by Nikki Larson
“Just be there,” she insisted. She’d have none of his nonsense. No surprise there.
“Let me pick you up,” he offered. No reason they should have to take two cars….
“Okay,” she agreed. “Seven o’clock.”
He glanced at the clock on the wall. It was 6:05 already. But he could make it if he hurried. “Okay, I’ll try not to be late,” he told her. “But I’m working out at the moment, so I might be a while.”
“Okay, don’t get in a wreck,” she replied.
Chapter 9
“So, what’s your proposition?” Jaxton asked her the second she opened the door. His voice was deep and raspy and he had a playful, mischievous look in his eyes.
“Don’t even,” she warned him. “Don’t even get any ideas.” She turned and looked over her shoulder to see her mother smiling in the background. Nothing got past Fiona. Well, actually, almost everything got past her, unless she was in the room. And even then, Sylvia could get away with quite a lot. Let’s just say her mother was not the most observant person, distracted as she often was by the TV or her writing. But this time, it seemed she’d heard everything.
“How are you feeling, Fiona?” Jaxton asked politely.
“A little better, thanks.” She gave a brave smile.
“Well, let’s go,” Sylvia said abruptly. She threw her mother a little smirk, so that she wouldn’t ask any questions. “Bye, Mom,” she called out. “You gonna be okay?”
“I’ll be fine,” Fiona reassured them weakly.
Sylvia couldn’t get out of there fast enough. The last thing she needed was for Jaxton to be flirting with her in front of her mother. Not that he didn’t do that all the time. Her heart was beating out of control, and it could have been from his playful insinuation, but she blamed it on feeling rushed instead. She had a lot to do today, and a lot of ideas to run by him. Jaxton’s response would direct her day. Because if he couldn’t do what she asked, she’d have to come up with new plans and ideas.
He reached for her hand as he led her to his Porsche, his everyday car.
She took his hand without thinking, then gasped and pulled away.
He only threw his head back and laughed. “Sorry about that,” he said with a shrug of his shoulders. His boyish, you-caught-me grin made her smile in return.
“Don’t forget we are not together,” she warned him. “Not anymore.” She saw a touch of sadness in his eyes when he held the car door open for her.
“I understand,” he said evenly.
They put their seatbelts on in unison, and it made her laugh that they were so much in sync. “We have to stop meeting this way,” she teased.
He was about to turn the key in the ignition but her words made him stop and stare at her. “What way?” he asked.
“No way,” she said abruptly, shaking her head. “Just kidding.” She laughed. Boy, he was on edge. Had her mention of a proposition really thrown him that much for a loop? “Relax, you’re fine,” she assured him, to calm his nerves.
But she could see her words didn’t help. Now he looked annoyed at being treated like a child. But he said nothing.
“Don’t look at me like that,” she scolded him. He was so much fun to mess with. Maybe she’d have to keep this up. He’d messed with her enough over the years. Maybe it was time to turn the tables, and make him uncomfortable, keep him on his toes, comment on his every move.
She watched him sigh and turn the car on. He kept glancing at her as he drove along Pacific Coast Highway, with the sun setting along the horizon. The sky was alight with oranges and purples, and the ocean waters were gilded in gold.
“Rubio’s, right?”
“Right,” she said happily. Fish tacos sounded amazing right now. Not the healthiest, true, with the breading on the fish. But she could allow herself a splurge once in a while. Once a week, to be exact.
“So you’re dying to know what my proposition is?” she teased him when they were almost there.
“Not dying,” he said darkly.
She could tell he hated to be so easily influenced by her and what she wanted. He still wasn’t over her. Not by a longshot. It felt good, in some ways, to be the object of his affection. But she didn’t want him to feel weak and, she could tell, that’s exactly how he was feeling. She knew him well enough to tell.
“Okay then,” she said cheerfully, to lighten his mood. “No problem.”
He regarded her strangely, then shrugged his shoulders. “You’re crazy,” he commented.
