Surrender Your Love (Surrender Your Love #1)(32)

“You must have loved it up here,” I said, gently squeezing his arm. His stunning eyes turned to me and a bright smile lit up his face, sending a jolt through my heart.

“We did. That was right before—” His expression darkened, wiping the gorgeous smile off his lips. Something had happened. Instead of sharing it with me, he was bottling up again. It wasn’t surprising given that we barely knew each other, but I couldn’t help the sudden disappointment washing over me. As strange as it sounded, I wanted to know everything about him and his life.

“Come on.” Jett gripped my hand a bit rougher than before and guided me expertly down the slippery slope toward the shoreline. The flat soles of my ballerinas slipped in the soft earth, but I didn’t argue in the hope he might still decide to resume our conversation and divulge what he wanted to say.

Eventually, we reached the shore and stopped a few feet from the water. Jett pulled me down next to him onto the soft ground and propped his arm behind my back, the material of his shirt almost brushing my skin. His dark hair swayed in the light breeze. I closed my eyes and leaned back on my palms, my face soaking up the sun. We sat in silence for a moment or two. I only opened my eyes when I felt his gaze on me.

Jett’s eyes were hooded, filled with something dark and dangerous. His beautiful lips glistened as though he had moistened them quite recently and the moisture hadn’t dried yet. I imagined the tip of his tongue brushing over them, then over every inch of my skin, meeting with mine in a tangled embrace. Would he find me intimidating if I just kissed him? Did our agreement involve only him getting close to me whenever he felt like it, or could I initiate sexual contact as well, maybe even during working hours? Such as now?

Damn sex contracts and their blurred lines! I had never played this game, so I had yet to figure out the fine print. Smiling shyly, I ignored the sudden need in the pit of my stomach that was slowly but steadily venturing down south.

“It must be pretty lonely over there,” I said in a feeble attempt to conceal my nervousness.

“Probably, but I can also see the benefits of keeping away from civilization’s stress and hassles, and having one’s kids grow up in the serenity of nature.” Jett fell silent again, his gaze never leaving mine. The air charged with tension. I bit my lip and broke eye contact, only to redirect my gaze to him a moment later.

He was sitting so close I could barely breathe. And while his proximity didn’t feel uncomfortable, it was almost too much to bear.

“Tell me about your life,” Jett said eventually.

I laughed. “What?” It was such a strange request. Men weren’t usually interested in my life, past, thoughts, and so forth.

Jett grinned that lopsided smile of his that made my heart skip a beat. “We didn’t go through the usual interviewing process, so it’s about time to catch up.”

“Well, we didn’t really go through the traditional hiring process either.”

He shrugged and his grin intensified. “You have a point. I could fire and re-hire you, if it bothers you so much. Or—” he turned onto one side, propping up on one elbow “—you could just answer my question.” It wasn’t an invitation but a demand.

I moistened my lips as I tried to push through years of memories in the hope I might find something that didn’t give away too much, yet still enough to satisfy his curiosity.

“My dad died when I was a teen. I grew up with my mother who tried her best to fulfill the role of both. After finishing high school, I came to New York to study, and ended up working in real estate.” Those were the boring parts of my life; the harmless ones barely scratching the surface. Usually, they sufficed in sending a guy into a disinterested staring stupor, meaning they never bothered to ask further questions. I searched Jett’s gaze for any signs of disinterest, but what I found was an attentiveness that scared me. He seemed to really listen to me. While there was nothing wrong with it, the fact that this guy who hired me would be interested in me and in my life showed me he cared for me in some way. And that scared me even more.

“You always wanted to work in real estate?” His question seemed polite and harmless enough.

“I like houses. What about you?”

He smiled but didn’t take the bait to change the object of focus. “It’s a strange career choice for a college graduate. Either you were pushed into it knowing you could make big bucks once you built your portfolio. Or you had a serious interest in buildings and the market. Which one is it?” My throat dried up. The guy knew what he was talking about. I wondered whether it was one of his usual interview questions, or whether he pulled it out of his repertoire for someone like me.

“You don’t have to answer if you’re not comfortable,” Jett continued slowly.

“It’s pretty simple. I felt it was the right step.” I shrugged because that was all there really was to it. Working in real estate was the right step—at that time.

Jett’s eyes glittered with amusement, and I got the feeling my explanation pleased him. “You joined the business out of interest, then.”

I groaned inwardly. He wasn’t about to change the topic any time soon. I forced myself not to pull a face. “Yep.”

“Did you know a lot about houses? Were you fascinated by them, by the people living inside?”

He knew something was off.