101

101

Jenny’s POV

The sun was setting, casting a golden glow over the city as we all piled into Ian’s sleek, black car. The last few weeks had been a neverending slide of chaos—vampires, hunters, near-death experiences, and attempted murders, alongside a bunch of things I still didn’t fully understand. But tonight? Tonight was a break from all that. A chance to breathe and forget, even if just for a few hours. A double date. Me and Jacob, Ian and Sophia. It felt so… normal. Almost.

Jacob slid into the seat next to me, his hand resting casually on my thigh as he gave me a sideways smile. I rolled my eyes, swatting his hand away, but I couldn’t help the grin that spread across my face.

“Behave,” I teased, shaking my head. “We’re supposed to be going out, not starting something we can’t finish.”

Jacob just chuckled, leaning back in his seat. “We’ll see about that.”

From the front, I could hear Ian clearing his throat, clearly amused by our banter. I glanced over at Sophia, who was sitting in the passenger seat next to him. She was looking out the window, a small smile playing on her lips, but there was still a tension in her shoulders that I couldn’t ignore.

“Hey, Soph,” I said, leaning forward a bit. “You good?”

She turned to me, her green eyes glinting a bit. “Yeah,” she said softly. “Just… trying to get used to everything.”

I nodded, understanding exactly what she meant. Things had been crazy for all of us, but Sophia had been through the most. Becoming a vampire, nearly getting killed, and dealing with all the drama that came with Ian’s world. I couldn’t even imagine what that was like. And I never wanted to ever imagine what it was like.

“Tonight’s about having fun,” I reminded her, giving her a reassuring smile. “No thinking about vampires, hunters, or whatever else is out there trying to mess with us.”

Sophia’s smile widened a little. “You’re right. No thinking about anything but good food and maybe some dancing.”

“Dancing?” Jacob’s voice cut in from beside me, his eyebrows raised. “I didn’t agree to any dancing.”

I elbowed him in the ribs, laughing. “You’ll dance if I say you’re dancing, Grant.”

Ian chuckled from the driver’s seat, shaking his head. “You two are impossible.”

Sophia giggled softly, the sound light and carefree, and I couldn’t help but feel a little lighter myself. This was what we needed. Just the four of us, no pressure, no danger lurking in the shadows.

“So where are we going?” I asked, looking at Ian in the rearview mirror.

“Someplace new,” he said, his tone low. “Thought it’d be fun to try something none of us had been to before.”

Jacob raised an eyebrow. “You don’t trust us with the details?”

Ian smirked. “I like surprises.”

I groaned, throwing my hands up. “Ian, you know I hate surprises. Just tell us where we’re going.”

Sophia laughed, turning to face me. “He’s been like this all day. I couldn’t get a single detail out of him.”

“Oh great,” I muttered. “Two of you now.”

“Patience, Jenny,” Ian said, amusement clear in his voice. “You’ll see soon enough.”

After what felt like forever, we finally pulled up to a lively part of town. String lights hung between buildings, music drifted from the nearby bars, and the scent of food wafted through the air. It was vibrant, bustling, the kind of place that instantly put you in a good mood.

We all got out of the car, and I stretched my arms over my head, taking in the scene. “Okay, this is more like it,” I said, smiling as Jacob came up beside me.

“See?” Ian said with a smirk. “Worth the wait.”

Jacob slipped his arm around my waist, pulling me closer. “Maybe he’s not so bad after all.”

“Don’t push it,” I teased, giving Jacob a playful shove.

Sophia and Ian were already walking ahead of us, hand in hand. It was still weird seeing her with him sometimes—not in a bad way, but in that ‘holy crap, my best friend is dating a freaking vampire king’ kind of way. But the way they looked at each other? It was real. And even with everything that had happened, I was happy for her.

“So,” Jacob said, leaning down to whisper in my ear. “What do you want to do first? Eat or dance?”

I glanced at him, raising an eyebrow. “You don’t dance.”

