Choosing Happiness (5 page)

Jake quickly grabbed the condom and laid back to enjoy her attentions. He dropped the foil square on his stomach, then folded his hands beneath his head as he prepared to watch her.

She hovered over him, teasing him for several minutes before picking up the condom and unrolling it over him. She lowered herself over him, tipped her head back and reveled in the sensations. She moved over him until he could take the torment no longer and flipped her onto her back, taking over.

Later, Jake lay in the darkness with Andrea in his arms, awed by the moment. How right it felt to be holding the beautiful woman. He drifted off to sleep wondering how Ben would handle the news of the relationship he felt budding with his best friend’s sister.

A
ndrea woke to pale sunshine creeping into Jake’s bedroom. She rolled until she could see the clock. Seeing it was nearly seven, she slid out of bed, trying not to wake Jake as she got up and started dressing.

"Where are you going?" He rolled over to look at her, his voice husky with sleep.

"I've got to meet Mom to clean up the reception hall this morning."

He turned and looked at the clock then back at her. "That's not for another two hours."

"I know. I have to go home and change. I can't show up in last night’s dress." She looked around for her shoes and remembered she’d left them in front of the sofa.

He sighed and slid out of bed. "I can’t argue, but I don’t have to like it." Forgoing underwear, he pulled on a pair of jeans that had been draped over a nearby chair.

"You don't have to get up. Go back to sleep, you didn't get much last night." She smiled at the memory.

"If you can get up and get started, so can I." He padded up beside her and pulled her into his arms, holding her close for just a moment. "I'll walk you out."

"You don't have to do that. It's gonna be freezing out there and you're barefooted.

He looked down at her feet and lifted one brow.

“I know, my shoes are in the other room. I was just going to get them.” She turned and went to find her shoes.

Shoving her feet in the heels, she turned back to look at him. He was watching her every move but stayed silent as he raised both eyebrows and looked her in the eye.

"I know that look, Ben has one just like it. I won’t waste time arguing with you." She threw her arms up in defeat. "But if you get sick, don't come whining to me."

He laughed. Wrapping one arm around her shoulders, he walked her to the door. Opening the closet beside the front, door he pulled out a leather jacket. "Here, wear this home. Like you said, it's cold out there. That dress isn't going to keep you warm enough."

"Thank you." Andrea pulled the jacket on.

"I'll let you go out to the car alone, but I wasn't letting you slip out while I laid in bed." He bent down and gave her a brief kiss. "I'll see you in a couple hours."

"I'll see you," she said before opening the door and stepping out in the morning chill.

“Be careful of ice on the steps.” He called out before she could close the door.

“I will.”

It was colder outside than she'd anticipated. Not only was there ice on the stairs but on the sidewalk as well. She had to step carefully to avoid slipping on the patches left by the morning frost and falling on her ass. As she approached her little SUV, she thumbed the sequence on her key fob to start the car. She wanted the engine to start warming so the heater wouldn’t freeze her solid before it turned warm.

At home, she had just enough time to change and grab a bagel on her way out the door to meet her mom. Pulling into the parking lot at the reception hall, Andrea realized she hadn’t gotten the keys back from Jake the night before. How would she explain that to Mom? Parking, she was glad to see that Jake had already arrived but Mom hadn't. At least that was one thing she wouldn't have to do.

Inside the building, Andrea saw that Jake had obviously been there a while and he’d been busy. He had most of the tables cleared, all the centerpieces lined up on one table and was pulling the disposable plastic table cloths off the rest and stuffing them in a trash can he was moving around with him.

"You were supposed to wait for us." Andrea stood with her hands on her hips.

He turned and seeing her, smiled. "Hey! There's coffee and donuts on the table there. I wasn't sure what you guys would want so I got a variety."

She saw a box of donuts sitting open on one of the tables with three cups of coffee and a stack of condiment packets. "Are all the coffees the same?" she asked as she looked through the donuts in the box.

