Page 24

“Yeah, sorry I don’t look trashier. You didn’t give me enough time to transform into a delinquent.”

He laughed, a sound that was too familiar. “Well, you’ll have more time to prepare for the role when you meet my parents again. Maybe you can do goth makeup or something.”

Was he serious? She turned in her seat to better see him. “I agreed to the fake dating, and I do love this jacket, but I’m not doing anything that would make my grandmother worry that I’ve gone off the deep end. So no to the emo makeup.”

“Fine.” He drew out the word as though making a painful concession.

She watched him for another moment. Over the week, she’d asked Delancey more about Jace’s ex-girlfriend. She wasn’t just being nosy. How could she not ask about someone who’d earned the nickname Jenniferous? According to Delancey, Jennifer was self-important, considered herself more enlightened than everyone else, and seemed to think the rest of the Clark family were uneducated bumpkins. The question wasn’t why the family didn’t like her, but why Jace did.

“Tell me about Jennifer,” Marlowe said.

His gaze slid to her with mild curiosity. “Why do you want to know about her?”

Marlowe shrugged and looked at the houses they passed, sturdy little homes painted in a we-don’t-have-an-HOA variety of colors. Her neighborhood wasn’t nearly as nice as the part of town Jace lived in. Some of the houses on her street were run-down with peeling paint and bushes that looked like they’d just barely survived the winter. A few bikes lay tipped over on driveways. “Jennifer is your ex, and I’m the rebound girlfriend. It just seems like you would talk about her. Your family will think it’s odd if I don’t know anything about her.”

He spent several minutes relaying facts she already knew, although told without the judgmental commentary that Delancey had added. Jennifer grew up in Pasadena, came from a wealthy family, and planned to become a psychiatrist.

“And why did she dump you?” Marlowe asked.

His hands tightened on the steering wheel and a flash of frustration went across his expression. “She didn’t dump me. She suggested we take a break over the summer to think about our relationship.”

Marlowe nodded. “Because that’s how women generally think about their relationships—by dating other men during a break.” Honestly, why was he putting up with that sort of treatment?

“Jennifer is right that we need to think about our future. Next summer, we’ll both start our residencies. She’s trying to match at UCSF or Stanford because they have some of the top psychiatry programs in the country. I hope to rank University of Washington or University of Utah.”

“You want to leave LA?” Marlowe asked, surprised. Maybe Jace wasn’t as dedicated to Jennifer as his family feared. Maybe he was always going to be the sort who put his career above relationships. “What are you tired of—the earthquakes, fires, or riots?”

He snorted. “It’s more like the high cost of living, horrible traffic, and intense pressure of big city hospitals. I don’t want three more added years of those things. Besides, the schools I’m considering are better for family practice. Given all that, Jennifer and I need to decide if we can make professional sacrifices to be together.”

His answer shouldn’t have stung, but it did. When they were teenagers, Jace had never cared about making sacrifices so the two of them could be together. He’d just decided that since Marlowe was two years behind him in school, they had no future.

She forced a smile. “Let me guess, Jennifer wants you to be the one to make the sacrifices?”

He hesitated and shrugged as though he didn’t want to sound critical. “Her family lives in LA. She loves it there. I get that. But I thought when it came down to it, she would love me more than the beach.” He took a sighing breath. “Maybe one of us will change our mind. Or we’ll decide that a long-distance relationship isn’t that bad. Or, after living in a town that only has a handful of restaurants, I’ll appreciate LA more.”

“Wow.”

The exclamation earned her a slanted look. “Why are you wow-ing a residency in LA?”

“It’s not the place. It’s just weird that you’re upset that someone isn’t committed enough to you, when you broke up with me because we wouldn’t be in the same area for two years. I thought I would feel vindicated or something. But man, karma just feels sad.”

He rolled his eyes. “Thanks for being understanding. I’m glad I explained the situation to you.”

He was trying to make her feel guilty. She didn’t. Mostly. “The Jace I knew wouldn’t have wanted to go back to a woman who wouldn’t make compromises to be together and then dumped him so she could play the field.”

He looked straight ahead. “So, so glad I explained the situation to you.”

“Stop sulking.” Marlowe put her hand on his knee, an old habit that came back without her thinking about it. “You know I’m right.”

His eyes flicked to her hand on his leg. “Do I?”

She removed her hand and, not quite sure what to do with it, ran it through her hair. “I’m just saying maybe Jennifer isn’t the one for you.”

She didn’t elaborate because they pulled into the parking lot for Legends. The place had a weathered wood facade, a rusted metal sign shaped like a cowboy boot, and string lights drooping across the front porch. On weekends, the bass from line-dancing music rolled out into the parking lot in a humming wave. On weeknights, it was usually someone half-singing, half-shouting their way through country hits.

Marlowe took off her seatbelt but didn’t get out. She felt like being stubborn, or perhaps just like drawing concessions from the guy who’d rejected her. He opened his door, got out, and glanced at her to see why she was still sitting in the car.

“I’m letting you open the door for me,” she told him.