“They’re beautiful, Jack,” she assured him. Someday she would tell him about how she'd met Lila but tonight wasn’t the time to mention ruined shoes or projectile vomiting.
Jack smiled in relief. Holding out her chair, he seated her and then opened the waiting bottle of wine. “I know we had champagne last night but it seemed appropriate.”
He handed her a filled glass and raised his own in a toast. “To romance.”
Rose didn’t drink. “What are we doing, Jack?”
He didn’t pretend not to know what she meant. “I’d like to slow down, Rose. What would be wrong with us getting to know each other before we have sex?”
“There’s nothing wrong with it, Jack. But you need to know there can’t be any future for us.”
“Why?”
How could she explain without sounding pathetic? It was such a ‘poor me’ story. She’d lived it and moved on. Mostly. Jack didn’t need to know all the gory details.
“Do you see yourself married someday, Jack?” she asked. “Do you want children?”
“Yes, but I wasn’t asking you to marry me, Rose.”
“But you might.” Did that sound egotistical? Maybe, but she needed Jack to understand. “I don’t believe in marriage. Not for me.”
“Rose…”
“Okay,” she interrupted. She took a deep breath. “Here’s the Reader’s Digest version. My father had left my mother and me before I was born. For the next nine years she used a procession of men to fill the void until he came back. He was never coming back. But you couldn’t tell her that. After she had died, I was sent to live with the only relative that they could locate. I didn't know I even had an aunt, but here's her story. Louise marries for money. When she gets bored, she screws the nearest man and then she gets divorced. She’s about to marry husband number seven. Lucky for some.”
“Wow.”
“Succinct but accurate.” Telling this didn’t just sound pitiful it made her feel unclean. She wasn’t responsible for her Louise's actions, but they rubbed off none the less.
“I believe in love, Jack,” she assured him. “Marriage between the right people can be beautiful and lasting. But I’m afraid I wouldn’t even know how to begin to hold onto to either.”
“Then let’s just take it a day at a time.” Jack wanted to reach across and pull her into his arms. He wanted to tell her that she wasn’t her mother or her aunt but Rose already knew that. Maybe she was damaged; maybe he couldn’t help her heal. But he could try.
“I don’t know if I’ll fall in love with you, Rose,” he began. “I know I like you. I know I want to spend time getting to know you. Maybe I’ll find out I hate your taste in movies, maybe you won’t be able to stand the way I eat corn on the cob. Maybe we’ll decide to be friends and forget about sex altogether.”
Their eyes met for a moment, and they both started laughing, breaking the heaviness that had settled over evening.
“Okay, forget the no sex part. But you get what I’m saying. Please, Rose, give it a chance.”
She wanted to. If Jack was still willing even after everything she’d told him then so was she.
“I’ll agree but first you have to tell me something.”
“Name it.”
“How do you eat corn on the cob?”
CHAPTER SIX
KISS ME JACK, like you mean it.
Believe me, it’ll be my pleasure.
There was no smooth seduction, no easing in. There was no more teasing. She’d told him to kiss her, and he took control. His hands lifted, molding the shape of her head, firm and wonderfully sensuous. When his lips found hers, the taste of him filled her senses as his tongue entered her mouth, rubbing against her own. Jack’s arms came around her pulling her up until their bodies were in perfect alignment. As her breasts rubbed maddeningly against his chest, she wanted him to rip away every piece of clothing that prevented them touching flesh to flesh. Her breathing was becoming heavy, and every nerve seemed to center between her legs, right where his thigh was rubbing with expert precision.
“Sweet,” he groaned, coming up for air. “Like spiced honey. I want to spend a week tasting you. Your mouth,” Jack swiped his tongue over her lips. “This spot right here,” he whispered as he left a slow trail of kisses across her jaw unerringly finding the sensitive skin just below her ear. She thought she might come from just the feel of his lips on that spot. It was officially her new favorite erogenous zone.
