Thankfully, Jayden doesn’t prove me wrong when he ignores my questions and says, “You’ve changed my brother, and I have to thank you for that.”
A smile tugs at my mouth as I hug my books. “He’s pretty amazing.”
“Yeah, but only when he’s with you. It’s like he’s a different person. You make him a better person.”
I’m fully smiling now, and when I see that we’re going into the hockey arena, I look over at him. “He wanted you to bring me to the rink? Am I going to watch him play?”
He laughs. “No, come on,” he says, leading me up a back staircase that I didn’t know existed. When we reach the top, he throws open the door and jerks his head to the side, telling me to go. I do as he asks and turn to wait for him, but he shakes his head. “Go to the edge.”
Looking at the railing and then back at him, I ask, “Why? Are you going to push me off?” He gives me a look and I shrug. “I saw it on some killer show. Brother was jealous of brother, so he killed the other’s girlfriend.”
“Wow, yeah, you two are made for each other,” he says, then mutters, “Weirdo.”
“I am not!” I say and he laughs.
“No, I’m not going to push you. I’m not going to take away the person who makes my brother happy. So go,” he demands, pointing to the railing.
I send him a grin. “That’s incredibly sweet.”
“Yeah, whatever, don’t tell him I told you that or I’ll push ya next time,” he says and then he winks before going out the door, slamming it behind him. When “Not a Bad Thing” by Justin Timberlake starts to blare through the arena, I start for the railing, curious. But when I get to the edge and look over, I don’t expect to see what I see.
Standing in the middle of the rink on the ice is Jude, looking dashing in a pair of jeans and a Bullies sweatshirt, holding a big bouquet of roses, a grin on his beautiful face as he looks up at me. But that isn’t what catches my gaze, surprisingly. It’s that below him, spelled out in hockey pucks that take up most of the ice, it reads: Claire, be my girlfriend?
Tears rush to my eyes as my breath catches in my throat.
This. Can. Not. Be. Happening.
Chapter 27
Claire
I drop the books that are in my arms and hold my chest as a sob fights to come out. When he starts to sing along with the words to the song, my heart explodes in my chest, and it feels as if millions and millions of butterflies are going nuts in my stomach.
“Cheesy and romantic enough?” he calls up to me.
I smile as I nod, tears flooding my eyes, but I don’t want to let them fall. I don’t want this to affect me as much as it is, but soon I can’t keep them in. Slowly they roll down my face and I know I love him.
I love Jude Sinclair with a fierceness that cannot be touched.
Yes, it’s insane that it’s only been two weeks, but this is different. We’re different. We’re special, and I can’t get enough of him. As I slowly shake my head, I wonder if I’m dreaming, and if I am, I hope I never wake up. This is simply perfect. Amazing.
“Come on down here,” he says then. “I want to dry those tears. They better be happy ones! And you better say yes!”
Laughter bubbles in my chest, but when it comes out, it sounds more like I’m choking than laughing. “You know damn well the answer is yes. Hold on, let me take a picture.”
“No, come down here with me, pictures later.”
Deciding that he’s right because I want to kiss the stuffing out of him, I throw my bag down and rush down the stairs, wiping my face free of tears. Soon I’m in the cool rink and I rush to the ice to find my man, my boyfriend, standing there waiting for me. A grin curves his lips and his cheeks are warm with color. Taking my time, I go on the ice and he meets me halfway, the roses dropping to the ice as he takes me in his arms, meeting his lips to mine. Wrapping my arms tightly around his neck, I move my tongue with his as he picks me up off the ice, holding me up and close against him.
There is something about kissing him that hits me right in the middle of my chest. It’s like a feeling of falling, almost. It makes me breathless, and I know that I need to go slow and enjoy it, but I can’t. I need him. My heart pounds hard against his chest, and I can feel his too. A strong, steady beat that has me smiling against his lips, I love that I affect him as much as he affects me. Pulling back, my head rests against his as we share the same breath, a little cloud appearing around our mouths. As he sets me down on my toes, I look up into his intoxicating green eyes and my heart comes into my throat.
Slowly his thumbs brush along my cheek, catching any stray tears before replacing them with soft kisses. He’s so beautiful. So stunning. His hair is falling in his eyes, his eyes so intensely on mine and his lips puffy from our kiss. He brings his hands up from my waist to cup my face, running his thumbs along my jaw as his eyes search mine. The words are right there and I know I should say them, but they are lodged in my throat. I need to tell him about my job before I profess my love for him because that’s not fair. I can’t expect him to love me when he doesn’t know everything about me.
“Okay, this is pretty amazing.”
He squeezes me close, his nose
brushing against mine as he says, “So what do you say? Wanna be mine?”