When You're Ready, Come And Get It

“You've got to be fucking kidding me!”

It was Saturday afternoon and Jaime and I were standing on a terrace over looking Manhattan. Kadie and Adam had just arrived to their engagement party and were making rounds to greet their guests. I was doing my best to be a great hostess by guiding everyone from the private dining hall and outdoors to enjoy drinks and h'oeuvres.

I had fallen stale when Jaime spotted Jonah entering the room with Kylie. He took a sip of his drink, with raised eyebrows, and spun himself around to face me. “He actually brought her? Didn't he get the hint??”

“Obviously not.” I mumbled with a smile as I gestured for a group of guests to help themselves.

“What did he tell you exactly?” Jaime asked as he scanned the room again trying to get a good glimpse of the two.

Earlier in the afternoon I came to the venue to make sure everything was getting done on time. Jaime came to help me, because he knew how stressed out I was, and in between snapping my fingers at the caterers and directing the decorators I'd briefly gone over the incident with Jonah and I.

A waiter walked past us with a tray of champagne. I grabbed a glass, took a chug, and turned back to Jaime. “He said they aren't dating, just getting to know each other.” I rolled my eyes. “Whatever, it's not like I even care. I told him to move on any way.”

I spotted my parents and Kadie's mom entering the room. I smiled and waved them over. They had arrived the night before, so we decided to have a “welcome to the family” dinner with Adam's family. It was a night full of laughter and (happy) tears. And it was exactly what I needed to keep my mind off of Jonah and Kylie. For some reason I couldn't get the mental image of them making out, out of my head. Yuck.

“Jaime!” My mom squealed as she grabbed his face and kissed his cheek. He had the biggest smile. He hugged her back and held out his hand for my dad to shake.

My dad rejected it and went in for a hug. “How's my boy doing?” He asked Jaime.

His cheeks flushed pink like a little school girl as he responded back to my dad. He loved my parents even more than his own. And they loved him just as much.

I stood in the background grimacing. “This will never not be weird.”

“Why? They were totally my friends first.” Jaime said, to which my parents high fived him.

It was mid-afternoon when all of the guests had finally arrived. Social hour was almost over and lunch was just about ready to be served.

“Lynn! Everything turned out amazing! Thank you!”

“Oh, thanks, it just took hours of listening to you plan the entire thing, but sure I'll take credit.” I let out an irritated sigh.

“Are you...” Before Kadie could finish her question Jaime interrupted her by hissing like a cat and nudging his head to the side. Kadie looked over to see Kylie. “Oh. So, he brought her.”

“Of course he brought her. Why wouldn't he bring her? It's not like we're a thing anymore.” I spoke so quickly I could hardly make out the words I'd said.

“Whoa” Kadie grabbed me by the shoulders. “I know everything's been stressful lately, but it's done and we're here now. So, let's just relax and enjoy today.”

I agreed with Kadie and took a deep breath to calm myself. Jaime helped me as I rallied everyone to come back inside and have a seat. I gave a short toast to Kadie and Adam. Jebrone and Sarah said a few words, as well as some of Adam's friends. And just as we were coming to an end, Jonah decided to get up and say a few words.

“Hi everyone” He casually held his drink in his hand. “For those of you who don't know me, I'm Jonah Cohen. I've known Adam for a few years now and he's quickly become like a brother I never had.”

The room filled with collective “aww's”

“I may be the handsome younger brother with the great personality and wits” He curled up his mouth in a half smile as he waited for everyone to finish laughing. “But, like a younger brother I still find myself consumed with jealousy. Not because of the way Adam and Kadie look at each other, but because of the way he continues to look at her even when she isn't paying attention. Love is a hard thing to come by my brother, but you've captured it and for that you're truly lucky. Mazel Tov!” He raised up his glass.

“That was totally aimed at you.” Sarah, who was sitting a few seats away from me, leaned over and whispered loudly.

Kadie, Jaime, Henry, and Jebrone nodded their heads in agreement.

It was late in the afternoon by the time everyone was finally done eating. Once Kadie and Adam had thanked everyone for coming people began to slowly leave, while others continued to socialize.

I had only greeted Jonah and Kylie when they first arrived, but hadn't gotten a chance to actually talk to either one. When I saw Kylie slip away to the rest room I decided to make a beeline for Jonah.

I crouched down next to Jonah's seat. “Hey, Jon.”

“Hey, Lynn” Jonah smiled. “Everything turned out great.”

“Thanks. Was that speech about me?”

Jonah laughed timidly. “Never straight forward when you need to be, am I right?”

“Why are you suddenly playing these mind games with me?” My voice was loud enough to grab the attention of those sitting around Jonah.

He pushed out his chair and stood up, excusing himself from the conversation he'd been having with Adam's family. He gestured for me to follow him. We walked to the back of the room where a huge column blocked off our view from the party, giving us some privacy.

“Is this about Kylie?” He looked down at me. I avoided eye contact by looking at the crowds of people in the background. “Lynn, look at me.” He lifted my chin up so that we were making eye contact. “You told me you wanted space. More than once I might add.”

“And you told me you'd be there when I was ready.” I mumbled back to him, scared that I was finally admitting it out loud.

“What are you trying to say?” He whispered back.

Jonah's hands grazed my body and the feeling was all too familiar. I closed my eyes as nostalgia took over. My hands ran up his chest and cradled his face. He pushed my hair behind my ear and held onto my neck. “Are you sure you want to do this?” His breath tingled my skin and sent a chill down my spine.

I opened my eyes to stare into his. My grip tightened as I pulled him into my body. Before I could answer, I jolted back to reality at the sound of Kylie's scream. “You BITCH!”