Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
She's a woman in a dream One that makes you fall in love
Alex regretted ever agreeing to this, what with her clammy hands wringing themselves endlessly in her lap while she replayed possible scenarios in her mind—readjusting her anticipated reactions as she went.
All the time, Jake sang along to John Denver merrily in the driver's seat without a care in the world. She jealously resented his carefree demeanor, at the same time wondering whether he had felt a similar dread at the prospect of meeting her father.
"How likely," he started, interrupting her swirling thoughts with his hand sliding teasing up her thigh to rest too high to be considered decent. "Am I to get lucky this weekend?"
In mock offense, Alex sucked on her teeth and shooed his intrusive fingers away from her leg. "Keep dreaming, buddy," she dismissed, rolling her neck along the headrest to offer his profile a pointed, disapproving look. "I think the whole Kiszka clan might kill the mood."
They'd flown into Detroit earlier in the day, then rented a car to drive the rest of the way to Frankenmuth from the airport. Plenty of people had offered to pick them up when they'd landed, but Jake must have sensed she'd need an escape from too much family time, a quick means of retreat. So, instead, he'd made an excuse of wanting to show her the local sights without having to inconvenience anyone by borrowing a vehicle.
It was a lie, surely, but one Alex was thankful for because it gave her more time to steel herself for what came next. Did his family still resent her for the breakup? Did they even know what had actually happened? What exactly had Josh, Jake, Sammy, or, hell, even Danny told the other Kiszkas about her, for that matter?
She hadn't been brave enough to ask before, but as the miles slowly slipped away and the scenery changed from urban to rural, Alex found those questions all the more pressing.
"Relax, they're going to like you," Jake aimed to reassure as his hand returned to rubbing soothing circles across her thigh, probably noting her ever-increasing anxiety. "And I always did want to hook up in my old bedroom."
She chuckled and rolled her eyes despite herself. "I'm sure you did plenty of hooking up in your old bedroom. Don't forget, I've seen the pictures, emo boy." Flashes of a younger Jake, one with swooped hair and a cocky grin, ran unabated through her mind.
Would they have liked each other if she'd gone to school in Michigan, or he'd attended her preppy performance arts school in California? It stood to reason that Alex would have had a substantial crush on him, given her infatuation with musicians, but he probably would have been preoccupied with his girlfriend to give her a second look.
Although, history had proven that assumption entirely untrue.
"You're not exactly wrong," he conceded, taking an exit off the highway. "But, we're about fifteen minutes from home. So, whatever questions you're dwelling about over there, you better get to asking." Of course, he knew she was anguishing over everything. He'd accused her of being neurotic enough times to have the response down to a science.
