He caught her, and I averted my eyes. I didn’t want him to think it made me feel uncomfortable, although I had an overwhelming urge to scratch her eyes out. Hurting Drake was like kicking a puppy. Who liked kicking puppies?
“Hi, Blake,” Rose smiled sweetly as she turned, wrapping Drake’s arms around her waist.
I attempted a smile. “Hi.”
If she noticed my shortness, she didn’t let on. “Are you ready for tonight’s game? It’s like a holiday in this house.”
I looked at her blankly. “Erm, sure.”
Jemmy laughed with astonishment. “Don’t tell me Jax didn’t tell you that this is the Championship game?! That boy loves talking about himself, but he didn’t tell you how big this game is? Not that it really matters, he already has three schools vying for him.”
I brushed the bake potatoes with melted butter and sprinkled sea salt on them. “Well, he did tell me about the playoff games a few weeks ago, but I honestly don’t know much about football.”
Rose looked at me with narrowed eyes. “I thought you just met this family? I wasn’t aware you had been talking to Jax already.” She sent Drake an accusing look like she thought he had been lying to her.
That was rich, coming from her! “Well, I’ve known Mr. Jace, I mean Jace, for over a year now. He told me about his brother. He was very proud of him.” I thought quickly.
“So Jace was your teacher?” she asked.
I nodded, putting the potatoes in the oven. “Yup. Drake, what did you want me to do with these strawberries?”
Rose seemed somewhat mollified as she jumped up on the counter, pulling Drake’s mouth down to hers.
I had to look away and tell myself I had no right to feel jealous. If I was going into this with an open mind and unselfish motives, the guys should be free to explore any relationships. They shouldn’t have to feel bound to me.
Drake gave me a pained expression before giving her a brief kiss. “Can you slice up some strawberries? Very thin,” he explained. “They’re soaking over there. Jax’s favorite dessert is fresh strawberry cake.”
Something softened within me, he was so sweet in so many ways. Which only made me all the more pissed at Rose. She didn’t deserve him.
Jemmy made a gagging noise. “Your bromance with the guys can be sickening at times,” she said as she popped a walnut in her mouth.
“Well, I,” Rose said smiling up at him, “think it’s so thoughtful. That’s why I fell in love with him.
I had to stop myself from scoffing at her.
Jemmy made more gagging noises.
“Are you in culinary art classes?” I asked Drake desperately trying to change the subject.
He gave me a small smile, his anxiety abating. “No, child psychology.”
“There’s no money in cooking and the hours suck,” Rose said as she texted on her phone. “We decided this field would be great for us. Maybe eventually open our own practice together.”
I stopped slicing the strawberries and frowned. I wondered if he really wanted to be a psychologist. I mean, he definitely had a calming quality about him and a welcoming presence, but I saw how much he enjoyed cooking.
“He could have become an executive chef,” Jemmy explained. “Remington offered to let him become his business partner at his restaurants. Heck, he already created most of the recipes, and they are a huge hit.”
Rose shrugged, not bothering to look up from her phone. I wondered who she was texting so much. I had a sneaking suspicion that it was the guy Drake suspected she was cheating on him with. “Well…” she drawled out. “That doesn’t work for us. He can cook for me when we get home from a normal nine to five job.”
Jemmy exchanged a look with me. “Assuming he doesn’t find his connected.”
Rose let out a short laugh, “Jemmy, I love you, dear. You know that, but sometimes I don’t know why you like to push people’s buttons just to see what their reactions are. Some may argue that your mother abandoning you made you feel like you must irrationally lash out at other people. Drake’s almost twenty-one years old. If his connected hasn’t found him yet, she probably never will.”
The condescending, arrogant tone she used on Jemmy made me want to punch her in her smug face.
Jemmy looked like she was seconds from smashing the smaller woman’s face in, but then a cruel smile spread across her face. “I don’t need your psychoanalyzing bullshit. If he doesn’t find her, he can lose his gifts, but you don’t care, do you? You’re what, a two or a three? You were never chosen. He’s an eight. Believe it or not, he has a brain and can make decisions on his own and have desires of his own.”
“Please, Jemmy and Rose,” Drake said in a pained voiced. “Not right now.”