Acts of Desperation(37)

“Sure,” he said and got up. He kissed me on the cheek then whispered in my ear. I looked up at him, speechless, and watched as he walked out my door.

“I’ll see him out. Be back in a sec then we can go,” Liz said. When she returned, we went down to the police station and gave my statement. Kevin greeted us and personally took my statement. It was a pretty painless experience, and a couple hours later, we were pulling back into the driveway.

“So what do you want to do now?” Liz asked.

“I think I need to go over to Jax’s.”

“Really?” She smirked. “I don’t know. I don’t know how I feel about everything you told me.”

“Well, I know how I feel about it, and I need to talk to him. He said something to me as he was leaving, and I have a question that can’t wait.”

“Are you sure you have to go now, after everything that’s happened today?”

“Yes.”

“Ok.” She exhaled. “Well, just so you know when I was walking him out, I informed him that if he messed with you, I’d rearrange his testicles, and I meant it.” She looked at me with raised eyebrows.

I laughed. “Thanks, I don’t think that’ll be necessary, but it’s always good to know you’ve got my back.”

“Always.” She gave me a hug. “Be careful.”

“I will,” I said. I left and got in my car, headed to Jax’s.

I stood on his doorstep suddenly feeling more nervous than I thought I would. I rang the bell and waited. Then, I waited some more. Just when I thought he wasn’t home, I heard his footsteps approaching the door. And the closer he got, the faster my heart beat. When he finally opened it, he stood in front of me wearing nothing but thin, loose fitting gray, drawstring pants that hung low on his hips and left little to the imagination. I’d apparently ripped him from the shower. His hair was dripping wet, and although he had a towel around his neck, he’d had no time to dry the tiny droplets of water glistening off his toned shoulders and nor to wipe the water slowly sliding down his neck and disappearing in his chest.

“Sember. I thought…,” he said, grabbing the towel and scrunching it into the back of his hair. “Come in.”

I stepped inside the foyer and followed him to the couch. I sat down, hugging my purse in my lap, and turned to face him. “Why did you say it?” I said, forcing myself to look past every perfect feature of his shirtless body and up to his eyes.

“Because I meant it.”





Chapter Sixteen


“I’m not sure you do. You can’t—” I said.

“I can,” he said. “I know exactly how I feel about you.”

“How? How can you be sure you’re not misdirecting feelings for her toward me? I look a lot like her,” I said, nervously fiddling with my purse strap.

“Sember, I won’t lie and say it wasn’t your face that initially attracted me to you because it was. You’re beautiful, and yes, you resemble her, but aside from that, there’s nothing about the two of you that’s alike. She was a long time ago, and you’re here now. I meant what I said. I love you.”

I sat silently, absorbing it then stood and walked toward the front door.

“Sember, don’t leave,” he said. “Please.”

“I’m not.” I put my purse down on the table at the end of the hallway. “I’m going to bed.”

His relief showed in his smile. “Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

I took him by the hand up the stairs to his bedroom. The moonlight streaming in through the blinds sliced through the thick steam still lingering from his shower. I sat on the edge of the bed, engulfed by the perfumed air, and ran my hands over his flawless physique. He removed my shirt and bra then I scooted back and lifted my hips so he could remove the last shred of fabric keeping our bodies apart. Exposed, he crawled up my body, blanketing me with his warmth, kissing and licking his way up until he reached the firm round of my nipple. He took it in his mouth, rolling the delicate tip between his teeth, and at once my entire body was being tickled from within. I gasped and closed my eyes. The sensation radiated out into my fingers and toes before slowly creeping back and finding its center between my legs, begging for him. I drew him closer and caressed his wet hair, trying to absorb him.

He stood up and undid the string to his pants and they fell effortlessly to the floor. He inched his way back up next to me, and I rested my head on his bicep as his warm shaft pressed against my side. His large hands engulfed and massaged my breasts. I reached down and began stroking him. He was instantly hard and ready, and I wanted him inside me to chase away the memory lingering in my brain of what might have been. I scooted myself underneath him, offering an invitation. He nuzzled in the nape of my neck, and I ran my fingers along the smooth, firm lines of his back.

He lifted his head and moved my hair from my face. “Hey pretty,” he whispered.

“Hey,” I said, looking up at him. His anxious heart pounded against my chest.

“You ok?”

“Em hmm.”

“I do love you. Just you,” he said.

“I love you, too.” I smiled.

“Good,” he said and kissed me.

We made love well into the night. When we were finished, I lay, resting my head on the hairless space next to his shoulder that clearly had been made just for me, and absently scratch my nails through his chest hair.