A Gentleman's Guide to Hooking Up

b o n u s r u l e

Jessica's rules:

Don't trust him or tell him anything important

Don't let your guard down

Don't let him in...okay you can. Don't let him in your heart

Don't agree to meet his friends (unless they are kids)

Don't let him stay over

Don't do relationships, especially not long-distance ones, especially not with someone you've only started to get close to for a few weeks

......

The exception to the rule:

Jake Lancaster ❤

......

Jessica Jiang's heart hammered hard against her ribcage. With the adrenaline rushing through her body and the blood pounding in her ears, she was 30% scared mixed with 70% excited. Her lips were slightly numb with anxiety.

She felt powerful, but at the same time this power frightened her.

This was the most amazing feeling she had ever experienced in her life.

"Go slower, Jess. A little more to the left. Yes. That's it."

"I've never done this before." Her voice came out shaky. "You'll have to be extra patient with me."

"No problem. I'll try to make your first time unforgettable." Jake's hand landed on the back of her right one, calming and gentle as warm waves. "Now, turn the steering wheel all the way to the right before you start backing up. When the center pillar is even with that car's back bumper, you can straighten it out."

She turned and smiled at him. Sitting in Jake's red Jeep was an endearing memory she would never forget. The sun washed down the dashboard and splashed over his golden hair, landing like water droplets on his blonde lashes. They looked almost white against the light.

The image seared itself onto her heart.

"Jake, thanks for teaching me how to drive. I mean, I do have a chauffeur, but this is really fun."

"My pleasure." His eyes twinkled. They were fundamentally blue with hints of green, like the ocean but with coral reefs and seaweed underneath. A few freckles splashed across the bridge of his nose, like stardust on a cloudless night.

She adored his cute freckles. They stopped him from looking so perfect he could've been Photoshopped.

"Jess, when are you leaving for Brown?"

"Next weekend."

Jake nodded.

Jessica put the car into reverse. Her heart dropped at the mention of the topic. She knew this was inevitable, that summer grew shorter with each passing day and that the future loomed closer and closer. It was threatening to yank him away from her fingertips.

The short time they shared together had been a chocolate-dipped strawberry; too sweet, delicious, and too exquisite to swallow in one bite. She was careful to savor each moment, taking every little nibble with meticulous concentration, reminding herself that she couldn't have hoped for a better more-than-a-fling.

Jake had only asked for a chance, and a hot, sweet, wonderful time together.

That was exactly what they had. She didn't want to get her hopes up and dream that there could be more.

He tamed her during the process, however, just like the fox was tamed by the little prince in that story written by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. That part was out of her control.