That Forbidden Love

Chapter 5

Jazmyn

Two days later, Jazmyn sat with Brianna under the shade of their favorite outdoor bar at the center of the Quarters, sipping a refreshing glass of mojito.

The day was an exceptionally hot one even for summer, and they’d opted out of hanging out in the airconditioned lounge out back to watch the Quarters bicyclists gearing up for their weekly competition.

Cyclists dressed in shorts and short sleeve jackets filled the street in front of them. Some sat and checked out their multicolored bicycles while others leaned against theirs, chatting animatedly with friends and spectators; of which a good number hung out in clusters by the sidewalks, in loose clothing and various shades of sunglasses.

While Jazmyn enjoyed watching the cyclists on an average day, especially because it was one of the only things that she was quite terrible at. This time around she feigned an interest in their beginning display to avoid her best friend’s disturbing questions about Zack Whittaker. But Bri wasn’t one to be easily deterred.

“Are you going to stop pretending you’re checking out those boys in skin-tights over there and give me all the details,” Brianna demanded, ” I can’t believe you are making me work hard for some juicy piece of gossip.”

Jazmyn sighed and took off her Ray-bans. ” You’re impossible, Bri. Nothing special happened, okay? We just talked and all. Why are you even listening to Madeline? You know how she romanticizes everything.”

“But he took you home, didn’t he?” Brianna didn’t look convinced as she took a sip from her glass of Merlot. “Was Madeleine wrong about that, or the way he couldn’t take his eyes off you?”

Jazmyn lowered her gaze to hide the smile that crept into her face but her best friend was quick to notice and pounced on it.

“Ha ha! That’s the smile right there. The one you’ve been trying hard to hide since I brought this up. Now give me all the details, girl!”

Jazmyn smile deepened into a blush at the enthusiasm on Bri’s face. It was almost as if she’d heard Jazmyn was on the Billboard 100 or had won a major music award.

“As I said earlier, it was really nothing,” she replied, taking another sip of her mojito. “He was surprised to see me performing on stage and we got talking afterwards. He even met the rest of the guys.”

“And?”

“He drove me home. End of story. What else did tattletale Madeline tell you happened at the party?” Jazmyn asked, fanning her face more against the heat creeping up her neck, rather than the sweltering weather.

“I know you Jazmyn and that is a load of crap. You are burning up and it isn’t from the noon temperature,” Brianna said with a teasing smile. “You admitted feeling different when you’d first met him, so you can’t tell me nothing else transpired between the both of you throughout the ride.”

Her best friend was right, even if it irked her to admit. Spending time with Zack on the evening of his birthday had been beyond wonderful and Jazmyn hadn’t stopped thinking of the blond-haired man who’d invaded her thoughts and dreams ever since the first moment they’d met.

She’d been surprised when he’d asked her to stay longer at the party but had been secretly pleased. The short drive around the city afterwards had been amazing and she’d learnt a lot of new interesting things about him that had certainly been surprising.

He wasn’t just the boring, workaholic she’d initially presumed, and possessed a sharp wit that not only excited but matched hers perfectly. There was no hiding how unbelievably drawn she was to him, or the sparks that crackled between them every time he stared into her eyes and their skin touched.

She felt like they’d met and known each other in a different time and couldn’t account for the strange sadness that had come over her right after he’d gotten the work beep, slipping back into the Zack Whittaker she’d met at the park.

It was almost hard trying to understand the strange connection they’d shared that evening, harder still to explain it to an overly curious friend whose gaze was fixated on her right then, urging her to continue.

“Look, Bri. I know you’re waiting to hear some sentimental nonsense but I’d have to disappoint you this time,” Jazmyn told her. ” Yeah, we talked and he is quite an interesting man but it doesn’t mean a thing.”

“Why is that so hard for me to believe?”

“Well, you better because the evening ended rather abruptly and there’s a chance that we might never cross paths again,” she added, uncaring about the smirk on Brianna’s face. “I’m not even that interested, especially in someone who is no fun and works all the time.”

” Uh…uh.”

” Yeah, now let’s talk about something else. Like when you and Ryan plan to fix the wedding.” Jazmyn changed the subject swiftly and gave her friend the inquisitory look.

Brianna laughed, her upswept bun coming slightly undone as her shoulders shook. “Always the evasive one, Jaz. Okay. I’d stop bugging now, and you should know better than to ask me about the wedding.

Ryan’s final exam isn’t till next month and we aren’t talking about the wedding till afterwards. You know all about that or were you just desperate to change the subject? I wonder why that is.”

Jazmyn summoned the brown-haired Latina waitress nearby rather than come up with something to say in response to that jab. “One more glass of mojito, please. Oh, and with a little extra gin this time.”

Immediately she nodded and left, Brianna pounced back like a stubborn little terrier, unwilling to let go of the conversation. “At least admit you like him, Jaz. It’s never been a problem for you. What’s different this time?”

That was a valid question. Why was she unwilling to admit how much different she felt about Zack? She’d never met anyone like him if she was being truly honest with herself.

Brimming with confidence and incredibly warm-hearted with a tough, imposing exterior, he’d awoken strange reactions inside her and it worried her very much. The past few days had indeed been spent thinking about him and wondering if they’d ever meet or speak again. There was no answer to give other than the truth this time around.

“Okay, okay! I really like him so much it’s strange,” Jazmyn finally admitted, feeling like a huge weight had been shrugged off her shoulders. “He excites me, yet it feels so different, unlike other men I’ve known and been with. Satisfied now?”

Brianna clapped her hands together and grinned, staring at her as if she’d suddenly sprouted horns. “Wow! Was it so hard to express how you feel about him?”

Jazmyn rolled her eyes, grateful that the waitress returned right then with her cocktail and mentally debated against ordering something a little bit stronger. It was just two o’clock and she had a rehearsals session with the guys in less than an hour. It wasn’t exactly advisable.

“So, what do you plan to do about it?” Brianna’s question was speculative as she tried wrapping the dark locks tumbling around her shoulder back into a bun.

“I know you, babe. This isn’t something you can treat casually so you’re holding back as usual. Would it be so hard to do things differently this time? You know, follow your heart?”