JakeKari crossed her arms over her chest, as Jake lifted the phone between them and shook his head."I'm not answering it. I don't know what she wants, but I'm not interested."Kari shrugged and reached to pull him down for another kiss. The soft ding of a text message sounded between them and worry spread across him. Bethany was never one to need attention, or to be a bother. Something was up and the nagging sensation that he needed to see what it was washed over him. He broke the kiss and shook his head, pulling the phone back out."She's never this insistent. Something’s wrong." He unlocked his phone and read her message, his heart almost stopping in his chest.Mom's dead."What the fuck?" me mumbled, moving from Kari and dialing Bethany's number. His dinner threatened to push its way back up his chest as the phone rang, Kari moving to stand beside him, worry on her pretty face.Bethany answered on the second ring, the sound of her sobs filling up the phone."Hey... what's going o

JakeJake woke to the buzzing of his phone, his dreams horrific, his night long and arduous. He reached over and pulled it to his ear, turning it on and realizing that it was only a text. Sitting up, he read his mother's prayer over him for safety, her loving words for his quick and easy arrival warming him. He checked the time and jumped up, his flight leaving in less than an hour. He'd never make it in time."Damn," he yelled and jumped up, throwing on jeans and a T-shirt and working fast to get his shoes on. He would have to drive like a bat out of hell. The house was clean as usual, so worrying about any last minute picking up wasn't a problem. He rushed around looking for his phone charger and cursing himself for not finding it the night before.Resigning himself to having a dead battery on the phone for a few hours, he got in the truck and rushed to the airport, the closest one a few towns over. Good thing Maine was so small in comparison to Texas. In the Lone Star State there w

JakeSeeing Bethany again for the first time in three years wasn't nearly as hard as he imagined it would be. She was nothing more than a part of his past, a friend in pain from the loss of her mother. He hugged her when they arrived at her folks’ house and spent the afternoon talking with her, her brother, her father and all their old friends. Bethany kept close beside him, but he consistently kept space between them, his mind on Kari, his heart longing for her to be with him.Why had he told her ‘no’ to coming?He walked out into the late evening, his stomach in knots over his phone. He'd have to get ahold of someone at the fire station or maybe Drake and have them go deliver the message about his phone. No way he was staying for the next few days and not letting her know what was going on. If he understood her insecurities like his own - she'd be going crazy over not hearing from him all day.He brushed his fingers through is hair, sighing loudly as Bethany moved up beside him, her

JakeWednesday was the longest day of his life, the funeral mid-morning and his family and friends beckoning him to stay through the week and spend the weekend with them. He thought about it for a few minutes and decided there was no way. The ache deep in his chest at the thought of Kari hurting or wondering about him drove him to upset everyone and pack up just after the funeral."Baby, you just got here. Find the girl's number and tell her that you'll be home this weekend." His mom gave him a stern look as he smiled, pulling her into a hug."Mom. She's been hurt pretty badly by her fiancé cheating on her. Her life was turned upside down and I came home to help my ex, who was everything to me just three years ago. I haven't called in two days because of my phone and this girl means the world to me already."His mom reached up and touched the side of his face. "Does she cook?"He laughed. "I don't know, momma, but I want to find out. I want to spend hours getting to know her more. I w

LisaThe house was spacious, the floors thick Italian marble. Lisa looked over her shoulder, the handsome businessman from New York watching her every move. How men in their late thirties racked up billions of dollars was beyond her, but his means of making money wasn't the concern. She wanted him to spend it."As you see, everything is custom designed. It's a one of a kind." She turned and pressed her back to the counter, her white button down shirt open at the top, just enough to show the curve of her breast if she turned the right way. The black pencil skirt fit like a glove, the red heels screaming of the dominance that pulsed through her veins."I can see that. Magnificent." He stopped in front of her, his voice low, his eyes hooded. Dark hair barely touching his shoulders looked too soft not to touch, his eyes blue like the ocean. She reached up and moved a lock of it from his forehead before he caught her wrist. "The house is nice too.""I assume that means you're interested."