“Touch me, Jack.” There was a desperation in her voice that she’d never heard before. She needed his hands on her body, anywhere, now.
“I know what you need. Close your eyes, Rose. All you have to do is feel, I promise I’ll give you exactly what you want.”
His lips continued to torment the spot below her ear but now his hands were adding to her arousal. He was taking his time, a slow journey, with a much too brief stop to tease her breasts. Go back. She wanted to scream. But she could only manage a moan, part frustration, part encouragement.
He knew what he was doing. Building her up to heights she’d never experienced, the anticipation becoming almost unbearable.
“This is what you want, isn’t it?”
Jack’s fingers deftly unbuttoned her jeans, sliding the zipper down in one long, agonizingly slow motion. He teased the skin just above the top of her panties, one finger breaching the top and causing her to scream in hypersensitized frustration.
“Hurry, Jack. I need you to touch me.”
“I am touching you, sweetheart.” His laughed was deeper than she remembered, the sound making her body clench with need. “Here, this is where you need my touch, isn’t it, Rose. Tell me how it feels, tell me how close you are.”
“So close.” Finally. Jack’s hand slid between her legs, his fingers finding the slick proof of her arousal. Yes, he knew the spot she needed to him to touch. No hesitation—no teasing. Hard and insistent and oh, God, he knew exactly what he was doing.
“Now, Jack. I'm coming now. Yes, just a little more. I can feel it, Jack, I can…”
What the hell? Rose sat up with a start; her body still poised for what she assumed would have been the best orgasm of her life. A dream orgasm. Well, that would have been a first. Just a few seconds more and dream Jack would have finished her off.
Still hazy from sleep it took her a moment to realize what had woken her. The computer was beeping. Right, Frank.
“You are officially my least favorite person ever.” It wasn’t Frank’s fault that the closest she’d come to sex with Jack was in a dream, but his timing was lousy.
“Good morning to you, too, sunshine.” Apparently Frank wasn’t offended by her unorthodox greeting. “What have I done to incur your wrath so early in the day?”
Only woken her from the best sexy dream ever. She’d fallen asleep on the couch waiting for Frank’s call, and her subconscious decided to give her what she wasn’t getting in real life. Unfortunately, she seemed doomed to frustration in her dreams as well.
“Sorry, Frank.” She scrubbed a hand over her face. If she'd been alone, she’d have brought out her battery operated friend but instead she headed to the kitchen for a cup of hot tea.
“You caught me dozing,” she explained over her shoulder.
“It must have been some dream.”
“Not going to share, Frank.”
He laughed. “My imagination is inventive enough. Jack Winston is definitely dream-sex material.”
“I didn’t say anything about sex.” She sat her cup down on the table by the computer. Last week, a few days after her rooftop date with Jack, she had mentioned him to Frank. Not details, just that they had started seeing each other. Frank had wanted details; Rose gave him none. “And how do you know if Jack is anything worthy? When I mentioned him the other day, you said you'd never heard of him.
“There’s this little thing called the internet. It’s what's allowing us to talk right now.”
“You’re a riot, Frank.” Rose frowned. “So you goog
led him?”
“You haven’t?” Frank asked in amazement. “Honey, you have way more self-control than I do.”
“It never occurred to me,” Rose said honestly. “Is there much about him?”
“Plenty. Though most of it is several years old.” Frank leaned in closer to the screen. "The spike in the number of pictures and articles happened about five years ago right after that Karen Poe incident.”
“Karen Poe the movie star? Jack was involved with her?” Rose always had liked the actress’ work, but she might have to rethink that.
“Honestly, Rose, I sometimes think you live under a rock,” Frank said in amazement. “It was all over the news at the time. But never mind, let Frankie boy fill you in.”
“I could just look it up myself,” Rose reminded him.
“And deprive me of spilling a bit of dish about you hunky boyfriend?” Frank was appalled at the thought. “Since you were so closed-mouthed, I’ll have to assume you know he and Drew Harper worked as personal bodyguards when they first went to L.A.?”