“Yeah,” she agreed. “Crazy for you.”
He was just pulling the car into the parking space when she said it, and her words made him stomp hard on the brakes. Shock registered on his face as he put the car into park and yanked on the parking brake. “Sylvia,” he said huskily. His eyes searched her face and it was obvious the poor guy was practically overwhelmed with confusion.
She placed a kiss on her fingers and tapped his nose with it. “Air kiss,” she said. She knew she was toying with him, but it was just so much… fun.
They sat there for a moment in the car, just staring at each other – he, with a still-shocked look and she, with a playful smile.
No need to stretch it out any further. The suspense was clearly killing him. So she blurted this out: “My proposition is that I was wondering if you would like to help me with a few things.” She was stumbling over her words, which was not at all like her. But she’d created this intensely charged atmosphere between them and now she had to deal with it. “With my business,” she added, hoping that would help alleviate the tension.
She could see him deflate before her eyes, but he recovered well and tried to hide his emotions, just like he always did. Unsuccessfully. He’d always thought her FanGram obsession was childish and self-aggrandizing. He didn’t understand that it was her way of spreading health and goodness throughout the world. She’d grown used to his constant barrage of criticism, and she decided not to hold it against him.
“I was approached by a man the other day,” she told him, and watched his eyes grow wide. “It’s okay,” she said, to reassure him. “I was okay. It was just… it was this creepy guy; he said he was a TV producer and he wanted me to be in some reality show with these other FanGram stars. I didn’t trust it, of course. But he gave me his card. I threw it away because I didn’t want to have anything to do with him. What if it was a scam? It probably was. But apparently, he saw me throw his business card away in the trash can because he tracked me down at Starbucks and gave me another card. Isn’t that weird?”
By the look in his eyes, Jaxton agreed. “Scumbag,” he said under his breath, and Sylvia could see his jaw tense and his neck grow red from anger.
“Yeah, I thought so, too,” she continued, trying to keep her voice calm to settle Jaxton’s nerves. “So, I was thinking, if only I had Jaxton as my bodyguard….” She blinked her eyes at him. This was so hard to admit, that she wanted – needed – his help. “You wouldn’t mind, would you? I don’t really need you to be a full-on bodyguard. Just look out for me. Help keep me safe.” She looked into his deep brown eyes, but she couldn’t bear to have him answer just yet, so she kept right on talking. “But that’s not all. I was looking at other people’s FanGram posts – you know, other fitness gurus’ posts – and I saw they had all these creative ideas. Poses on the beach, with their dog, with their boyfriends….” She gazed into his eyes once again.
Suddenly she saw him differently. He was so appealing, so good-looking, so manly and muscular. His perfectly-groomed two-day growth of whiskers – a beard along with a mustache – was so attractive and his eyes were so intense – she found herself scarily, newly drawn to him.
He must have noticed, because he used this opportunity to release his seatbelt and lean over the center console to kiss her.
The first thing she thought of was, Good thing the windows are so tinted. The shock of his lips on hers, so warm and moist, transported her to another realm and she was lost in desire, kissing him back.
She was all caught up in the moment, transcending time. Passion welled up in her, overwhelming her senses, taking away all her breath, so much so that she had to pull away. She placed a firm hand on his taut chest. “Stop,” she begged him.
“Stop?” he asked, sounding wounded.
“We shouldn’t,” she pleaded. Her eyes welled up with tears, though she didn’t know why. Perhaps it was the fact that she’d been missing him more than she thought. Perhaps it was that he meant so much to her, and she was just beginning to realize it.
He touched her cheek and concern registered in his eyes.
Self-conscious but unable to wipe her tears away without being obvious, she simply let them trickle slowly down her cheeks. She bit the side of her lip and whispered, “Sorry.” But she was too overcome with emotion to say any more.
“You’re crying,” he said tenderly. “What is it?”
Did he really have to look at her that way? Did all of her nerves have to come alive with gratitude for the fact that he cared? “I don’t know,” she answered honestly. Who could sort out all of these nebulous feelings?
