Phone Calls From a Rock Star (28 page)

I frowned. “Jake, I’m not a groupie or
anything like that. I’m your…girlfriend.”

His blue eyes filled instantly with warmth.
“Yes, I know. But my dad also told us that sex wasn’t just about
pleasure and feeling good for a little while. He warned us not to
cheapen it and remember that we wouldn’t be the only one engaging
in it – that we’d have a partner and to remember that that partner
had feelings.” He sighed again and pinched the bridge of his nose.
“What he essentially was trying to tell us was that girls were more
than warm bodies. And especially if we met a special girl to always
respect her and not let sex define love. Do you understand?”

I considered his words
before answering. I did get it. He didn’t
not
want me, but he respected me. He
wanted us to be a couple for a little while before taking that next
step.

“
Yes, I guess I do.” I
laughed nervously. “I actually, well, um, used to want to wait
until…you know…I got married. I thought it would be so
romantic.”

“
That’s not a bad thing,”
he said, but it seemed to pain him to admit it.

“
But Jake,” I continued,
determined to make him see that I didn’t just have a silly little
crush on him. “Jake, the feelings I have for you—well, I can’t
entirely explain it, but you are the first person that I haven’t
wanted to wait that long to…you know.”

He pressed his lips to mine. “I do love you,
Iz. I fell in love with you that night I met you. And I don’t want
to do anything to screw this up.”

I captured my lip between my teeth, still
battling that lingering self-doubt. He took my face in his hands.
“Don’t ever think I don’t want you; that I don’t desire you,
because I do. It’s very … difficult to put you off tonight –
especially as beautiful as you look right now. But just because I
love you and you love me doesn’t mean we have to automatically jump
into bed together. I’m not saying we have to wait until marriage,
but maybe we should at least wait until you finish high school. We
don’t have to set a time line. Let’s just bask in it for awhile,
huh?”

His crazy smile made me laugh so I kissed
him. My heart overflowed with love and I just wanted him to hold me
and not ever let go. “Okay.”

He rose from the bed and pulled me to my
feet. “Let’s get some sleep.

He turned the bed down and held the blankets
up so I could slide under them. He crawled in next to me and shut
off the lamp on the night stand. His hands found me in the dark and
eased me flush with his body. He kissed my head and I sighed.

“
I guess the nightie wasn’t
such a great Valentine’s Day present,” I murmured.

“
Oh, no, Iz. It’s a perfect
gift. You are absolutely breathtaking in it, and I am a lucky man
to be the only one to see it on you.” He kissed my collarbone. “You
look beautiful in my beat up t-shirts, but it is an excellent treat
to see you in this,” he said as his finger hooked the spaghetti
strap. “Thank you so much.”

I was grateful he couldn’t see the heat
flood my cheeks as I nestled closer to him. His arms tightened
around me and his warm breath tickled my cheek. My heart didn’t
pound as loudly but it still fluttered in my chest. I was
disappointed, a little, but filled with awe for the man lying next
to me. I knew he was a decent person—all four of them were—but I
never expected this. Exhaling, I closed my eyes. Maybe he was
right. Maybe it was too early in our relationship to take things to
that next level.

“
Get some sleep, angel,” he
whispered in my ear, his voice heavy and weary. “We have plenty of
time. I’m not going anywhere.”

A tiny smile graced my lips as I drifted off
into a peaceful sleep.

***

I was a little embarrassed the next morning
when I woke, my limbs tangled with Jake’s, wearing the slinky
nightie. The events of the evening returned to my brain and my
heart pattered. When I sat up, I found his lips curved in a slight
smile.

“
Morning,” he mumbled. He
ran his hand up and down my back. “You hungry? I’ll make
breakfast.”

His hair was rumpled, sticking up at odd
angles, and his eyes were heavy, still rimmed with sleep, but he
never looked more beautiful to me. I dropped a quick kiss on his
cheek. “I can help.”

His smile grew. “Not on your life, Iz. Your
mother warned me about you and kitchens.”

I jutted my bottom lip out and crossed my
arms over my chest. “I’m not that bad.”