“I do for you,” he said with a grin, and damn it if that didn’t make my heart flutter a little.

“Let’s eat first,” I said, tugging him in the direction of the restaurant that Ian and Sophia were heading toward. “We’ll need the energy.”

The restaurant Ian picked was perfect—dim lighting, cozy booths, and a menu that made my mouth water just looking at it. We slid into a booth, with me and Jacob on one side, Ian and Sophia on the other.

“Ian, I’m impressed,” I said as I looked around. “This place is actually really cute.”

“Did you think I’d take you somewhere terrible?” he asked, his eyebrow quirking up.

“I didn’t know what to expect,” I admitted, shooting him a grin. “You’re full of surprises.”

“Good ones, I hope,” he said, glancing at Sophia with a soft smile.

Sophia blushed, ducking her head. “Definitely good ones.”

The waiter came by, and we all ordered. The conversation flowed easily—mostly teasing, a lot of laughter, and more than a few jokes at Jacob’s expense. He took it in stride, though, throwing back his own snarky comments that had all of us in stitches.

At one point, Jacob leaned over and whispered in my ear, “You’re having a good time, right?”

I looked at him, surprised by the question. “Of course I am. Why wouldn’t I be?”

He shrugged, his expression softening. “Just making sure. I know things have been… intense lately.”

I reached over, squeezing his hand. “Yeah, they have. But tonight’s good. I’m glad we’re doing this.”

Jacob smiled, his hand lingering on mine. “Me too.”

Dinner flew by, and by the time we finished, I was feeling full and content, the earlier tension I’d felt slowly melting away. As we left the restaurant, the music from the nearby bars called to us, and Sophia turned to Ian, her eyes sparkling.

“How about that dancing?” she asked, grinning.

Ian groaned playfully. “I knew this was coming.”

Sophia tugged at his arm. “Come on, it’ll be fun. You’re not getting out of this one.”

Jacob laughed, nudging me with his elbow. “Looks like Ian’s in trouble.”

“Better him than me,” I said, grinning up at him.

We made our way to a nearby bar that had a dance floor, the music pulsing through the room. Sophia dragged Ian onto the floor, and despite his initial reluctance, I could see he was enjoying himself, twirling her around with a smile on his face.

Jacob turned to me, a mischievous gleam in his eye. “You ready to show them how it’s done?”

I raised an eyebrow. “Oh, you think you can keep up?”

He smirked, pulling me close. “Try me.”

We joined Ian and Sophia on the dance floor, and soon enough, we were all laughing, spinning, and moving to the beat. It was the kind of night where everything felt right, where for a few hours, we could forget about all the madness surrounding us and just be ourselves.

Jacob twirled me around, dipping me low before pulling me back up, his arms wrapping around my waist. I was breathless, laughing as he held me close.

“I think you’re enjoying this more than you let on,” I teased.

Jacob grinned, his eyes sparkling. “Maybe you’re just a good influence on me.”

I smiled, leaning my head against his chest as we swayed to the music. For the first time in a long while, things felt… normal. And I was going to hold onto that feeling for as long as I could.

After a while, I began to feel sleepy and even my legs began to ache. I wrapped my arm around his neck and peered up at him. “I love you,” I murmured, the words slipping out before I could even calmly process it.

He froze, his wide eyes meeting mine. Well I guess there was no need to deny what I had just said. “I love you,” I repeated. Because I did. I was sure of it now. If I didn’t love him, I’d have never always ran to him for help despite the fact that I thought he hated me and I claimed to hate him too.

He ran his hands through my hair and kissed me deeply. “God, I love you,” he murmured against my lips and breathed out a sigh.

“I know,” I replied him with a smirk and kissed the side of his lips. “Now can we go home? I’m tired.”

“Let’s go,” he answered, intertwining his hand with mine and leading me towards the entrance while signaling to Ian and Sophia.

I smiled, resting my head on his arm and clinging on to him.