My Funny Valentine (Jasper Falls 5)

She wanted to, but she was still embarrassed from the dance and now from making a scene. They all saw her run out. “What will we tell them?”

“Whatever we want. Tell them I farted and you needed fresh air. Who cares?”

“I do.”

He turned her face and kissed her. “Don’t tell them anything. Just go back in because you want to have another drink with me. We’re too cool to give a shit about what anyone else might think.” He took her hand. “Please.”

She couldn’t resist that coaxing look in his dark eyes, so she reluctantly followed him into the bar. Everyone was back at the table and Sue was taking another order of drinks.

“Two more rum and cokes,” Giovanni ordered.

His cousins praised his fancy footwork and bitched that if he kept it up their wives were all gonna make them take dance lessons, but other than that, no one mentioned anything.

The conversation circled around family and work, the occasional celebrity gossip cutting in. By her third drink, Erin was starting to unwind.

Mallory got up to use the restroom and Finn leaned close and asked, “Did you do anything for your birthday?”

Giovanni stiffened beside her. Erin looked at Finn with wide eyes and stiffly shook her head. Finn’s gaze lifted over her shoulder and regret flashed in his eyes. “Sorry.”

She pressed her lips tight. What could she say? Slowly, she leaned back and glanced at Giovanni. He wasn’t smiling anymore.

He wasn’t even looking at her. Pulling a few bills out of his pocket, he tossed them on the table and stood. “Talk to you guys later.”

She had more than half her drink left and wasn’t ready to leave, but as he stared down at her expectantly, she figured it was best to go. Without a word, she stood and pulled on her coat. Giovanni’s jaw was tight as he walked her to his car.

“When was it?” he finally asked once they were driving home.

“Two days ago. But I hate my birthday and I never celebrate it.” Mostly because no one else did. She’d gotten a text from Harrison, but that was it. “I don’t know why you’re upset. It’s not a big deal.”

“Did you ever think maybe it should be a big deal? You should have told me. I mean, I look like a shmuck and there’s Finn, fully in the know as usual.”

“Is this about my birthday or some stupid rivalry you have with your cousin?”

“It’s about secrecy. Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Because I didn’t know you’d care!”

“That, right there,” he snapped, pulling into her driveway. “From now on, assume I care.”

“Fine. I’ll just spend my day sending you text updates on every little boring thing I do, so I don’t screw up and forget some other inconsequential detail you might get upset over.” She climbed out of the car, but he didn’t turn off the engine or move to unbuckle his seatbelt. “What are you doing?”

“I’m going home.”

Her chest chilled, the familiar bite of rejection ripping away any sense of security she stupidly assumed. She hated herself for assuming they were somehow bulletproof. She knew it would only be a matter of time before she disappointed him, she just didn’t expect it would be something as stupid as a birthday.

“Fine!” she slammed the door, furious with him and her foolish heart.

When his car backed out of the driveway and the headlights fanned over the house, her throat tightened and her eyes burned. Do not cry.

Her hands shook as she unlocked the door. As soon as she was inside, she threw her keys at the wall and ripped off her purse. But when she saw the empty driveway, a signal that she was alone again, she lost her battle against her tears and slammed the front door shut on her heart.

CHAPTER 17

Giovanni spent the next day sulking at home.

“What’s the matter with you?” his mother asked, never one to beat around the bush.

“Nothing.”

“Oh, that was convincing.” She dumped a basket of warm laundry on his lap. “At least make yourself useful and fold these.”

His mother sat beside him as they folded, the silence not lasting long. “Maureen tells me you’ve been hanging around with Erin Montgomery.”

He wasn’t surprised she knew how he’d been passing his time. Gossip spread like wildfire through their family, and his mom and the aunts never let a rumor slip by unnoticed.

“I was.” He wasn’t sure if their recent fight meant things were over or if Erin would eventually call and admit she was wrong.

His mom raised a critical brow. “That was quick.”

He shrugged and searched for the matching sock to the one he held. “You guys don’t like her anyway.”

“That’s not true.”

“When Finn was dating her—”

She stopped folding and looked at him. “That girl was never right for Finn. Just because we didn’t like them as a couple doesn’t mean we didn’t like her.”