He threw the blankets back and crawled out
of bed, holding out a hand. “I’m sure. But you’re my guest so I’ll
just cook for you.”

After breakfast, we prepared to go to Jake’s
father’s house. I was a wreck, naturally, and Jake noticed. His
face was relaxed, lips turned up, with amusement frolicking in his
blue eyes. “My dad is going to love you, don’t worry.”

Sure, easy for him to say. He held out my
coat, and I shrugged into it, resigned to the fact that I would
have to meet Jake’s family sooner or later. He spun me around and
zipped my coat, pausing to drop a light kiss on my lips. His eyes
crinkled with his smile. “I meant what I said last night, Iz. I do
love you.”

He still had a tight hold on my jacket, and
I was grateful for that. My bones softened, and I nearly crumpled.
“I love you, too.”

He squeezed me to his chest then took my
hand. “Come on. My dad’s probably waiting.

***

It took a little less than an hour to reach
his dad’s house in the suburbs. I was somewhat disappointed that we
didn’t get to drive downtown but I lived. The traffic was probably
murder, anyway.

Jake pulled his Mustang into the drive of a
handsome, brick two-story about the size of my parents’ house.
Butterflies took flight in my stomach as Jake took my hand and led
me up the walk, through the still frozen garden beds. I gnawed on
my lip and Jake noticed. He rubbed his thumb over my chin,
startling me.

His grin was incorrigible. “Don’t bite your
lip, angel. That’s my job now.”

My lip fell out of my mouth and followed my
jaw to the ground. My cheeks flushed as I gaped at him. Laughing,
he opened the door and yanked me inside. My jaw fell even lower as
I nearly barreled into an older, carbon copy of Jake.

“
You have to be Iz,” the
man said, smile crinkling his fading blue eyes. I nodded, unable to
speak. He chuckled and took my free hand. “I’m James
Johnson.”

“
It’s nice to meet you, Mr.
Johnson,” I managed to stammer.

“
Please, call me James,” he
insisted as he pulled his son into a manly hug.

“
Where’s Greta?” Jake
asked.

“
Behind you,
dork.”

We turned and I found myself face to face
with a dark haired beauty with eyes as sparkling blue as Jake’s.
She was a few inches taller than me and had a breathtaking smile.
She held her hand out to me. “I’m Greta. It’s really nice to
finally meet you.”

We sat around a handsome table in the cozy
dining room and talked for the rest of the afternoon. James was
extremely charming, and I wondered why the man was still single.
Warm and friendly, it was easy to talk to him. And it was evident
how much he adored his children—and vice versa.

Greta was a year older than
me and exuberant. I was probably as thrilled as she was that we hit
it off so quickly. I could easily see her hanging out with me,
Annie and Cammy. Although her brother was a huge rock star, she was
down to earth and just so
nice
that I loved her immediately.

James reminded me a lot like my own father.
He was perfectly at ease with his children and comfortable talking
about anything. Even when my mouth got started about my own family
and I rambled on and on, he smiled warmly, not the least bit
patronizing, and listened carefully. He asked questions about me
and my school and my future plans and often shot Jake approving
glances. My nervousness dissipated.

James took us to a neighborhood restaurant
for dinner. I held tightly to Jake’s hand, moving as close as
possible as quite a few people turned to stare. Jake either didn’t
notice or chose to ignore it as we followed our hostess. A couple
from a nearby table came over to greet the Johnson clan and James
invited them, and their daughter, to join us. He explained, for my
benefit of course, that they lived around the corner. Jake tensed
beside me, and I fumbled for his hand under the table. He gave it a
squeeze, grateful little grin popping on his face.

James introduced the couple as Peter and
Cynthia and their daughter as Michelle. I didn’t catch their last
name as I was too busy watching Michelle eye Jake as though he were
a fine piece of art. Or a side of beef.

“
What do you do, Isabella?”
Cynthia asked.

“
I’m in my last year of
school,” I answered simply. I didn’t want to appear rude but there
was absolutely no need to get my mouth going. Who knew where it
would stop.

“
Oh? What university do you
attend?” she asked, only slightly interested. “Michelle is in her
first year at DePaul.”

