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As the days pass by my mind Are the wrong, the right, you are my sunshine
"So, are you two done fucking about?"
Josh's inane comment has sent the evening spiraling at such a velocity that Jake had struggled for something to grasp onto as everything tumbled out of control.
Things between him and Alex had been going well, incredible, even, but the prodding remark from his twin had pulled at one of the loose strings of his ever-present insecurities-and now the whole thing promised to unravel.
Of course, there were trifling doubts. How could there not be? They'd conducted themselves with a lacking composure in the past; too many hasty decisions and their untimely repercussions tainted the still tense air between them.
But, this time was supposed to be different.
So when Alex made her smart statement about them not being on tour right now, instead of something more profound to cement their newfound stability-Jake found himself incensed.
Clearly, she was still playing games and not altogether taking this seriously if she couldn't be sincere-couldn't even make an effort to construct, or even acknowledge, their plans for the future.
The dinner had turned sour, stale with that understanding, even if Jake was the only one willing to accept it-and he wasn't inclined to ignore the shift for even a second longer in the name of decorum.
So he'd pulled them away from the table and his brothers in the hopes of clearing some of the malodorous air between them-and it had almost worked.
Almost.
Alex proclaimed all the sentiments he wanted to hear most while isolated out back of the restaurant. She was committed to making their relationship work, and she would create a plan for moving forward. Most importantly, she did love him, though the prospect scared her-that he knew without her needing to say as much.
But when her mouth clamped shut after he'd asked what Josh had said, all that good favor went out the window. Hadn't she condemned him before for lies of omission? And here she was living with a lie of her own-a big one too, if the wary looks she and Josh shared as they were leaving the establishment were anything to go by.
Endless possibilities tumbled like loose marbles in his head, and he wasn't quite quick enough to catch one before another flew past. Jake knew they regularly talked after the breakup. Hell, she kept in contact with everyone but him during the absence. That wasn't new information and shouldn't cause them to look so disturbed by him finding out about it.
No, this was something entirely different, and he couldn't help but assume it was something he didn't want to hear-and that's why they'd bothered to keep it quiet until Alex's slip of the tongue had exposed them both.
