My Blood Approves Read Free Page A

hassle you, I’ll take care of them.”
    “What does that even mean?” I muttered, but he’d already convinced me. After all, I’d seen the way he chased a gang of unruly guys, so I imagined that the graveyard shift at a Denny’s rip-off wouldn’t stand a chance.
    “Just don’t worry about it.” Jack held the door open, but Jane seamlessly cut in front of me, smiling widely at him. He ignored her, but grinned boyishly at me when I walked in behind her.
    As predicted, nobody noticed my lack of footwear. In fact, nobody even noticed me, or even Jane, which was incredibly odd. The waitresses practically tripped over themselves trying to seat us, all the while keeping their eyes completely focused on Jack. It felt like I had been dumped into some strange episode of the Twilight Zone . When the waitress put us in a booth, Jack sat down first, and naturally, Jane squished up next to him, so he kept moving over until he was plastered up against the window. I sat down across from them, and Jack rested his arms on the table, leaning towards me.
    “What can I get you?” the waitress asked. The question was theoretically for all of us, but everything about her said it was meant for Jack only. “Just coffee,” Jack answered, but then remembered that we were there too. “Or did you guys want something else?”
    “Coffee’s fine,” I said. Truthfully, I was a little hungry, but I felt uncomfortable eating in front of him and Jane, and everyone else that was staring at us. All the patrons and staff couldn’t help but look in our direction, and I was starting to feel like I was missing out on some kind of joke. “Are you sure you’re not hungry?” Jane pressed, once again running her fingers on his arm, but this time, he actually recoiled from her touch. She still didn’t get the hint, and I wanted to snap at her to leave him alone, but then I should probably snap at everyone else too.
    “Nope,” Jack sighed, then muttered under his breath, “But I wish I was."
    “What?” the waitress asked, leaning in closer to hear his voice.
    “Nothing.” Jack waved her off without looking at her. “Just the coffee."
    “Thanks,” I told the waitress when she lingered at our table. Finally, she pulled herself away, and I wanted a chance to look over Jack to see if I could figure out what all the fuss was about, but he was too busy looking at me. It wasn’t one of those longing gazes, not like the way Jane was looking at him, but he was looking, so I averted my gaze and pretended to be focused on the dark green place mat in front of me.
    “Thanks again for saving us,” Jane murmured, trying to slide herself up next to him. “If there’s anything I can do to repay you, just let me know.” I could tell by the way he ran his fingers through his hair that he was getting irritated, and then I wondered how I knew that. We’d just met. How would I be an expert on his mannerisms? There was definitely something strange going on, but I couldn’t put my finger on it.
    “Are you famous or something?” I blurted out, and Jane looked embarrassed enough for both of us so I didn’t bother blushing.
    “What do you mean?” He sounded confused, so I finally looked up at him. He had sandy hair that stood up in a disarray that I’m sure he had planned. His skin was utterly flawless and beach bum tanned, and that was unnatural for people in Minnesota in March. His eyes were a weird blue-gray color, and there was something tremendously boyish about them, about him really, but otherwise, nothing seemed to stand out as overly attractive. I just didn’t get it. “Everyone’s staring at us. At you ,” I corrected myself. Jack just shrugged and looked down at the table, but didn’t bother checking to see if I was right. Even Jane peered out behind her long eyelashes and reddened cheeks to confirm my statement, and I knew she saw it too because she blushed even deeper and put her hand possessively on Jack’s thigh.
    “I’m not