“It can. If…”
“Oh. If what?”
“If you want to explain it to me over dinner.” Maybe it was the adrenaline still pumping through my veins, maybe it was the pure stupidity or the hormones running rampant, but I was prepared to embarrass myself, again, for this girl.
“You want to go to dinner with me?” she asked.
“Well he doesn’t want to go to dinner with me,” Jax replied for me. I’d completely forgotten he was even there.
“Well, you can come too…” Not! I did not want him there, but sometimes the price was worth the reward.
As much as I wanted to take her to dinner, there was something I needed even more. I needed to know just how friendly Jax and Elise were. If they were together, I was in trouble. It wouldn’t necessarily stop me, but it would definitely put a dent in my plans.
“Thanks, but I’m not going to stand in the way of young love.” He answered my question without me asking it.
“Nothing young about me,” Elise grumbled.
“Oh shush you! The adults are talking.” He turned his gaze to me. “What our lovely Elise would like to say, is yes, Luca. I’d love to go to dinner with you.”
Looking around Jax, I tried to gage her reaction, but she wouldn’t look at me. When I caught her yawning, I changed tactics. Glancing down at my watch, I noticed it was already after ten.
“So, I’m thinking it’s getting late. Elise, would you like to get dinner with me tomorrow?”
“You still want…”
Jax’s hand clamped down over her mouth, silencing her. I wanted to laugh. It’s exactly what my sisters would’ve done if I was in her position.
“She’d love to. Pick her up at seven.”
Even though she wasn’t the one saying the words, she wasn’t fighting them either. Something I was counting as a win.
“If you’re sure.”
“She’s sure,” Jax confirmed as he let his hand drop.
“Well if you’re sure, Elise, can I get your number?”
Chapter Eight – Elise
I stood in front of the mirror trying to decide on whether to put my hair up or leave it out. While everyone loved my hair, I hated it most days. It had a mind of its own. Chocolate-coloured and curly, it never behaved.
“Stop fussing and get your arse out here!”
Some days I wondered why I let Jax in my life, let alone gave him a key to my front door. He was more than my best friend though. He was my everything. We came as a package deal, something we made sure anyone we dated understood. If they wanted to come between us, they were kicked to the kerb before they knew what hit them. He was also my biggest supporter and harshest critic. Probably the reason he’d let himself in while I was in the shower and was now undoubtedly sitting on my bed, his opinion on the outfit I’d laid out ready to go. More than likely an opinion I didn’t want to hear.
“Why are you here?” I called back as I tightened the tie on my robe and put the cap back on my jasmine-scented lotion.
“To make sure you don’t embarrass us.”
“Embarrass us?” I questioned, pushing open my bedroom door to find Jax exactly as I expected. Perched on my bed, feet up, glass of champagne in hand.
“Yes. Embarrass us.”
“How is there an ‘us’ in this?”
“Oh, shut up. You know there’s an ‘us’ in everything.”
“Oh, my apologies. I forgot how my dating life affects you.”
“Apology accepted. Now, what are we wearing?” he asked, looking at the pair of jeans and black top I’d chosen.
Digging through my drawers, I grabbed a pair of panties and a bra and attempted to sneak back into the bathroom to pull them on. Before I made it inside, Jax snatched my wrist and yanked me back towards the bed. Being the klutz that I was, I tripped over my own feet and landed on my bed with a bounce.
“Not so fast. What’s in your hand, Missy?”
“Nothing.” He gave me that look that had me trying again. “Fine. Underwear. Happy now?”
“Show me.”
“What!”
“Show me.”
“I’m not showing you my underwear, Jax. You’re being crazy.”
He growled at me. Actually growled. He was insane. Setting his glass on my bedside table, he pounced on me and started tickling. Jaxson was officially an arsehole. Kicking and squirming, I pushed and fought until I was panting and on the verge of wetting myself.
“Fine! Fine!” I conceded, throwing them at his head.
“Knew you’d see it my way,” he panted, climbing off me.
Standing up, he straightened his shirt, and I noticed for the first time how fancy he was dressed. Even his hair was looking extra shiny. “Where are you headed tonight?”
“We’re not talking about me right now, we’re discussing this underwear you were planning on wearing, if it can even be called that. How is it you even still own cotton undies with pineapples on them? Surely I would’ve burnt them years ago. Or I should’ve.”
“You don’t know everything I do, Jaxson Sebastian Marioncheski.”
“Oooh, full naming me now, are we?”
“Just give them back.”
“No. There’s no way I’m letting you leave the house with that delicious hunk of spunk wearing something so hideous.” Without letting me say a word, he ripped my panties in two.
“What the?” To say I was stunned was an understatement.
“Now I’ve dealt with that issue, what are you going to wear? Panties are in this drawer, right?” he asked, yanking it open.
After sorting through my drawers, he pulled out a scrap of lace I didn’t even know I owned.
“No freaking way!”
“Yes way. Go, put these on while I find you some clothes.”