“He told me that.” Why did she sound so defensive? It was just annoying that Frank knew more about that time in Jack’s life than she did.
“Did he also tell you that he was Karen Poe’s bodyguard while she was shooting Lost Child?”
“It never came up.” And Jack was not a name dropper. “I imagine he worked for a lot of famous people.”
“But this was what put him and his company on the map.” Frank paused dramatically before continuing. “Karen Poe was still an up and comer. She hadn’t reached A-list status yet. But she’d made a few movies that were getting her some buzz and, unfortunately, a stalker.”
“So she hired Jack.”
“The studio would only pop for a budget friendly bodyguard and your boyfriend qualified.”
“Would you stop calling him that?” Where Jack was concerned, Rose didn’t know what they were. Maybe friends without benefits?
“Do you want to hear the rest of this?”
“Go on.” She sighed when Frank just looked at her. Honestly. “Go on, please.”
“So,” he continued with a satisfied smile. “Nothing happened until the night of the movie premiere. They were on the red carpet when out of nowhere Karen’s stalker jumps out of the crowd intent on doing who knows what. But our hero steps in front Karen shielding her with his powerful body. And suddenly with one mighty uppercut, fells said villain and saves the day.”
“That's unbelievable.”
“Pretty impressive, huh?”
“Jack, yes. Your narration? Not so much.”
“Everyone’s a critic,” Frank grumbled. “Shall I tell you what happened next?”
“I’m on the edge of my seat.” Glancing down she realized she was, literally. For all her teasing, Frank told a mean story, and it was about Jack. All that was missing was the popcorn.
“By the time he woke up the next morning Jack Winston a social media phenomenon. The video of the attack was everywhere. Twitter practically broke. And suddenly you weren’t anyone if your body wasn’t being guarded by someone from H&W Security. It didn’t hurt that both Jack and Drew Harper look like superheroes.”
While Frank had been talking Rose pulled up the video of the attack. Saving the beautiful movie star and unbelievably photogenic. Jack Winston was something to see. And it seemed she wasn’t the only one who thought so. The video had over five million views.
“Though no one would confirm, rumor has it that both Jack and Drew have been offered starring roles in action movies. Since we haven’t seen their names up in lights, I assume they said no.”
“Safe assumption,” she murmured. Watching it again, she realized just how vulnerable he’d been. What if the guy had had a weapon? The thought made Rose shudder. She was grateful that Jack stayed behind a desk these days.
“So tell, does he look as good in person?”
“Better.”
“Lucky bitch.”
Rose laughed. She was. She really was.
JACK HAD BUILT his house with privacy in mind. The trees that surrounded his home gave the illusion that he didn’t share the mountain with another living human. Drew’s house was a mere half mile away, but you’d never know it. Standing on the old fashioned wrap around porch Jack could just see where the southern end of the Columbia wound away from Harper Falls. He could look out, but no one could look in. Not unless they made a great effort, and then his security system let him know when visitors, welcome or otherwise, were coming.
Rose would be here at any minute. They’d been seeing each other for a week, and this was the first time she was coming to his home. Things were going well. Amazingly so.
They had no fixed routine. One day they met for breakfast, the next she cooked dinner at her place. She claimed to have very little expertise in the kitchen but the simple meal of lasagna and tossed green salad had been terrific. She’d warned him about the state of her refrigerator before he put the wine into chill. But it was hard to grasp what it was she meant until you actually saw it. Yogurt, bottled water and orange juice. Healthy, he guessed, but limited. And it was an odd brand of yogurt, not that he was an expert. But she told him that there was only one place in Spokane that sold it, and she would stock up whenever she was in the city. And no, she interjected before he could comment, she wasn’t going to order it online. She liked to pick out her own flavors, and she didn’t know what she would be in the mood for until she was in the store buying it. Some people might find it odd that she was so defensive about yogurt but not Jack. He understood completely. He’d grown up in a household of eccentrics. Yogurt was nothing.
