Free Never Just Friends (Spotlight New Adult Book 2) by Mina V. Esguerra

You’ve met Victor, you know he isn’t Victor. Jake Berkeley, this is Rocco Leone. Rocco’s with an energy fund that we used to work with.”
    “Jacob Berkeley of the opening remarks,” he said. “And you’re making me seem like a stranger, Lindsay. I thought you considered me a friend. Victor is history?”
    Lindsay’s brow revealed a mild annoyance, but she was staying casual. “He remains a colleague, like you are.”
    “Oh, how far down we’ve been demoted. I should have called more in between conferences. It’s my fault.” Rocco stepped back, theatrically putting a hand to his heart. Jake still wanted to clock him. “I think I will see you at your three p.m. panel, Lindsay. Enjoy the rest of your morning. Jake.”
    He nodded back at the guy, not even bothering to speak, when he had barely been spoken to.
    Lindsay watched Rocco walk away, at the same time pressing closer against Jake’s body. Not so much that it would have been inappropriate in the busy hall, but enough to make a statement. “You’ll probably want to talk about that.”
    No, he would rather not. He killed it at the goddamn opening plenary. He wanted to celebrate, before the media appointments sucked his time away.
    “Should we?” he said anyway.
    “Only because it opens up a conversation we should have,” she said. “But I have work, and you have meetings...and we should do this at the end of the day.”
     
     

Chapter 16
     
     
    A conversation they should be having. What exactly would that be? Because Jake thought they were cruising along rather well, considering the drastic change in their friendship dynamic. His one worry was that he would destroy something when he revealed just how much he desired her. Sometimes, it was more than that, and was a nagging fear that he was cursed to poisoning those he came too close to. He wondered often if that was why he had gotten along with Lindsay that well for that long. (Because he hadn’t stuck the poison in her. Until recently.)
    He thought it was going fine so far. It felt right. But he knew it would. Jake knew it, in his gut, that once he got over all the reasons to keep her away, it would be like this. She was the same person, wasn’t she? Their easy conversations were still there. The way she simultaneously ribbed him over his bad study habits (college seemed like a lifetime ago already) and patiently explained office politics and everything else, before and after sex that wiped everything else from his brain.
    It was all the same, but for the addition of knowing that when she came, her hands curled up into tight fists. Among other little details.
    And the thing that had been chasing him, that he had yet to identify, it was gone.
    As far as Jake was concerned, he got over himself, took the risk, and it was like he had won the lottery. Already. What was there to talk about?
    Thoughts of this admittedly distracted him from the meeting at hand, the first of three he had to sit in on that day. Krup had been making a presentation on a water filtration facility they built in Peru, and the small group around the round table spoke mostly to him, and not the actor playing the role of environment expert. Out of habit Jake made sure to nod at certain parts, and idly take notes, despite not exactly being all there mentally. He’d read the presentation earlier while at lunch though, and had some inkling of what was happening.  
    Good thing still that his thoughts on the matter weren’t required at all, except for a throwaway, “What do you think, Jacob?” at the end. He didn’t think that Krup needed his backup anyway. They’d managed to become friends since meeting at that Caine Foundation event, and they had a beer whenever they were in California at the same time. The guy was solid, a hard worker, and not at all interested in Lindsay. (Krup was gay.)
    “You don’t have to worry about the rest of this conference,” Krup was telling him, as they regrouped at the end of the meeting,