34. JACE
872 Words
Isabelle’s balcony doors opened and his head whipped to face her on instinct.
She appeared moments later, a sheepish smile on her face, as she walked to the end of the balcony to meet him.
“Hey, you,” he said, a huge smile lighting up his face.
“Hey, yourself.”
“Did you come for some air, or were you looking for me?”
She grinned back sheepishly. “Would you believe I wanted your opinion on my outfit?”
“Me? Not that I’m not flattered, but I would just assume you’d go to Maia or Tate before asking me.”
Isabelle winced slightly. “Maia is being super weird around me and Tate, so I couldn’t ask her, and I need an opinion from someone who doesn’t see me as a stupid little sister.”
Jace knew very well Tate didn’t see her as his little sister, but he wasn’t going to argue against being her first pick.
“Well, what do you need me to do?” he asked, lounging on the rail.
Isabelle took a slight step back and then motioned to her outfit like it was a prize to be won on a game show.
She was wearing short denim shorts that hugged her hips and showed off those legs of hers, with a loose button up, v neck shirt that had her neon pink bikini showing through. Her blonde hair was piled on top of her head in a messy bun with strands falling out around her face.
Mine. He thought possessively, catching himself off guard.
“What was the question again?” he asked, trying to shake some sense back into himself.
Isabelle blushed, but her smile was bright. “Well, I’m going for ‘pretty girl that no one wants to punch.’’’
Jace ignored the stab of guilt, and just looked her over again, inch by inch. “I was going to say you look more like a dream I once had, but your version works too.”
Isabelle’s smile was radiant. “Great! Thank you. Is that what you’re wearing?”
He looked down at himself for the first time and noticed he hadn’t bothered to change out of the boxer briefs he’d thrown on after his shower. He felt suddenly exposed standing here, half naked in front of this vision of a girl, but being self-conscious wasn’t going to get him anywhere with her. So instead, he moved into a ridiculously provocative pose.
“You don’t think I’m wearing it well?”
She blushed a deep scarlet, but instead of looking away shyly like he expected her too, she made a show of looking him up and down like he had done to her.
“No, I think you wear it too well, which is only going to lose you friends at the party,” she said finally, with a flirty smile.
“Who needs them? As long as I have you as my friend, I’ll be fine.”
She rolled her eyes as she laughed. “You’re such a goof sometimes. Anyway, do you need a ride tonight?”
“You’re not drinking?”
“Yeah, right, like Maia would ever let that happen. No, my Dad offered to drive us – he has the big van, so we can all fit.”
“That’s nice of him,” he said, as he moved to sit back on his couch.
“Nice?” Isabelle scoffed. “He’s only doing it so he knows the address and can come back later for a drive by and pull me out if he feels it’s not going well.”
Must be nice to have a Dad care so much, he thought.
“I’m sorry,” she said sincerely.
Shit, had he said that out loud? Super smooth Jace, bring up your ‘daddy issues’ to the girl you like - nothing more romantic than that.
“Don’t worry about it,” he told her casually, eager to move past his little slip up. “And thanks for the lift. What time should I be ready?”
She raised one perfect eyebrow. “Aren’t you already?”
He sighed dramatically. “Alas, I fear you are right and this is too much hotness for everyone to handle. I will cover myself appropriately so I don’t burn everyone’s eyes with my beauty.”
She giggled quietly. “Must be such a hard cross to bear, being so inhumanely beautiful.”
He nodded gravely. “It is, but then again, you’d know all about that.”
With a wave and a wink he left her beaming on the balcony as he headed inside and closed his door and curtains behind him.
He let out a deep breath and flopped onto his bed.
He made a quick recovery on that one, but he needed to do better. He needed a plan that was guaranteed to succeed and he needed to stop making an i***t of himself if he didn’t want to lose her before she even had a chance to be his.
It killed him to admit it, but what he really needed was Maia.
He groaned to himself.
No good could ever come from this.
- Writer
