things have been crazy at the office.” Aaron shrugs as he grabs a coffee from the carrier and offers it to me.
“I can’t wait until we get everything straightened out with the new properties.” He groans. “Then maybe we can actually resume planning this wedding.” He regales me with a raised eyebrow.
“Maybe,” I tease him as the doorbell rings again and I hear the high pitched squeal that can only belong to one person.
“Oh my God, bestie!” Lola shrieks, nearly clobbering me over with a hug as I hear Shannon and Travis laugh behind her.
“Congratulations!” she says, clasping her hands together. Shannon and Travis express their excitement, and I thank them. The store is starting to get crowded, and I feel a sense of pride knowing most of them are here for my book launch.
I still can’t believe I managed to actually write a book, but after Aaron and I sorted things out, and I cut my hours at Foxy’s, I suddenly had a lot more time on my hands, and I couldn’t stop thinking about my fake book. The one I was pretending to write, but that I was writing in reality. Of course, some things are written from my real life experiences, but there’s been plenty of things I changed to avoid issues. But Arthur and Jackson are still the main characters, and the tropes are still the same. Age gap. One bed. Opposites attract.
Some things are just classic for a reason…
I turn to see a familiar face walking through the door and can’t hide my surprise, even though I knew she’d be here. Part of me was worried she wouldn’t be able to come. It’s not like I ever asked her to do an event forme.
“Bella! So glad you could make it!” I say as I grab Aaron by the hand. My brother stiffens beside me.
“What…”
Bella smiles at me with pride. “Jake! Oh my God, look at you!” She hugs me and it’s comforting in a way that it shouldn’t be, but then again Bella and I have a weird relationship to begin with. But if these months have taught me anything, it’s who my real friends are. And Bella is definitely a friend.
“Aaron, this is—”
“Bella Giorgio,” he says with a smirk. “Long time no see.”
I blink, looking between them. Bella chuckles.
“Aaron fucking Everett. Never thought I’d see the day you settled down.”
Noah coughs. “You two… know each other?”
Bella blinks, turning to look at my brother. “Oh, Noah… I didn’t know you’d be here…”
Aaron chuckles. “Oh, Bella and I go way back. Like… prep school way back. Ain’t that right, Bels?”
Bella nods. “Mhmm.” She raises an eyebrow at me. “You didn’t tell me you were marrying Seattle’s most eligible bachelor, Jake.” She smacks me lightly and I can’t help but blush.
“What are the odds?” Aaron asks, then immediately raises an eyebrow as my cheeks heat. “You know what? Don’t answer that.”
He laughs and Bella runs a hand through her dark hair.
“I’m really glad you could make it,” I say. “Seriously.”
Noah crosses his arms, shifting his weight and I don’t miss how he leans closer to her. She shifts her position as well, almost in tandem. They don’t look at one another, but the tension can be felt. Before I can say anything, I see Chris, looking around the space, before he sees her first. His eyebrows furrow and glance at my brother, and he purses his lips.
Maybe it’s because romance has taken over my life, or maybe it’s because I’m just a sucker for drama, but I can’t help but feel like something is going on between them. All of them. Call it twin-tuition.
I make a note to try and squeeze some tea from my brother after this party.
