Free True North by Allie Juliette Mousseau Page A

you.”
    He halted at the top of the jacket. “Maybe it would be better if you did hate me. I’m so damaged, Liv, I don’t think I can ever become whole enough to love you the way you should be loved.”
    I needed him; I loved him, and he needed and loved me back. He’d just made the first move. Could I be brave enough now to make the next one?
    I shook off my fear and slowly glided my hands up his arms, over each crease of his coat and rise of his muscle, till I found his throat. My fingers lilted over the veins and the Adam’s apple I had been so hypnotized by earlier, until I met the delicious roughness of his jaw.
    Slowly I let my head and face fall away from his enough so that I could position my lips over his. He still controlled my necklace cord with his fingers. Two inches and closing—my heart was beating wildly.
    His nose grazed mine, and he held steady.
    He groaned, “Livie, I shouldn’t have done this, but I couldn’t let you go. I should have just let you go.”
    “ No,” I protested. “I don’t want to be let go.”
    Jake lowered his face and rested his forehead against mine. His lips gone; his heart hidden.
    “ I don’t know what to do, Liv.”
    Love me … “Please, Jake … don’t give up.”
    “ Don’t give up?” he echoed.
    “ Don’t quit,” I reaffirmed. Jake had never been a quitter.
    “ What if I were to ask Nate if you could be my date to the concert tonight?” he asked.
    That made me smile.
    “ You might need to ask me first,” I countered.
    He chuckled. “That’s fair. Olivia, would you be my date for the concert tonight?”
    “ I’d love to be your date, but you’re going to have to ask my overprotective big— really big —brother.”
    Jake’s smile was glorious, and I felt a little closer to finding him.

    “ OH MY GOD!!!” Jules shrieked and jumped in circles around her room.
    I leaped into the air and bounced on her bed, landing on my back, kicking and flailing my arms and legs like a toddler.
    “ He really said ALL of that?”
    “ Yep, he’s out talking to Nate right now,” I confirmed.
    “ OHMYGODOHMYGODOHMYGOD!” she cried.
    We both screamed. It couldn’t be helped.
    “ Okay, what are you going to wear?” she asked.
    “ Oh shit. I only brought the two outfits ‘cause I was going to travel back to school tomorrow. What are you going to wear?” I sat up and hugged a pink pillow. Everything in Jules’ room was pink.
    “ I don’t have anything special …” she thought to herself. “Nate’s going too, right?”
    “ That’s what he said,” I verified.
    “ Let’s go shopping! We’ll have to hurry before the best places close.” Jules threw on her running shoes.
    “ I don’t have enough spare funds to just go buy a new dress,” I grumbled.
    “ I got it,” she sang, tempting me.
    “ I could always pay you back later,” I suggested.
    “ Yeah, whatever, let’s go!”
    We grabbed our jackets and bags and raced out the door.

    “ Let’s go in the back door,” I said when we got back to the house. “I’m too nervous to see him. Holy hell! I didn’t feel like this earlier—now I don’t even know what I’m going to say to him. I’m freaking out!”
    “ Calm. Down.” Jules held my face in her hands. “I’ll go first. We are SO going to knock them out.”
    “ Their eyes are going to fall out,” I agreed. “Okay—do it.”
    We got out of the car and grabbed our bags from the back. Jules started humming the Mission Impossible theme song, and I tried to stifle my laughter.
    In the house we heard the guys making a ton of noise from the basement level where there was a huge bar and game room with pool tables, foosball and darts. They entertained a lot down there. We booked it to her room, took turns taking showers then fixed our hair and makeup.
    “ I can’t believe we’re doing this,” Jules giggled. We’d already had a couple drinks while we were getting ready.
    I took another sip. “Don’t judge. I’d never leave the