Suddenly he understood. She could tell by the flicker of light in his eyes, by the grateful relief on his face. He understood even before she did. “You want me,” he said simply.
She closed her lips tight so she wouldn’t cry out. But she nodded rapidly like a foolish little child who had just been told she gets to go to Disneyland over spring break.
“You care about me,” he said slowly. Incredulity was all over his face.
The sight of him and the wonderfulness of the realization they were both having somehow made her laugh with delight. “I do,” she admitted through her tears. “What are we going to do?” she bemoaned.
His only answer was another passionate kiss.
Chapter 10
Walking from the parking lot towards Rubio’s with her, hand-in-hand, Jaxton felt like he was walking on clouds. His heart was as light as the full moon glowing outside. Her hand felt smooth and silky soft in his. It felt like he was home.
In line to order, he couldn’t help but smile at her and she beamed back. He’d never seen her this happy. This, he believed, was a genuine happiness, not a contrived one or a put-on one that she usually emanated. He did admire her for her earlier fortitude, determination, and strength in projecting positivity in her life and career. But it was forced. He knew it was. It was a survival mechanism, used to keep away some type of mounting desperation. If only he could figure out what had devastated her so. She’d been distant for some time, and he felt she was going through some dark period then, though she’d never shared with him what it was. Maybe, in time, she would trust him enough to reveal it. In any case, he wouldn’t ask now. It would only dampen their buoyant, giddy mood. Why ruin it? He chased the sad, troubling thoughts away and focused on his girl.
After he ordered their fish tacos, black beans, corn chips, and iced teas Jaxton found a booth in the corner for the two of them. Ignoring the girls who were elbowing each other and gesturing as discreetly as they could at Sylvia, he sat across from her so he could see her better. She had her long brown hair curled attractively at the ends, and her facial features were delicate and appealing – her rosebud mouth with its sharp tips at the cupid’s bow, her cute perky nose, her crystal blue eyes which flashed with fire and depth. She didn’t even seem to notice him staring. She was probably so used to being noticed and scrutinized everywhere she went.
As for Jaxton – he was a billionaire, yes, but he was under the radar, not often recognized. He liked it that way. There were a million guys with dark eyes and dark hair, who dressed in semi-casual business attire. Today he wore his black denim jeans and a white button-down shirt rolled up at the sleeves. Unassuming. He preferred it that way.
“Should we pray?” she asked him once the food was delivered to their table.
It wasn’t like her to be open to the idea of praying before a meal, and it surprised him so much that he was speechless, though he tried to hide it. “Ah, sure,” he said.
“Great. You,” she directed.
“Me,” he repeated. “Okay, then.” He was used to praying but not in front of Sylvia. Trying to both project and feel confidence, he bowed his head and began: “Heavenly Father, what abundant blessings you always have for us. I want to thank you right now for this wonderful woman, Sylvia, who has been a lifelong friend.”
“Enemy,” she interjected happily.
“Enemy,” he echoed with a laugh. “Frenemy,” he suggested.
“No, not frenemy,” she corrected him. “I hate that word. It’s ridiculous. You can’t be both friends and enemies.” She leaned across the table, looked at him intently.
“You can’t?” he asked her with a wink. “I thought we’ve done it pretty well.”
“No,” she disagreed. “We were never friends. Only enemies.”
He cocked his head at her and wondered how to answer that. When they were dating, what were they then? More like friends than enemies then – for a short while. But there was no use in arguing. He’d let it go.
“The prayer,” she directed him. “You were praying,” she said, “before I so rudely interrupted.”
“Yes,” he agreed, to both statements. He bowed his head once again. “Dear Lord, thank you for this day and for this food.” He looked at Sylvia, whose head was still bowed. “There. Is that good?”
“I suppose so,” she said.
“I shortened it for you,” Jaxton told her with a snide smirk. “So you have nothing to interrupt.”
“Oh, excuse me,” she replied. But the look in her eyes showed a newfound measure of respect.
