She remembered.
Of course it had only been a year, but even so, he had always been the one to get them their coffee after his morning run before she even woke up; restoring some faith inside of him that she had remembered his order. He also couldn’t help being amused every time they both reached into the cup holder at the same time. She acted as if his hand was made of lava, retracting backwards.
He was getting to her.
He could see it.
After gaining speed on the freeway in Brunswick, Shay and Myles had felt it entirely necessary to race past them, as the giant that defended him on the field decided to stick his bare ass out the window. After his eyes finished burning from the scene of Myles’ big, black ass blowing in the wind, it made for a good laugh and he could see with every mile towards the Florida- Georgia line, Liv was softening, letting her guard down.
Pulling up to the Cove, he was pretty impressed at how beautiful the resort was. He had visited many incredible islands with Liv in their six years together, Tahiti for their honeymoon, Greece for her birthday, and Hawaii when he played in the Pro Bowl, but this was like a hidden paradise. Slowing down under the orange awning, he stopped at the curb as four men in bright floral shirts opened all four car doors in unison.
“Good afternoon, welcome to the Cove at the Palms Resort and Spa.”
Sliding out of the front seat, he moved out of the way as the valet driver got inside the car as the other men began unloading their bags. The Florida heat was hot, but there was also a breeze in the air, which he presumed was coming off the ocean. Born and raised in Florida, he was used to the hot air and humidity. In fact, he preferred it.
“Hello. I’m Alivia Monaghan, the coordinator of the Perry/Shaw weekend,” Liv smiled, shaking a man’s hand, which of course had the bastard grinning from ear to ear, his eyes glued to her chest. Her dress was tight as hell and had him praying for speed bumps the entire trip down.
I’m losing it.
Her dress wasn’t that tight and maybe it was just him that couldn’t take his eyes off her breasts. Removing his Ray-Bans, he rubbed his eye sockets. He wasn’t sure if it was the heat, the long ride or the fact that he felt like Liv’s body was pleading him to take it, but his control was slipping for what felt like the hundredth time over the past nine hours.
Get it together, Monaghan.
Chuckling beside him, Trevor acknowledged with one look that he could see the torture written all over his face.
“Of course. It’s so nice to finally meet you,” the man said, still holding Liv’s hand. “First off, congratulations to the engaged couple, we hope you enjoy your weekend here with us at the Cove.” The man continued smiling so widely, he had a brief vision of the man’s face getting stuck. “Allow me to show you to your suites.” He stepped aside, holding the heavy glass doors for each of them.
If the lobby was any indication of what the rest of the resort looked like, he was convinced he may have just stepped into a little piece of heaven on earth. The marble lobby was calm and serene with palm trees and chandeliers. Dark wood sitting chairs were strategically arranged around the atrium. The front desk running almost as long as a football field off to the right side did little to take away the view of the spectacular ocean straight ahead. There was no glass or windows shielding the view as a light breeze blew into the lobby, offering relief from the hot day.
Yes. As long as he could get Liv to lighten up and relax with him, he was thoroughly going to enjoy this weekend.
“I have your room keys all set,” the concierge said, breaking everyone’s attention away from the view.
“Mr. Perry and Ms. Shaw, you will be staying in suite two,” he said handing Chelsea a small envelope. “And Mr. and Mrs. Monaghan, you will be enjoying suite three,” he informed giving the small packet of room keys to Jax.
Finally. A real bed.
Picking up their bags again, he looked over as Liv shook her head, the smile from a moment ago turning into complete panic.
“Oh, sir, I’m so sorry, but there’s been some kind of mistake. My husband and I will not be staying in the same room.”
Uncomfortable silence fell among the five of them as the man stared at her confused. Looking over at him, Trevor raised his brow in surprise as Chelsea turned around quickly hiding a small guilty smile he saw forming on her face.
This was her doing.
He knew it.
But was he going to question it?