“
I’m a senior at Meridian
Valley. It’s a boarding school,” I explained. Michelle raised a
haughty brow, amused smirk puckering her glossed lips. “I’ve been
accepted to West Village University. They have an excellent
Elementary Education program.”

Jake beamed at me. “You didn’t tell me you’d
been accepted. That’s great.”

“
Thanks,” I mumbled. “I
just found out.”

Heat burned my cheeks as all eyes found me.
I wanted to slide under the table. I hate attention.

“
I’m studying law,”
Michelle announced with a lift of her proud chin.

But Greta cut her off before she could
boast. “I’ve been thinking about teaching, also. Maybe I should
check into West Village.”

“
It’s a nice place,” Jake
added. He gave my hand a squeeze. “We played there New Year’s
Eve.”

“
What do your parents do?”
Peter asked. I forced a smile. What was it with these people? What
do you do? What do your parents do? What’s next? Were they going to
ask what my pets did? I didn’t have any but I didn’t think that
would matter much to them.

“
They’re both attorneys in
my grandfather’s law firm.”

Michelle lifted her glass to her lips to
cover her snort. Greta nudged my thigh with hers and suppressed a
giggle. I glanced at her, curious. She looked pointedly at Michelle
and rolled her eyes.

I managed to keep my mouth rumbling to a
minimum and therefore kept from embarrassing myself. I managed this
by shoveling food in it constantly. Michelle eyed me with disdain,
her eyes triumphant by my obvious poor manners. I didn’t care.
Better her and her family think me a slob than me to say something
stupid and embarrass Jake and his family.

Finally, dinner finished and we bid each
other goodnight. I climbed into the backseat of James’s car with
Greta and heaved a huge sigh of relief. Jake chuckled in the
passenger seat. “Were you a little hungry, Iz?”

“
Ha. Ha,” I retorted. James
raised at brow at his son.

“
Iz has an unfortunate
habit of rambling sometimes,” Jake explained. He winked over his
shoulder at me.

James laughed as my cheeks burned. “Don’t
worry, Iz. I wouldn’t have cared if you would have ticked them off.
They’re a little stuffy and always trying to outdo everyone else in
the neighborhood.”

I relaxed as Greta giggled beside me.
“Michelle has the hots for Jake anyway.”

I perked and glanced at Jake who suddenly
found the streetlights outside his window fascinating.

“
Really?” I asked. “Another
member of your fan club?”

“
Can’t help it, Iz,” he
said, a little smug. I was certain he was smiling as I noticed his
cheek lifting.

“
Glad to see your ego is as
big as ever, dear brother,” Greta groaned.

We reached the Johnson house and Jake and I
bid the others goodnight. We got in his Mustang and drove back to
his house. He held my hand on top of the armrest as he concentrated
on the traffic.

“
I told you my dad would
love you,” he said.

He did, true, but no need to stoke that
already oversized head of his. I mean, he was pretty much right
about everything. “Yep.”

I watched his face out of the corner of my
eye and a crooked smirk crinkled his eyes. My heart lifted, and I
suddenly couldn’t wait to get back to his house. I wanted nothing
more than to be curled up in his arms, all alone.

“
Did you bring a bathing
suit?” he asked, breaking the silence.

I was starting to question his sanity. It
was February, after all, and I wasn’t anxious to take a dip in the
little lake in the back of his house. “No, I guess I forgot it. I
don’t know how I could have forgotten it, though. I mean, the heat
wave we’ve had and all.”

He chuckled. “I meant for the hot tub on the
deck.”

Oh. “Oh.” I clamped my lips together. That
made sense, I guess. “No. I didn’t even think about it.”

“
Don’t worry. We’ll try the
hot tub next time.”

My heart flittered against my ribs. Every
time he mentioned a future that included us, together, my heart
expanded and my stomach flipped. “Okay.”

He held me again that night, his soft heart
beat lulling me to sleep. We spent all day Sunday either wrapped in
each other’s arms or walking his grounds in the snow. He talked
about how his band got started and his close friendship with the
other guys. He asked me about my family and things from my
childhood. He quizzed me constantly, in an effort to learn every
minute detail about me, and I loved him all the more.