I, on the other hand, would much rather sneak in through a side entrance and act like this isn’t happening.
Jace glances at me, and I sense his eyes on my face. He puts his phone down.
“You good?”
“Totally fine,” I lie. “Why do you ask?”
“Bells,” he says, his voice flat and unimpressed. “You’ve been sitting here for the past five minutes staring at the building.”
I take a deep breath and finally loosen my tight grip on the steering wheel.
“I’m just thinking about what happens when we walk in there.” I turn to face him. “Aubrey and Sam are going to lose their shit. People are going to talk.”
“Let them talk.”
“Easy for you to say. You don’t care what people think.”
“You’re right. I don’t.” He reaches over and takes my hand, threading his fingers through mine. His palm is warm and grounding. “But I care what you think. And if you’re not ready for this, for us to be public, then we’ll wait.”
I blink at him. “Really?”
“No,” he smirks. “I’m lying. I’m definitely not waiting. I just wanted to see if you’d fall for it.”
“Jace.”
“Bells, listen to me.” He squeezes my hand, his expression turning serious. “If they have a problem with us, fuck ‘em. We know what we have. We know how we feel about each other. And if your friends can’t be happy for you, if they’re going to judge you for being with me, then what does that say about them?”
“They’re my best friends.”
“They should want you to be happy.” His thumb strokes over my knuckles. “And I make you happy, don’t I?”
“You know you do.”
“That’s all that matters. I love you. You love me. Everything else is just noise.”
He lifts my hand to his mouth and presses a kiss to my knuckles, his lips warm against my skin. He’s more affectionate now, more sure of himself since I confessed what I was feeling. More willing to show me these softer parts of himself that he keeps hidden from everyone else.
God, when did Jace Cooper become the reasonable one in this relationship?
I take a deep breath and nod. “Okay. You’re right.”
“I know I am,” he says, giving me that cocky smirk, the one that’s equal parts infuriating and irresistible.
“Don’t let it go to your head.”
“Too late.” He grins and opens his door. “Come on. Let’s go show these assholes what they’re missing.”
I grab my oversized tote bag from the backseat, the one that’s packed with textbooks, notebooks, and about seventeen pens I’ll never use, and climb out of the car. Jace is already waiting for me, leaning against the hood with his arms crossed, looking every bit the bad boy everyone thinks he is.
We start walking toward the entrance, and I’m hyper-aware of everyone we pass. Jace puts his arm around my shoulders, pulling me into his side, and the stares grow more intense.
Oh God. This is happening. This is really happening.
A group of junior girls standing near the entrance openly gawks at us. One of them whispers something to her friend.
Jace halts and turns to face them, his expression cold. “What the fuck are you looking at?”
They scatter instantly, nearly tripping over each other to escape.
