He gets to his feet and paces the room, resting his hands behind his head.
“Jake,” I snap loudly. “Sit down.”
Startled, he jerks his head in my direction. “She thinks I’m in love with Becca.”
Jake in love with Becca? I can’t even think about that being true.
“Are you in love with her?” I ask quietly.
“No,” he scoffs. “Of course I’m not. Brooke’s had this thing about Becca since the beginning. Since we first started going out.”
“And there’s no reason for her to have gotten this into her head?”
Jake glares at me. “What are you suggesting?”
“Nothing, I’m just trying to figure this out,” I assure him. I don’t want to make things worse by making him angry.
“Ask Becca. She’d know if I was love with her, right?” He stops pacing and walks over to the window, staring out across the skyline. When he turns back to me, he’s more in control. More like the Jake I know. “I’m not in love with Becca. I promise.”
I nod. My heart pounds in my chest as relief floods my body. It hits me just how much I needed him to say that. Then I realize why. Because I’m falling in love with her.
Holy fuck.
I take a moment, and then force myself to focus on Jake. He sits down next to me and leans forward. He exhales slowly, then lifts his head and turns to me.
“She found a letter,” he murmurs.
“A letter?” I repeat with a frown.
Jake nods. “I wrote it years and years ago—”
To Becca.
“Okay, stop for a second. So you’re not in love with her now. Have you ever been in love with Becca?”
“Jake?” The suspense is killing me.
He slowly lifts his head, his eyes meeting mine.
“Isn’t all that matters that I’m not in love with her now?”
Shit. Jake used to be in love with Becca? Did Becca know?
“Those feelings are long gone, they have been for years,” he insists. He stares at me, pleading with me to believe him. “I’ve moved on, but Brooke won’t see that.” He shakes his head. “This is so fucked up.”
You’re telling me.
“Okay, you’re not in love with her now. That’s good,” I say.
I feel like I have a conflict of interest even being here, like I should bow myself out hand the reins over to someone who is more impartial to this situation, but how can I do that to Jake? He trusts me and he trusts my advice.
A gentle knock sounds on the door. I stiffen, because even before Jake answers it, I know it’s Becca. Sure enough, when he swings the door open, she stands there holding beer and pizza. Jake looks at me, like he’s not sure how to react.
“Don’t be angry,” Becca says. “I didn’t call beforehand because you haven’t spoken to me for weeks and I thought you’d tell me not to come—or would just ignore me like you have been doing.”
“I’m sorry,” Jake says. “I’ve just had a lot on my mind.”
I cringe, because this just got awkward. I check the text I just received on my phone and curse. Dad.
“I have to go and take care of something,” I mumble.
Jake glares at me, but I pretend not to notice. Maybe talking to her will do him good. The only way Jake can move forward is if he gets closure form Becca. I trust him when he says that there’s no feelings there and I don’t doubt for a second that this news is going to completely shock Becca.
“Okay,” Becca smiles at me. “Good luck. I’ll see you later?”
“I hope so.” I smirk as I lean down to kiss her. “Considering we’re sharing a room.”I walk through the foyer, my stomach churning with anxiety. It’s not just about Jake and Becca, but also my father. And my life. Even my career at the moment feels uncertain. He’s just another problem that I have to sort out, for Becca’s sake, if nothing else. I glance at my phone. It’s been almost an hour since he turned up at our door, so I walk into the bar and look around.
He’s waiting there already and judging from the empty two glasses next to him, he’s been waiting for a while. I slide into the booth opposite him.
“Okay. I’m here.”
He looks up and smiles at me. It’s a look that I almost don’t recognize from him.
“Why are you here? I ask. Not because I’m being rude, I’m genuinely curious if this is a coincidence, or if he’s following me.
“Jake invited me to the wedding, and I said yes.”
“He invited you?”
“Yes. You know I had a soft spot for Jake when he was younger.” He sighs and looks at me. “Liam—”
“No, it’s just that you barely have time for me these days, so I guess I’m just surprised that you’d drop everything for Jake’s wedding.”
He glances down at his hands, quiet for a moment and then he looks me in the eye.