"The one on the corner is mine, the other two are black. I didn't know what everyone wanted so I grabbed some sugar and creamer packets. You can doctor your own."

Andrea picked up one of the cups and opened the lid, added a couple packets of sugar and stirred it briefly before taking a sip. Satisfied, she put the lid back on, then used her stirring stick to scratch an A on the lid before setting it near his on the corner and going to help him.

They managed to clear the last of the tables. Jake started laying them onto their sides folding in the legs and putting them away while Andrea worked on folding up chairs when Sophia arrived.

"Wow, you two have been busy!" She stopped in the doorway, surprised by their progress.

"Just trying to get it done, Mom."

"There's coffee and donuts on the table there, ma'am," Jake tilted his head in that direction.

"Oh, that was nice!" Sofia exclaimed as she went to the table. "But Jake, you've got to stop calling me ma'am. Ben said you two are close and he's told you to treat our family like it's your own. Call me Sophia or Mom, but not ma'am," She gave him a stern look before adding sugar and creamer to her cup and stirring it.

"Yes, ma'am."

She lifted one eyebrow at him, waiting for him to correct himself.

"I mean Sophia." Jake chuckled.

"Much better." She took a long drink and sat the cup back down on the table, not bothering to put the lid back on. Looking around, she seemed to be trying to decide what to do first. After a moment, she went to the walls and started pulling down the photos that had been pinned up, along with the other hanging decorations. She tossed the damaged decorations into the trash, folded up the others and stacked them and the pictures on the table with the center pieces.

As they worked they chatted and got to know each other a little, but mostly worked in silence. Jake folded tables and stacked them against one wall while Andrea did the same with the chairs. After a couple of hours they had the hall restored to the way they’d found it. They locked the place up and gave the keys to Sophia to turn in.

"Let me take the two of you to lunch." Jake offered.

"That's very sweet, Jake, but you don't have to do that," Sofia said.

"I know I don't have to, I want to. How often does a guy get to be seen with two beautiful women?" He grinned.

Sophia laughed. "All right, you've convinced me."

Andrea smiled as Jake charmed her mom.

"How about you?" Jake turned to Andrea.

"I'm in, then I'll have to get home. I've got a few chores to get done and I want to get to bed early. I've got the four AM shift."

T
hey still sat at the restaurant table, though Sophia had already left, Andrea turned to Jake. "Do you want to come out to my place? We can spend the afternoon together."

"I'd love to but I have a couple of things I need to do first. Can I meet you there in say,” he glanced at his watch, “an hour?"

"Sure," she agreed, giving him directions before each went their own way.

***

A
t home, Andrea made a quick pass through the house, straightening things and picking up the odds and ends she'd left lying around in her hurry to get ready for the wedding the day before and again this morning. She started a load of laundry and had just slowed down enough to pour a glass of iced tea when she heard a vehicle pull into the driveway. Looking out the window, she saw it was Jake and met him at the door.

"Hello." She opened the door as he stepped onto the porch. "I hope you didn't have any trouble finding the place?"

"Not at all. I'm used to receiving far less detailed directions and still getting where I'm headed. Finding you was no problem." He stepped close and bent, stealing a quick kiss.

"Come in. It's warmed up pretty good today but that wind steals warmth fast." She led him into the house, closing the door behind them.
"
I thought we might watch a movie, if that sounds all right.”

"A chance to sit and do nothing for a little while with you next to me? Sounds great. What movie do you have in mind?"

"I thought I'd let you choose," she said. "The bookshelf next to the TV is full of DVDs. Why don't you pick one while I make some popcorn and fix you a drink?"

"You don't have to go to the trouble."

"It's no trouble at all." She gave him a gentle push toward the living room and movies. "What would you like? I have tea, Coke, Pepsi, juice and beer."

"It's a little early for beer, but I’ll take a Pepsi, please."

