Chapter Five

~Your Day Will Come~

"Hi, Bella. It's good to finally talk to the woman who captured Jimmy's heart."

She hums softly. "I owe him everything. He saved me."

"Did he now?" My gaze flicks over to Jimmy.

His face colors, and he shakes his head. "I didn't save her. She saved me—from a life of debauchery and loose women."

There's a silence on the line, and I'm about to ask if she's still there, but then she speaks.

"I guess you could say we saved each other. Jim is my hero."

I smile at Jimmy through a developing haze of envy. The universe seems determined to keep pointing out to me how alone I am and how meaningless my relationships have been.

"Wow . . . sounds like you guys were made for each other. I'm happy for you." And I mean it sincerely. Just because I haven't found love doesn't mean I'm selfish enough to begrudge them their good fortune.

"Thanks, Edward." I can hear the smile in Bella's voice. "Have you found your someone yet?"

"Not yet."

"You will." Bella sounds certain. "When you least expect it."

I don't know what to say to that, so I just go with "Thanks."

Jimmy takes the phone off speaker and walks a few feet away, talking low. I still hear bits and pieces of his side of the conversation. How much he misses her . . . asking when she will join him at the farm . . . how much he loves her. After a bit of baby talk—so unlike the Jimmy I know—he hangs up with a smile on his face.

"She'll be here next week. I can't wait."

"I look forward to meeting her. She sounds great."

My heart clenches, pain radiating through my chest. I swallow a chunk of envy and longing, choking on the sheer intensity of it.

Jimmy looks up at me, right through me, in fact. "Your day will come."

After we clean up from dinner, Jimmy suggests we sit around the firepit. It's a perfect, cool evening with no wind. I grab a hoodie from my car and join him on the patio. He throws an armload of wood into the circle of stones and lights it. We pull our chairs close to the warmth of the flames, sitting in comfortable silence for a while.

We met at freshman orientation and hit it off immediately. College was my first experience away from my comfort zone, away from my friends and family. While I'm outgoing in my native environment, new situations tend to throw me, and I was dreading trying to navigate college, hours from home.

I grabbed a water and hung around at the back of the crowded room, listening to the dean giving his speech. Someone leaned against the wall beside me and nudged my arm.

"Blah, blah, blah. He's probably given the same speech for the past twenty years. Am I right?"

I laughed, looking at the guy next to me. "Probably."

He was almost my height with tanned skin, light brown eyes, and sandy hair secured in a low ponytail. He wore a pair of faded jeans and a Black Sabbath T-shirt.

"Hey, you up for a frat party? I could use a wingman."

I side-eyed him. "Probably not a good idea to crash a party the first day."

He tilted his head and smirked. "Do I look like a party crasher to you? I was invited by some lovely ladies I met earlier. Sophomores."

"Cool." I nodded, thinking that I'd never have the balls to hit on college chicks my first day. I wasn't opposed to having a ticket to the show though.

"James Hunter." He stuck a hand out.

"Edward Cullen."

We shook hands and became fast friends.

Jimmy helped me come out of my shell, especially with the ladies. He was smooth and popular, and as his friend, I benefitted. When we were together, I followed his lead, joining in on the back and forth banter. I was considered charming by proxy and had no shortage of dates.

Jimmy slept around, working his way through the ladies on campus. From what I could see, he treated all women with respect and never made promises to any of them. The fact he was straightforward about being a serial bachelor probably saved him from a lot of aggravation.

I wasn't Jimmy though. Deep down, I was looking for love, not just sex. I craved meaningful relationships. If I was charming by proxy, I was also a serial bachelor by proxy. The stream of women I had access to through Jimmy expected me to behave like him. His reputation preceded me.

I managed to have a few girlfriends, but none of them lasted long. Either they didn't believe I wasn't like Jimmy, or they expected me to stop hanging out with him.

Since I opened the tattoo parlor, I've had no shortage of offers. Women find ink hot and guys that lay down ink even hotter. At first, I went with it. I mean, I am a red-blooded male, after all. But it was empty and left me feeling unfulfilled. So nowadays I'm a bit pickier about who I sleep with.

"Mission Control to Cullen!" Jimmy yells, startling me.

"What?"

"Where did you go, my man?"

I smile. "Just thinking about how we met, how lucky I was to find such a great friend."

"A little sappy, but that's okay. The Hunter-Cullen bromance continues! And since I settled down, now we have to find a woman worthy of you."

"Not necessary."

Jimmy leans forward with a wolfish grin. "Look who you're talking to. If I say your day will come, then your day will come."

He holds his arm out, and we fist bump. Jimmy is a force of nature, but even he has no control over love. I'm willing to roll with it though.

oOo

A/N: Looking forward to your thoughts. Most of you don't like Jimmy! Lots of strong opinions on that. Someone pointed out that drabbles usually post more than once a week. This chapter was pretty short. Would you guys like another chapter in a few days or should I stick to my weekly posting schedule? Many of my chapters are well beyond drabble length. Clearly, I'm a wordy girl and not good at keeping it short and know zip about drabbles.

Princess updated this week. I post teasers and links to updates on my blog and on Facebook in the No Rules Twilight Fan Fiction and It All Started With Twilight groups.

Thanks and gratefulness as always to my awesome betas, SassySue (chayasara) and Wendy wmr1601. These ladies make my stuff much more presentable!

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