Staying in a room with Liv all weekend when he wasn’t sure how much self-control he had left in him seemed like a bad idea. Or perhaps being in closer quarters would make it harder for her to avoid him? Maybe then he could finally accomplish what he had set out to do weeks ago. Nah, he wasn’t going to question it.
“See, I have the reservations right here,” Liv insisted, taking out a piece of paper showing the man the confirmation.
“I am truly sorry Mrs. Monaghan, but we only have four suites reserved for your party this weekend.”
Jax had never been one to be self-conscious about anything in his life, but standing there having his wife refuse to share a room with him was embarrassing. He knew he deserved it and he couldn’t expect her to feel completely comfortable with him again so soon, but it still hurt. More than he was willing to admit.
“But I reserved five suites,” Liv pleaded holding up a hand in desperation.
“I’m terribly sorry, but we are absolutely booked solid this weekend. I don’t even have any standard rooms available to give to you.” The concierge shrugged as if it was no big deal. He could see Liv’s aggravation growing and if he were the man in the flowered shirt, he would have found a room for her… and fast. One thing you did not mess with was Liv and her perfectly constructed plans.
“Sweetie, its fine,” Chelsea interrupted grabbing Liv’s arm. “Just stay in the suite and if anything opens up, Misterrr…” she searched for the concierge’s name tag.
“Glen!” he offered proudly.
“Ah, Mr. Glen will let you know and you can have your own room, okay?”
Staring at Chelsea a moment, Liv looked over at him, closing her eyes in resignation. He knew she wouldn’t do anything to cause a scene and upset Chelsea and he was thankful that he had that in his favor. Without another word Liv made her way towards the elevators as he grabbed their bags, getting into step with Chelsea.
“That was all your doing, wasn’t it?”
Chuckling, she looked straight ahead picking up her pace. “Don’t blow it, Cap.”
* * *
“Can you believe all of this?” Chelsea asked, shaking Alivia’s arm on the stool beside to her.
“No. I can’t,” she said flatly, draining her second drink since arriving at the terrace bar. This was a nightmare. She was very specific over the phone the day she had made the reservations that she and Jax were to be in separate suites. Sharing a room with him was exactly what she had been trying to avoid. Her restraint was already slipping and being even closer to him all weekend was just about damn near going to kill her. How could this happen?
“Oh come on! This is great!” Chelsea beamed, taking another sip of her mojito.
Resting her chin on her hand, she looked over at Jax across the bar with the guys, pointing to whatever was on the television up in the corner. The early evening sun picking up rare gold streaks in his dark blonde hair caused her stomach to tighten. He looked so relaxed and content and not at all distressed about staying in a room with his wife that he clearly didn’t want any longer and one whom he wasn’t affected by. Which was why she supposed he didn’t have to worry about his self-control slipping or embarrassing himself. Not like her.
“Ahhhhhhh!” Chelsea let out a loud scream. Convinced she would never hear another sound out of that ear ever again, she watched Chelsea jump off the bar stool. Her cousin Shannon who was serving as a bridesmaid had arrived and Chelsea hadn’t stopped talking about seeing her cousin whom she hadn’t seen in almost three years. Chelsea’s smile hadn
’t faltered since the second they left home and hopefully, if all went well, she could help keep that smile on her face all weekend.
Wrapping her fingers around another glass of wine, she let the condensation cool her hands. She felt guilty. She had been in such a panic when the concierge told her that they would be forced to share a room that she hadn’t realized that putting up such a fight in public might have embarrassed Jax. Everything aside, she had no intentions of hurting him. She didn’t think she would ever have it in her to cause him the same amount of pain that he had caused her, but she also knew that she couldn’t trust herself when it came to him. Not anymore at least. She had been convinced before he came home that ignoring him and using her resentment and pain as motivation to avoid him would be enough to get her through, but all it wasn’t. The way he was looking at her and helping at home, making her feel important again, was playing on her insecurities. It wasn’t real. He left her. Maybe he was sorry, or even had some regrets, but that didn’t fix anything. She’d like to think he regretted his decision and that their life together had meant something more to him, but the last twelve months hadn’t done much to convince her of that either. Downing the last of her peach sangria she remembered the promise she had made to herself before he jumped back into their lives; the one that screamed at her to remain in control and to guard her heart against the beautiful man now laughing across the room. And the one whom still owned it.