The sensor by the door went off telling him a car had entered his property. Jack glanced at the monitor and saw it was Rose. He had just started toward the porch steps when bundle of brown and white fur came tearing around the corner yapping like crazy. He went sailing past Jack until he realized the love of his life was now behind him and tried, unsuccessfully to stop his forward motion. The result was a heap of tangled puppy paws. Not to be deterred, he quickly righted himself and bounded up to Jack, pure adoration all over his face.
“My ferocious watchdog.” Jack knelt down and gave quivering mass a vigorous scratch behind his ears. It was a joke, of course. Jack had acquired Edgar the last time he'd visited his parents. Someone had dropped a box of puppies in their driveway. They were mutts, an indeterminable mix of breeds that had resulted in massively cute dogs that, if the size of the paws were any indication, were going to be quite large. His mother set about finding homes for all five but still had two left when Jack arrived. He needed a dog, she reasoned. He shouldn't be all alone in that big house. Jack said yes immediately. He had planned on getting a dog, and it never hurt to pile up the brownie points with Mom. He didn't have to pick between the two puppies. Edgar picked him by peeing on his boot five seconds after they'd met. It was love at first sight for both man and dog.
But for all his size, Edgar was a bit of a fraidy-cat. He came running, in full out yap, whenever the surveillance system went off but lost his nerve when an actual car drove up to the house. His favorite hiding place was behind Jack, crouched down until his was sure the visitor was a friend not a foe. For Edgar, within thirty seconds everyone was a friend.
“Let’s go say high to Rose,” Jack said just as her car came to a stop. “You’ll like her, she smells amazing.”
Rose turned off the ignition and sat for a moment taking in the details of Jack’s house. It wasn’t at all what she'd expected. She’d imagined something modern and sleek but instead he’d built a house that belonged to another era. Two stories and a full attic by the looks of it and painted white with dark green shutters. She knew he had a large family, but such a big house must be lonely when no one was visiting. Then she saw the huge puppy tumble his way down the stairs, a laughing Jack right behind him. Maybe not so lonely after all.
She barely had her door open when the dog was there. She wasn’t sure if he was trying to push them both
back in or drag her out, but either way he was irresistible.
“He’s very friendly,” Rose smiled as Jack pulled the puppy back enough for her to get out of the car.
“This is Edgar. I told him how good you smelled, and he was determined to find out for himself.”
“He seems more interested in how I taste.” The puppy's large, wet tongue was giving her hand a thorough bath as she tried to pet his head.
“I don’t blame him; I’m already addicted.”
Jack sat down the wiggling Edgar and pulled her in for a long, heated kiss.
“See,” Jack said as he pulled back. “One taste and his affections have already turned.”
Rose looked down to see Edgar staring up at her, his big paws resting on one of her feet.
“How big is he going to get?”
“The vet estimates he’ll be well over a hundred pounds. I just hope by then he’ll be better at controlling it. Come on, the casserole should almost be ready to take out. Would you like some wine while I finish the salad?”
“Sounds good.”
Edgar ran ahead disappearing around the house. Jack led her into the living room and made his way over to the kitchen. He’d chosen an open layout with hardwood floors and a huge gas fireplace that dominated the far wall. It was warm and inviting just like the man himself. She immediately felt at home, not that Jack would have let her feel any other way. It was a knack. One you couldn’t learn no matter how hard you tried.
“Red or white?”
“Red. Is there anything I can help you do?”
“Foods under control. Take a seat and keep me company.” He pointed to the row of bar stools. Rose pulled herself up onto the nearest one and set her wine down on the dark marble counter.
“I made one of my mother’s recipes. I had called her to ask what she put in it and was surprised to find out it was just something she threw together, never the same twice. But she talked me through, and I think it turned out alright. Of course, I didn’t tell her I was substituting beef for the tofu.”
If I Loved You (Harper Falls Book 1) Page 8