Shattered: A Salvation Society Novel Bella Emy (best ebook reader for laptop .TXT) 📖

of his fixated on his face. If he only knew what she just said…

But would it have been so bad if we would have kissed?

God, what am I talking about? We’re just now starting to get along after not liking him for so long, borderline hating him… kind of… sort of… maybe?

“C’mon, for real, Lexi. Are you having a good time?”

I smile genuinely. “Yes, it’s been great.”

Kalen catches my eye and winks. Is it normal for him to make me feel all warm and mushy inside?

“Well, girl. Don’t keep that man waiting. Go on, enjoy your birthday. I know it’s going to be a busy day ahead…”

Now I’m confused. “What? How do you know?”

She lets out a laugh. “You know, we talked.”

“Who?” I question.

“Kalen and me. We’re best buddies when it comes to you.”

My eyes widen. “What?!”

She laughs again. “Bye, girl.” Then she hangs up before I have a chance to say anything more.

“Everything good?” He’s donning a devilish smirk that tells me he knows more than he’s letting on.

Well, fuck. Of course he does. Apparently, he and my best friend are best friends.

I raise an eyebrow and then give him one of my own smirks. “Peachy.”

He flashes me his smile again, and if he doesn’t stop doing that soon enough today, I don’t know how I will get through the rest of the day. “Great, then are you ready to get your birthday celebration under way?”

I nod. “Sure am. What’s up first?”

“Glad you asked. We’ll be there in about twenty minutes.”

“Wow, this is delicious,” I say after swallowing a mouthful of pancakes and eggs. We’re at this pancake house at a neighboring island resort. Sure, it’s already just past two in the afternoon, but is there ever really a wrong time to eat pancakes?

He smiles at me from across the table. “I’m glad you like it.” He chuckles.

“What?” I ask with a grin.

He shakes his head. “Nah, it’s nothing.”

I reach across the table and grab his hand… surprising myself in doing so, and by the look on his face, surprising him, too.

“Well, you didn’t think I’d forget, did you?”

“Forget?” I search his eyes, but he’s not letting anything on.

Shrugging, he replies. “You’ve always loved pancakes. They’ve been your favorite food since I can remember, and you’re sort of, kind of, obsessed with them for lunch and dinner, for whatever the reason.” He winks.

I gasp. “Obsessed?”

He chuckles, stabbing a piece of pancake on his plate with his fork and then placing it in front of me. “Uh-huh. Go on, try mine.”

I smirk.

“Go on. They’re delicious. Homemade recipe.”

It does smell amazingly good. I eye the food on his fork, contemplating about doing what he’s telling me to do. I raise an eyebrow. “Homemade recipe? How do you know that?”

“The owner of this place is one of my best friends.”

“Oh, really?”

He nods. “Really. Now, take a bite.”

I scrutinize the piece of pancake on his fork, and without thinking any further, I lean forward and take the bite he’s offering me. I chew, and it melts in my mouth. My eyes widen.

He chuckles. “I told you.”

After swallowing, I ask, “What flavor is that?”

He shrugs. “Heck if I know. All I do know is that I’ve been ordering the house special since I’ve started coming here to Jake’s.”

“Jake’s?”

He nods. “Yes, that’s my friend… and owner of this restaurant.” He points to the sign over to our left. “Jake’s Place. Hey, there he is,” he says, pointing to a man to our left making his way toward us. Kalen rises from his seat. “Hey, Jake!”

I automatically rise, too, following Kalen’s lead as a man about his height with sandy blond hair and a clean-shaven face walks up to our table.

“Mr. Hot-Stuff, himself! It’s so good to see you again.” He and Kalen embrace in a manly hug as they chuckle.

Once they pull apart, Kalen comes closer to me, placing his hand on the small of my back, sending a thousand bolts of electricity to float through me. “Lexi, this is the man responsible for all that goodness on your plate. Meet my good friend, Jacob Garcia.”

Jacob comes forward reaching for my hand. “Please, call me Jake, miss.”

I smile, shaking his hand. “Lexi,” I respond.

He nods. “Lexi, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“Likewise.”

We pull away and then Jake says to Kalen, “So, you guys going to stay around long? They’ve got the big annual fiesta planned for this evening over at Starfish by the Sea.” Jake looks at me, realizing I have no idea what that is. “Starfish is the big casino on the pier. They have a party every year around this time. There’s food, games, live music… you name it, they’ve got it.”

Kalen, with his hand still on my back, responds. “Maybe we’ll come back for it tonight, but there’s something else I’ve got planned for Lexi this afternoon.”

I turn my head to face him and he winks at me. “Today’s her birthday,” he tells Jake.

“Well then, Happy Birthday, Lexi! I hope you have a fantastic day. Please, order some dessert… everything is on the house.”

“Aww, you don’t have to do that, Jake,” Kalen says.

Jake’s not hearing it. “Nonsense! It’s my pleasure. You guys—” His cell phone rings, interrupting him. He pulls it out from his pocket and takes a look at the screen. “I’m sorry, guys. I’ve got to take this. But you two, please, order anything you want on the house, and make sure you come back tonight for the party. It’s going to be epic! Kalen, I’ll see you later. Lexi, it’s been a pleasure meeting you!” He runs off just as Kalen and I say our good-byes to him.

We take our seats and resume eating our meal.

“Jake seems like a very nice guy,” I say.

Kalen nods. “He is. He’s one of the best friends I’ve ever had.”

I nod back. “So did you guys become friends before or after you discovered your love of his house special pancakes that taste like heaven on a plate?”

He chuckles, but only for