One hour and another drink later, Alivia paid her tab and headed back to the room in desperate need of a hot shower. She wanted some time to unpack and figure out what she was going to wear to dinner because she wasn’t going to be walking around naked and indecisive like she usually did, like she would have been able to do in her own room.
Rounding the corner inside the hallway, she saw Jax coming towards the same door from the other direction of the hall. Nothing was said as she opened the door, kicking off her shoes. The suite was absolutely gorgeous, the open space filled with nautical décor and colors of navy blues and whites and sea greens giving the room a sophisticated feel. The seating area and bar separate from the bedroom, only accentuated her favorite feature of the room, the glass window overlooking the ocean that ran across the entire wall of the suite.
Offering her the shower first, she declined as Jax walked into the bathroom. Hearing the shower turn on, she walked into the bedroom assessing her wardrobe options. A chiffon lavender maxi dress with a thin gold belt? A lace skirt with a black tank top? Maybe her favorite hot pink dress?
Does it really matter?
No, it didn’t matter because she couldn’t focus on anything. How she was going to get through an entire weekend if she wasn’t even sure she could get through the next two minutes? Opting for the maxi dress, she heard the water shut off. Quickly hanging up her dress to get out of the room, the door opened as Jax strolled into the bedroom in nothing more than a white towel draped around his thick, tight hips.
“Shower’s all yours.” He walked past her slowly, small water droplets sprayed over his gloriously bare shoulders as he pulled a pair of underwear from his suitcase. Dimples on his massive back matching the ones on his face tightened with each fluid movement.
Sweet Jesus.
Stumbling around the room for her things, she grabbed her hair brush, the sound of his towel dropping to the floor stopping her. Clenching the brush to her chest, she took in his best asset. Naturally, like everything else on him, it was a work of art. One to be admired and appreciated. Both hard and tan, round indentations gracing both cheeks. Why was he torturing her like this? What had she done so terribly wrong that he wanted to not only leave her but throw exactly what she had lost back in her face? Swallowing a sigh, she shuddered taking in his glorious backside.
Smirking, he turned around completely naked. Magnificently, breathtakingly, and overwhelmingly naked. “See something you like, Star?”
Forcing herself to focus on his face, her stomach dropped. “You can’t…” she stuttered waiting for the words to come out. She had nothing to say and had no idea where she was going with that statement, but this couldn’t happen. She couldn’t be watching him bending down and sliding his boxer briefs up his long legs. Gray cotton hugging every sculpted muscle and bulge on him.
“Can’t what?”
“You can’t just walk around here with nothing on like its completely normal!” she forced out, her face feeling flushed.
“Why not?” he shrugged.
“Because,” she shot back, grabbing her towel off the bed with no valid reason as to why any man as gorgeous as him should ever feel the need to cover up his body. But it wasn’t okay. None of this was okay. “Because you just can’t, okay?”
“You really need to relax,” he chuckled, drying his hair with a towel, forcing every muscle in his arms and shoulders to tighten. “This weekend is supposed to be fun.”
Twisting the plush towel around her hands, she narrowed her eyes on him. “Who says I’m not having fun?”
Reaching for a white dress shirt from the closet in the far corner of the room, he shook his head, clearly amused.
“It just makes it very hard to relax when you’re walking around here having very little consideration, is all.” she explained, watching him button his shirt.
“Sweetheart, you’ve seen me naked, what…” he asked, wandering across the room, his shit eating smirk smoothing over his face that had her equal parts wanting to smack and attack. “… A few thousand times?”