"No problem, I'll be back in a couple minutes."

~~~

L
eft alone in the living room, Jake looked around. He liked what he saw. Her home was comfortable, lived in without being cluttered. He could be comfortable if he were to spend a lot of time here. That assumed things continued to go as well between them as he thought they had so far. Making his way over to the bookshelf filled with movies, he scanned the titles. A moment later, a muted whirring startled him. He turned toward the sound, then realized it was a hot-air popper. Andrea was making real popcorn, not the microwave kind. He followed the sound and found Andrea moving around the large, neat kitchen with confidence. He watched as she pulled a small cup with melted butter out of the microwave and set it on the counter near the bowl in front of the popper.

"Is there anything I can do to help?" he asked.

Andrea jumped. She turned and looked at him with wide eyes. "Oh!" She laid one hand against her chest. "You scared me."

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to.” He stepped closer. “You don't need to wait on me like this. I'm happy to help."

"Can you keep an eye on the popper and unplug it when it’s done? That will give me a chance to get your soda."

"No problem." He moved over to watch the popcorn as it started to pop inside the machine. He watched it grow, pouring into the waiting bowl with nearly the excitement of a child. He’d seen popcorn done this way a few times, but not many.

Once the popcorn was popped and Andrea had added the butter, shaking the bowl so it was all through it, they went back into the living room. Andrea loaded the movie Jake had picked out and they curled up together on the sofa.

Before the previews were over, Andrea got up and disappeared into another room. After a moment, she came back with a large fuzzy blanket and covered them both. Jake wrapped one arm around her and pulled her closer.

Long before the movie was over Andrea fell asleep, her head dropping against his chest. Jake sat quietly, careful not to wake her. It was nice having her relaxed and sleeping against him and he stayed there long past when the movie ended and the player kicked to a logo screen.

A couple hours had passed before she began to stir. Jake knew when she realized where she was, because she moved away. "I'm so sorry, that was beyond rude of me."

"Not at all, I enjoyed it. I know you didn't get much sleep last night. Besides, you have to work early tomorrow, you might as well get as much rest as you can."

"Still, I fell asleep on you. It's rude."

"Don't worry about it." He bent and kissed her cheek. "I considered dozing for a bit myself, but I didn't want to disturb you by trying to find a comfortable position."

"That I can do something about." She stood, pulled him to his feet and led him through the house. Pushing her bedroom door open, she went inside pulling him with her. "Here. We can both stretch out and get some rest, plus a little more if we want." She gave him coy look.

"A little more?" he asked, pulling her against him. "I think it’s more than a little."

She wrapped her arms around his waist and looked up at him. "I thought you might."

Lifting onto her toes and stretching upward, she pressed her lips against the point of his chin in a brief kiss before dropping back down. She tugged at his t-shirt, pulling the hem from his jeans so she could slide her hands underneath, against the smooth skin of his back. She laid her head against his chest and reveled in his warm strength.

"You smell so good," he said against her hair as his hands roamed the back of her body. He started in the middle of her back and worked his way down over her butt and back up again. "Though I think we may be a little over dressed for more than a nap, don't you?"

She was quiet for a few seconds before answering. "Maybe a little, but I know how to solve that." She backed away enough to put her hands between them and before he knew what she was doing she'd unbuttoned his pants and slipped one hand inside. "Hmmm... I like this."

"I do too, but something's still not right."

She frowned, then smiled. "We're both still wearing too many clothes."

"You got it in one." Jake tugged his shirt over his head and toed off his running shoes, managing to do both without moving enough to pull her hand out of his jeans. "But I'm closer than you are."

"Then I guess you have your work cut out for you don't you?” She grinned as she squeezed.

He groaned. "You mean I have to undress us both?"

"Seems like a fair trade to me."

"What do I get out of it?”

"This." She ran her hand along his length and squeezed him again. His breath caught.

"You're right. It is fair." He unbuttoned her shirt and slipped it off her shoulders before unhooking the front closure of her bra. He slid it off just as he'd done her shirt. Both were soon dangling from her arm still in his pants.

He removed her pants but didn’t bother with his before lifting her into his arms.