Page 37 of Jinxed Hearts

Guilt gnaws at my chest. I shouldn’t be here. Shouldn’t be looking at her like this. Shouldn’t be imagining all the ways I’d ruin her.

But fuck. She makes me hard.

“Jenna. Izzy.” I set the drinks down, trying to act normal when my brain is anything but. “Good morning, ladies.”

“Good morning, hot stuff,” Izzy teases. “I mean, Dylan. Are all your friends as stupidly good-looking as you?”

I cock my brow. “Probably not. But my best friend Luis is recently divorced, heartbroken, has great hair, and has that whole sexy Latin thing going on.”

Izzy laughs, but it’s Jenna’s voice that makes me freeze.

“Izzy would definitely make him less lonely,” she says, twirling lazily in her seat. She’s always moving, always restless. “But she’d break his heart all over again.”

I chuckle as my mind strays. All I can think about is tying her to that damn chair, making her sit still long enough to—Her phone rings, slicing through my dirty thoughts.

“I would not break his heart, maybe his penis, but not his heart, at least not right away,” Izzy quips.

These two are hilarious—and way too gorgeous for my sanity. I need to get back to work before my penis wakes up again.

“That’s exactly what Luis needs right now,” I joke, stepping back.

Izzy keeps talking, but my focus shifts entirely to Jenna as she answers her phone.

“Mom, I’m not doing it. I told you ten times. Please stop asking me. You go. I need to work. Not everyone can save trees and do yoga all day. Love you, bye.”

I tilt my head, curiosity piqued. “Not doing what?”

“She wants me to see a psychic and unjinx myself,” Jenna mutters, exasperated.

Izzy perks up instantly. “I think your mom might be onto something. Remember when I saw one for my twenty-first birthday? She said I’d marry a rich Italian, and we’d stay best friends.” She grins. “She was half right. Let’s do it together, you know, for fun. What do you think, Dylan?”

“I’m staying out of this,” I say, trying to hide my smile. “But I’d honestly pay to hear what a psychic would say to Jenna.”

“There’s nothing to say.” Jenna shrugs, grinning. “I love my mom. But she’s… a little nuts. I’m not going.”

She turns to leave, and my eyes land on the curve of her back. “I should get back to work,” I mutter to Izzy. But instead, I follow Jenna to the break room, getting sucked deeper into her world. I need to talk to her and know how she feels.

Jenna’s filling her water bottle at the counter as I walk inside. She turns around. “Hey.”

My pulse races as I step closer. “Why have you been avoiding me?”

She glances at me, then looks away. “I haven’t been avoiding you.” Her voice is quiet. “Just… putting some distance between us.”

“I get that. I’m good at distance.” I nod slowly, raking a hand through my hair. “I’m sorry. For kissing you. For making things complicated. Can we go back to being friends?”

Her eyes meet mine. “Dylan… you have nothing to apologize for,” she mutters. “It’s my fault. My responsibility to stop things, not yours.”

Her words hit like a punch to my chest because I’m to blame. She never asked for any of this.

“And yes. We can try and stay friends,” she says with uncertainty. “We still have to work together until the renos are done.”

“Okay,” I reply, my voice tight. “Friends.”

I can do this. I can keep my hands to myself. Be her friend, even if I want to kiss her every damn time she walks into the room.

Chapter 14: Fucket List

Jenna: November