Loving You (The Jade Series #3) (20 page)

It takes him forever to answer the door. He finally does, but he’s on the phone. He motions me to come inside.

“Yeah, Thursday at 3. Got it.” He hangs up. “Physical therapy appointment,” he says, dropping the phone on his desk.
 

“Garret, you don’t have to explain every phone call you get. I’m over the thing with Sadie. I’m not monitoring your calls. And you don’t have to report back to me every time you talk to someone.”

“Are you sure you’re not saying that for your own benefit?”
 

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Seems like you didn’t want to tell me about that guy you met today.”

“Carson? I just met him this morning. If you hadn’t stopped by earlier I would’ve told you about him now or at dinner tonight.”

“So whose idea was it to have lunch? Yours or his?”

“His. He wanted to ask me stuff about Moorhurst. That’s it.” I go up and give Garret a hug, but he doesn’t hug me back. Not a good sign. I pull away. “Why are you mad at me? I just had lunch with the guy.”

“I wouldn’t be mad if you’d told him you had a boyfriend. But according to Carson, you didn’t even mention it. Why is that, Jade? Did it just slip your mind?”

“It wasn’t relevant to the conversation. We talked about school, not our relationships. I didn’t talk about you and he didn’t talk about his girlfriend.”

“Because he doesn’t have a girlfriend. If he did, he wouldn’t be trying to date mine.”

“He’s not trying to date me.”

Garret shakes his head. “A guy doesn’t ask you to lunch and then follow you back to your room if he’s not interested in dating you.”

“It’s not like that. He’s just looking for a friend. And I could use more friends.”

“That guy is
not
going to be your friend.”

His forceful tone pisses me off. “You can’t tell me who to be friends with. I’ll be friends with him if I want.”

“Really? Because if that’s how this works, then I’ll go back to being friends with Sadie. How would you feel about that, Jade?”

“Yeah, like that’s comparable. Sadie made it clear she wants to date you. Carson has shown no interest in dating me. Besides, the girls on my floor couldn’t take their eyes off him. If he doesn’t already have a girlfriend, I’m sure he’ll have one by the end of the week. I’m telling you, he only sees me as a friend. And we have a lot in common, so I’d like to be friends with him. I’d like the three of us to be friends.”

“I don’t think that’ll be happening.” Garret crosses his arms over his chest. “What exactly do you have in common with this guy anyway?”

“Well, he’s from the Midwest, which you already know. And he likes to run. He does 10-mile runs like me. He was asking me about the trails around here and wanted to know if I’d go on a—” I stop.

“On a what? On a run? He invited you to go running with him?” Garret rolls his eyes and laughs to himself.
 

“What? It’s just a run.”

“You’re considering this? You’re kidding me, right?”

“You know I don’t feel safe running on the trails by myself and you’ll never run that far with me. So now I’ll have a running partner.”

“Jade. He’s asking you out. The running thing? It’s a date.”

“It is not. You get all sweaty and gross when you run. That’s not a date.”

“How did we meet?”

“You know how we met. You helped me unpack the car when I got here.”

“That doesn’t count. What happened the next day?”

“You met me out on the track and we raced. But you didn’t plan that.”

“No, but when I found out you liked to run, I kept asking you to go running with me. I hate running, especially at your insane pace. I only did it so I could spend time with you. It was the first step in getting you to go out on a date with me.”

“Okay, but that was you. Not Carson.”

“That’s a trick
all
guys use. Find something the girl likes to do, then casually offer to join her in that activity, and go from there. It’s a classic first move. And it has a much higher success rate than taking a girl out to dinner and a movie. You’re on her turf so she feels comfortable. You’re showing interest in something she likes.”

“If Carson goes on 10-mile runs, then he obviously already likes running. He’s not pretending to just to date me.”

“Then why does he want you to run with him? He doesn’t need a running partner. You always say running is a solitary sport. And we know he’s not using you to feel safe when he’s on the trails.”

“Okay, fine. Maybe there’s a tiny chance he’s interested in me. But he’s not now that he knows about you.”

“Did he act different after he met me?”

“No. He just acted normal.”

“Normal as in he kept asking you out? So he just ignored the fact that you have a boyfriend.”

“He didn’t ask me out.” I slip my arm around Garret’s and tug on him until he sits down with me. “Are you seriously jealous of this guy? A guy I don’t even know?”

He takes his arm back. “You know him well enough to tell him your major, which apparently you’ve decided is something I don’t need to know.”

“I’m sorry about that. It just came out because he told me something and I didn’t know what to say.”

“What did he tell you?”

“He said he wants to be a cancer doctor so he can help people like his sister. His sister died of cancer last month. She was 16. That’s why he didn’t start college until now. And you know I never know what to say when people tell me sad things. So I just blurted it out.”

“You just blurted out that you want to be a doctor? This just occurred to you at lunch?”

“No. I’ve been thinking about it for a while. I just haven’t made a decision yet. But I’m taking some of the courses I would need if I decide to go to med school.”

“Why haven’t you ever told me this?”

“Because I wasn’t sure that’s what I wanted to do.”

“It doesn’t matter. You still could’ve told me. You know how shitty I felt today when some guy I just met knows more about my girlfriend than I do?”

“He doesn’t know anything about me. And I didn’t mean to tell him about the pre-med thing, but I can’t take it back, so can we just move past this?” I sneak my arm back around his. “You know I love you, Garret. I’m not interested in Carson. I’m only interested in you.”

“It’s not that I don’t trust you. I just don’t trust other guys. As a guy, I know how we think. And I don’t want you hanging out with Carson outside of class.”

“We’ll have to get together for the homework at least a few times.”