Jaxton began eating his tacos. “Mmm….,” he said. “Delicious.”
She kept stealing glances at him, in between taking bites of her taco, and smiling.
“What?” he said, finally. He wasn’t worried, just amused. Her smile lightened his heart, and he felt like he had no cares in the world at all.
“You’re wonderful,” she told him.
“I’m wonderful,” he repeated, deadpan.
She nodded profusely, then tried to suppress a giggle.
“Are you playing me?” he asked her. This wasn’t the Sylvia he knew. The Sylvia he knew was strong-willed, determined, unbreakable. Confident, stable, independent. Not complimentary of him, that’s for sure. Not usually.
She looked away from him to study a picture on the wall. He could tell she was mulling over what to say, how to answer him. “Not playing,” she confided. “Realizing.”
He tilted his head, wondering. This woman was certainly a mystery. He dared say nothing to break the magic of the moment. He could only go with it, and see where she would lead him.
“Really, Jaxton,” she went on, “I shouldn’t have been so mean to you all those years.” She blinked and regarded him with wide, focused eyes. “I shouldn’t have been mean to you yesterday. It was as recently as yesterday that I was rude to you, wasn’t it?” She pursed her lips in what appeared to be disappointment. “I just want to say, I’m sorry. I should have treated you like the prince that you are.”
“I’m a prince now, am I?” He couldn’t resist toying with her just a little. He had to do something to lighten the mood, or she might cry.
“Well, not a prince exactly,” she amended, “but a very nice guy. You’ve always looked out for me, Jaxton, even when I was at my worst.” She sighed and slouched her shoulders.
He loved seeing her in this vulnerable state. “I like to look out for you,” he said earnestly, reaching for her hand across the table. “You’ve got to know I care about you. I’ve always cared about you. You are a princess. Not one that needs rescuing,” he bit his lip, thinking she might take it all wrong. But she looked not one bit offended. “You are priceless – that‘s what I’m trying to say.”
“Priceless,” she repeated thoughtfully.
“Yeah,” he said, looking into those crystal blue eyes. “You are.”
Chapter 11
“So, what are we going to do?” Sylvia asked him when he pulled into her mother’s driveway. Sylvia knew she really should get a place of her own someday, but for now her mother needed her and she saved money by staying here.
He flipped on the car’s dome light and turned to her. “About what?” he asked, cocking his head.
“About us,” she said matter-of-factly. Wasn’t it obvious? She needed to know where they stood with each other.
“Us?” he asked, shrugging his shoulders.
She hated when he played dumb, and she shoved his shoulder hard to tell him so. “Stop,” she said.
“Stop?” he repeated, in the same deadpan tone he often used.
“Quit repeating me every time I say something,” she scolded him. She looked into his confused eyes. “I just want to know where we stand with each other.” Did she really have to spell it out like that? It was humiliating.
“Where we stand?”
Did he really not know what she was getting at? It was infuriating. “Look, forget it,” she said, getting out of the car and slamming the door.
He followed her immediately. “What are you talking about?” He grabbed for her arm, which only incensed her further.
“Let go of me,” she said between clenched teeth as she threw her arm down to shake him off. “Don’t touch me, Jaxton Braun. Who do you think you are, touching me?”
“Ummm…?” he said. “You’re mad at me?”
She stopped in her tracks and stared at him. Maybe this was all her fault. Maybe she was overreacting, just like Kyle had always told her. But no. She wouldn’t fall for that anymore. She refused to accept the blame. Jaxton should have told her up front what his intentions were towards her, and made it clear where they were going from here. She’d only wanted to hear that she mattered to him, that they were an item now, and that he wouldn’t be dating anyone else. “You’re impossible,” she said, sighing deeply.
But she felt herself weakening as she stood there. Why did she suddenly feel like such a terrible person? Maybe it was the way he stood there in the shadows of the outdoor lighting, looking defeated and helpless. “Ah…, I’m sorry?” she said finally.