He turned around and looked at me again and this time, his eyes were hard. “Listen…” he started.
My brother, Rider, was suddenly between us. “You. Come,” Rider was physically pulling me away by shackling my bicep with his hand. He was marching me toward the kitchen before I could manage to protest.
Before I could do anything to stop it, I was in the kitchen and then in Dad’s office. Two seconds later, the door swung again as Jenna came in, too.
“What in the fuck are you doin’?” my brother asked.
“Uh… what the fuck are you doing?” I fired back.
“Rider. Leave her alone,” Jenna said from behind me. I looked over my shoulder to see a horrified look on her face; she’d obviously seeing him march me in.
“I will fucking not leave it alone, Jenna. Joelle? What gives?”
“With?” I asked.
“Do not go chasin’ Fork. We don’t need that shit.”
“What are you on about?” I asked carefully, shooting Jenna a questioning look.
She shook her head subtly. She hadn’t ratted me out for that moment earlier. I could tell.
“You’re followin’ him like a lost puppy tonight,” my brother said, “and I can read you like a fuckin’ book. Not happening.”
“What’s not happenin’?”
He looked at me like I was thick. “You ‘n Fork.”
“Me and Fork?” I parroted, looking at him like I was lost.
“Not happening. I fuckin’ mean it. Stop.” He pointed in my face and stormed out.
Jenna blocked the door to stop me from leaving. “What was that?”
“What was what?”
“You n’ Chris. You two looked like you were standing at the altar ready to tie the knot when he got here and then you’re following him around and trying to get his attention. And he’s pretending you don’t exist.”
I felt both validation and mortification blend together at that statement because yes, I knew that we’d had a moment. And humiliation because he was definitely trying to pretend I didn’t exist and then when I forced him to see me, he acted like I was a nuisance. And it’d been noticed.
I’d had a few potential plans lined up for the evening.
Plan A: I’d buy him a beer and we’d talk and have great conversation and it’d take things to a different place with us, a place where the night would end with me giving him my number and maybe even him walking me to my room and then we’d both lie there thinking about how great the conversation and the chemistry was until he asked me out because he’d otherwise lay there in his bed with a wall between us wishing it wasn’t between us.
Plan A, Alternate Ending: depending on how the conversation went, it could turn to making out, outside behind the bar before saying goodnight. A kiss that if I wasn’t the girl in the kiss – would be talked about for days in a swoony way, because it would rival even that kiss Spencer and Pippa had that had everyone talking for days. Mine and Christian’s make-out session would have to be more subtle than that. Because I didn’t want my brothers to try to break his gorgeous face. And I didn’t want him to fight back and hurt my brothers and the chance of an amicable brother-in-law relationship down the road.
Plan B: Crash into him in the alcove by the men’s room accidentally-on-purpose and look deep into his eyes and see if he kissed me. If not, kiss him and then walk away with a fabulous one liner that would let him know I was up for more and totally fucking worth it.
I hadn’t figured out what I’d say. I’d tried a few pickup lines in the mirror that morning, but they’d all sounded cheesy.
Me: “Can I take your picture, Fork?”
Him (hopefully): “Yeah, why?”
Me: “So I can show Santa what I want for Christmas.”
Or
Me: “Excuse me, but do you moonlight at Little Caesars?”
Him (most likely…): “No, why?”
Me: “Because you’re hot and I’m ready.”
<<Insert wink and exit was sexy swish in my walk.>>
Or
Me: Do you believe in love at first sight or should I walk by you again?”
Or
Me: “Did you know that your body is about 70% water? And fuck, am I thirsty!”
In my daydreams he’d loved my cheesy pickup line, he’d find me irresistible, tuck my hair behind my ear as he leaned in for a kiss and that’d be the beginning of our forever.
My plan with Brady was mostly to get him to get Christian here when we were all having a good time. Brady was going to get us at a table together and I was going to be cute, flirty, and irresistible for starters. He’d have no choice but to acknowledge my existence.
But, then he went and walked in and we had that moment and I messed the plan up by approaching him instead. I decided to go back to that plan. Once I got past Jenna.
***
“He’s perfect for me,” I told Jenna, who was still blocking the door.
“See… I don’t think he is, Jojo.” She was serious.
“How the hell would you know?” My back went arrow-straight.
“I’ve known him for forever. Ella and I lived next door to each other since kindergarten and he’s her cousin, so he was there a lot when we were kids. He was an absolute nightmare. Pranks. Cruel pranks and such an effing bully, not just with us but other kids, too. He made his little brother, who had a crush on our friend Stef, intentionally step in dog shit in front of all of us just to avoid Chris’s wrath and then he pants’d her to add insult to---”
“Uh, wasn’t this over a decade ago?”
“Injury. Yeah, but as an adult he probably isn’t much better. Think about where he comes from.”
“He’s related to Ella.”
“Yeah. And she hates him. He’s the demon spawn of Wild Will Forker who wanted to do disgusting things to Ella…”
“You thought Spency was an asshole but then you were all about him and Pippa getting together.”
“Yeah, but he’s not like Chris. Chris is…”
“Perfect for me.”
“How do you know that?”
“I don’t know it, but I suspect it and the only way to find out is to find out. He rescued Ella. He’s helped our club. He’s one of us now. He---”
“Jojo, why are you pursuing him? You’re gorgeous. Seriously gorgeous. You shouldn’t have to pursue a guy. They should be doing the chasing. You can’t have the upper hand at all if---”
“That’s ass backwards. If I want somethin’, I’m goin’ for it, Jenna. I want him. I wanna see if he wants me, too. You saw how he looked at me tonight and ---”
“Yeah, and your three brothers, your dad, and the rest of them will all have an effing coronary…”
“Knowing only a little about him but knowing as much as I do, he won’t let that deter him if he wants me. How many guys are going to be brave enough to go head-to-head with my family, the club…”
“The Jojo and Fork show was pretty interesting to watch,” she mused. She twisted her lips thoughtfully. “And if anyone has the balls…”
“Exactly! And he is gorgeous, Jenna.”