“I get that, but I don’t want you doing other stuff with him.”

“Then
you
can’t be friends with other girls.”

“I stopped being friends with girls the day we met. Because they weren’t friends. They were girls I was trying to sleep with.”

“Garret!”

“I’m just saying. That’s how guys think. It may not be right, but that’s how it is. If you don’t believe me go ask any guy on my floor.”

“Let’s not talk about Carson anymore. In fact, I don’t feel like talking at all right now.” I turn Garret’s face to mine and kiss him. “I missed you today.”
 

“Oh yeah?” He kicks his shoes off and scoots back on the bed. “Just exactly how much did you miss me?”

“Let me show you how much.” I climb on top of him, straddling him as I take my t-shirt off.

He cups the sides of my face with his hands and brings my mouth to his, skipping the gentle kiss he usually starts with and kissing me in a way he’s never done before. The kiss is aggressive, powerful, possessive. It’s as if the idea that some other guy wants me has changed the dynamic between us.
 

He wastes no time undressing the rest of me and then himself. He flips me on my back and in an instant we’re together. But it’s different. Good different. It’s fast and urgent. His hand grabs hold of my hip, keeping me firmly in place as he moves in and out. His other hand tangles in my hair and lifts my head, crashing his lips to mine. I reach around and dig my fingers in the taut muscles of his back. He seems to like that because he gets an even firmer hold on me and speeds his movement, his hips driving, determined. My body explodes with pleasure before I’m even ready for it and continues on this feel-good high as Garret does one last thrust before his body collapses on mine. He lifts his head to kiss me, then rolls off me onto his back.

 
We take a moment to catch our breath. And
I
take a moment to replay what just happened. Because, wow. It’s not like I don’t like his usual mix of slow, sweet foreplay mixed with a hot, fast ending, but this all-fast, all-urgent version was really hot. Steamy hot. Molten lava hot.

“Let’s go out to dinner,” Garret says. “I’m craving a steak. A good steak.”

“Did you work up an appetite just now?” I turn on my side and give him a kiss on the cheek.

“I must have, because I’m starving.” He’s also sweating. We both are. We look like we just got back from the gym.

“You know I hate giving you compliments, but I think you’re getting even better at that. Have you been taking classes or something?”

He laughs. “Yeah, Jade. I’ve been taking sex classes every Monday and Wednesday morning. It was supposed to be a secret, but now you know.”

“I’m just saying, it was good.”

“Thanks.” He turns on his side, facing me. “Now can we go eat?”

“We should shower first. Come downstairs in 10 minutes.”
 

“Hey.” He keeps hold of me as I start to get up. “I think it’s really great that you’re going to med school.”

“I told you. I haven’t decided for sure.”

“I know. But I think it’s a good idea. You’d make a great doctor.” He leans over and kisses me. “I’d definitely go to you.”

“Just so I’d touch you while you’re naked.”
 

“You already do that.” He smiles, then his face gets serious again. “Jade, I want you to tell me this stuff. I don’t know why you didn’t, but it kind of worries me that you thought you couldn’t tell me. I want to know what you want out of life. Your dreams for the future. I want to help you make them come true. But I can’t do that if you don’t share them with me.”

“That’s why I didn’t tell you. I don’t want you helping me. I want to decide this for myself. I want to figure out how to make it happen by myself. That includes paying for it.” I sigh. “I guess I’ll have to wear a skirt now.”

“You didn’t say money, so maybe I’ll let it slide.” He pauses like he’s thinking about it, then smiles. “Nope, I want the skirt.”
 

I roll my eyes and laugh. “Yeah, I figured you would.”

“Seriously, though.” He sits up on his side. “If we’re even considering taking this relationship beyond just dating, then you need to include me in big decisions like this.”

“I’m not used to thinking that way. I’m used to making decisions on my own.”

“They’re still your decisions. I’ll never tell you what to do, but I’d like to at least know what you’re thinking. And I’ll do the same. Because these decisions affect both of us. Maybe not right now, but they will in the future.”

“Yeah, I know.” As I say it, Garret’s stomach growls really loud. I rub my hand over his abs. “As your future doctor, I think you’re suffering from hunger. I think you need that steak.”

He flips me on my back again and hovers over me. “This doctor thing is totally turning me on. Want to do a little role playing? I’ll be your patient. You can do whatever you want to me.”

“Maybe later. You need to eat.” I push on him but he doesn’t move.

“I’m not hungry anymore.” He kisses me. “At least not for food.”

“You’re hungry. And you’re sweaty. We both are. Let me up so I can shower.”

He shifts to the side. “Fine. But I’m making an appointment with Dr. Taylor for later tonight.”

“See? This is why I didn’t tell you.” I get up and put my shirt on. “Now you’ll keep calling me a doctor when I haven’t even decided if that’s what I want to do.”
 

He yanks me back on the bed. “I was just having fun.”

“I know.” I kiss him quick, then jump up and put my jeans on and hurry to the door.

“I’ll meet you downstairs in 10,” he says as I leave.

I laugh as I walk back to my room. Dr. Taylor. It sounds so important. And although I’m laughing at the sound of it, I actually think I really could be a doctor someday.
 

One of the few good things about my mom was that she never said I couldn’t do something. Probably because she showed no interest in my life and didn’t care what I wanted to do. But because of that, I didn’t grow up thinking I wasn’t smart enough or determined enough. Money was my biggest obstacle. It still is. If I go to med school I don’t know how I’ll pay for it, but I know I could get through it and be a doctor someday.
 

Dr. Taylor. It still sounds funny.

Wednesday at physics class, Carson comes and sits down right next to me. I arrived early and Carson and I are the only two people there.