Stopping closer than she anticipated, she sucked in a breath, the smell of clean soap assaulting her. She knew what he was doing now. He was playing unfair, using his body and sheer force to his advantage. Well if he wanted to play dirty, than she could play dirty, too.
“You know, I really don’t recall,” she shrugged as if she hadn’t remembered every single time she had admired his body, both intimately and from afar. She was a terrible liar. Hating that he could see right through her with one look.
“You really don’t remember? I know our honeymoon counted for at least a good few hundred of those times, darlin’?” he smirked, stepping closer.
“Hmm, well absence tends to jog a person’s memory,” she said dismissively, looking him in the eyes for the first time since her wild sex dream that morning about the same body they were currently arguing over. A small semblance of hurt flashed across his eyes disappearing quicker than it had appeared. She hated how much she cared about his feelings, but maybe it was just mean enough to keep him far enough away so that she could leave the weekend still intact. “And I am having fun.” She lifted her chin, trying not to choke on her words.
He didn’t believe her, she could tell, and how could he when she wasn’t even sure she believed herself.
“Sweetheart, when you’re ready to start having some real fun,” he whispered in her ear sending shivers down her body. “You just let me know.”
* * *
“Liv, are you done yet? We’re going to be late according to your militant schedule here,” Jax explained through the door, looking over the itinerary that she had given him earlier that morning.
She ran a tight ship, always had, but where most men he knew would have found that quality annoying, he found it endearing. She was a perfectionist and that meant she cared. Not being in control of the room situation earlier had her crazy. He was grateful that Chelsea had done what she had to ensure that they were in closer quarters all weekend, but he was rattling her, he could see it. At first it was cute, watching her blush and trying to figure out new ways to avoid him in such a small space, but the last thing he wanted to do was stress her out.
“One more minute, I promise,” she swore through the bathroom door. He had to change his approach…again, if he wanted to make her comfortable around him. Checking his phone he saw that a text from Trevor informing him that they would all meet him and Liv at the restaurant. Typical Liv, always running late. Sticking his phone back into his pocket, he remembered what Trevor had said earlier.
Honesty.
Just be honest with her.
And he wanted to be.
He would be.
The bathroom door swung open as Liv stood in the doorway looking like a damn near goddess. Her light hair curled around her face, wearing a long purple dress with gold bracelets on her wrists. She was breathtaking.
“You look amazing,” he stuttered a bit, clearing his throat. After six years together, she still looked as beautiful, if not more gorgeous, than the day he had met her inside a hotel, under a chandelier that lit her up like an angel. He just hadn’t known at the time that she was his angel. Sent to save him.
“Thank you,” she smiled looking at him. Her eyes light and composed, seeming significantly more comfortable than she had been before storming off into the bathroom.
“You still clean up pretty nicely yourself,” she grinned, moving past him to grab her purse off the bed. He couldn’t take his eyes off her as she moved around the room gathering her things, putting them inside her purse.
“Ready?” she asked in a visibly happier mood. He had no idea what had changed in the course of an hour, but he was grateful for it. Her guard was down.
“Ladies first.”
Making their way to the restaurant, they chatted briefly admiring the resort’s architecture, something Jax was in awe of. He had always been engrossed by structural design, knowing for certain that if he hadn’t had a great talent for throwing a ball and leading an entire team, that he would have been an architect. Designing their home had been his biggest project to date and he was itching for another venture sooner rather than later. It was one of the passions he and Liv had always shared, creating and appreciating innovative designs. Walking through the lobby, they were directed towards a brick stairway leading them straight onto the beach. Under the small canopy he saw their friends chatting louder than any other group and sipping drinks. Charlotte had finally arrived and the petite blonde looked ready to let loose. The entire group was there with the exception of Whitney and Ross, who stayed behind to run things at Save the Date while Liv was away.
False Start (Mavericks #1) Page 14