More cry-laughter escapes me, a mix of emotion that has my head spinning.
Dakota: Do you think I’m being melodramatic?
Jack: No. I wish you’d stop downplaying your feelings. You don’t need to. Not with me. Not ever.
Dakota: Do you see why I’m being careful? My mom was strong and independent before she got married. My parents are divorced now. She’s opened up a lot in later years. She was like me—and he shrunk her.
Jack: I will never shrink you.
But that’s the sticking point. Just being together will mean I have to shrink. I’ll turn from an independent, successful streamer, a self-made woman, into,Oh yeah, I know that girl, she’s Jackson Cross’s girlfriend or something, right? Oh, she streams too?
Jack: What are your plans for the rest of the night?
Dakota: It’s 1:30AM
Jack: Tell me, Dakota.
Dakota: Uh, sleep? Unless you have a different idea?
Jack: Driving over there right now. Holding you. Doing everything I can to keep it sweet and sincere and not give into the lust that burns through me every time I so much as think about you.
Dakota: You’d really drive over here now?
Jack: I’m on my way. So you better tell me to stop before I get too far.
Dakota: I want to see you. But it’s not simple, Jack. I don’t think it’s ever going to be simple.
Jack: Forget about my company. Forget about your career. Forget about the storm raging outside, beautiful. Tonight, you’re just a woman who needs a hug, and I’m the man who needs to give it. Plus, I want to show you something.
Dakota: Not another surprise for me to ruin?
Jack:
Jack: You didn’t ruin it, because it led to this. I want to bring a photo album. It’s got photos of my mother and me.
Dakota: I’d love to see those!
Jack:
Jack: Do you have any of Noah? I’d like to see this magical little kid who changed your whole life.
Dakota: Only about a million!
Jack: Perfect. I’ll be there soon.
I drop my phone and rush to the mirror. I’m wearing a baggy T, no bra, and my hair is still damp from my post-stream shower. My PJ shorts have got a hole—they’re my comfy pair—and I haven’t shaved my legs. Mara has sometimes playfully joked, in a friendly way, about me having the world’s fastest-growing leg hair.
Should I shave? Change? I want him to see me at my best, but also, he’s coming here for emotional connection. There are still tears in my eyes. He’s not expecting a show.
Maybe I should start with some shorts that don’t have holes in, at least, and go from there. I go to my closet and take out a fresh pair. I’m debating which T-shirt to change into when a text arrives.
Jack: I’m outside.
Dakota: That was fast!
Jack: I was at the office.
Dakota: At one in the morning?