Giving up the fight, I went into the bathroom and changed. “Well, what am I putting on over these, cos there’s no way I’m leaving the house in only this butt floss,” I asked, tugging the black lace out of my arse.
“Well I don’t want you to feel uncomfortable…”
“Bullshit!”
Jax ignored my outburst and kept going. “So you can keep your jeans cos they make your arse look fantastic. But you’re not wearing a black top. Black is boring. So, you’re wearing this.”
When he handed me my black boots, I paused and looked at him. “Shouldn’t I be wearing heels?” I asked, checking myself in the full-length mirror. How I let him convince me to wear this top I had no idea. One wrong move and my boobs would be playing peek a boo.
“Normally, yes.”
“Then why did you give me my flat boots? The heeled ones are in there somewhere,” I told him, pointing to the bottom of the cupboard.
“Because, sweetheart, I’ve seen you in heels. And unless you want to look like Bambi got into Mum’s tequila, flats are your friend.”
“Oh.” I was already freaking out about going out tonight with Luca, this wasn’t helping.
“Don’t pout. You look hot. And next to that stud muffin, you’ll look tiny and fragile.”
“Tiny and fragile are not good things, Jax.”
“Ah, sweetheart. You have so much to learn about men. Especially men like Luca Conti.”
Speaking of men like Luca, my phone pinged, and my stomach ended up in my throat.
Luca: Just parked. Be up in a second
“Now before you freak out, just breathe and enjoy. You don’t have to marry the guy. All you need to do is go have fun. Flirt. Have a few drinks then come home and tell me all the dirty details.”
“I can do that.”
“Yeah, sweetheart, you can.”
As I sucked in a deep breath, a knock on the door interrupted my freak-out.
“I got it,” Jaxson promised as he sauntered to the door.
The door opened, and there was Luca looking like everything I ever wanted. Dressed in a pair of dark jeans, navy blue button-down with the sleeves rolled up showing off that arm porn that did all sorts of things to
me. He wasn’t freshly shaved so he was sporting a very sexy scruff on his jaw.
“Hey, Elise. You’re looking gorgeous.”
“You don’t look so bad yourself,” I replied, surprising myself. I don’t know who this chick was. I never flirted. I was terrible at it.
“Hey, Jaxson.”
“Hey, man. Take care of my girl, won’t you?”
“Absolutely.”
I felt like a piece of meat being traded. Before I could voice my objection, Luca pulled his hand out from behind his back and handed me a box wrapped with a silver ribbon.
“Thank you.”
“Don’t thank me. Mum made them. She insisted I not show up empty-handed, not that I ever would, but she told me you’d appreciate these more than a bunch of flowers.”
Intrigued, I cracked open the box and moaned at the sight. “She didn’t!” I gasped. Suddenly I wished Jaxson and Luca weren’t standing there staring at me so I could start stuffing myself with cannoli’s. The scent of vanilla and sugar had my mouth watering.
“One day you’re going to tell me how this…” he pointed between me and the box I was cradling in my arms like it was a baby, “happened.”
“If you play your cards right, I just might.”
“Okay, you two lovebirds. Time to hand over the goodies and get out of here.” Jax reached for the box, and I handed it over unhappily. Replacing it with my bag, he turned me by the shoulders and gave me a shove towards the door. “Have fun, and don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”
“Doesn’t rule out much,” I replied, meaning for only Jax to hear it, but when Luca chuckled, I realised it must’ve been louder than I’d intended.
Twenty minutes later we were turning down a darkened street. The drive hadn’t been uncomfortable. Maybe it was the dark that made me brave, or maybe it was the fact Luca had to watch the road and not me that had me asking a million questions. To his credit, he’d had really good answers for all of them. Except one.
“You’re really not going to tell me where we’re going?” I begged for the fifteenth time.
“I will if I have to, but I’d rather not.” Again with the honesty.
“Fine.” I pretended to pout as I stared out the window. We were driving past some really nice homes, and I was imagining what they’d look like inside. While I wasn’t materialistic, at least I liked to think I wasn’t, houses this big weren’t a reality on my modest teacher’s salary.
“Let me ask you this, Elise. Do you trust me?” His voice wavered as he asked.
“I don’t know why, but yeah. I do.”
“Then relax. We’re here.”
He turned into the driveway of one of the huge homes on the high side of the street. With all the outdoor lighting, the trees were lit up and the patio at the top of the stairs was illuminated. “Where’s here exactly?” I queried as I unbuckled my belt and leaned forward in my seat to get a better look.
“My place. Come on. I need to finish dinner.”
While I sat there frozen in the front seat, Luca jumped out and came around my side to open my door. I couldn’t remember the last time someone opened a car door for me, if they ever had.
His hand snaked through the gap and he helped me out. I didn’t know where to look first. At Luca, who somehow looked even more delicious in the soft light, or his magnificent house. I shivered in the breeze, regretting the amount of boob poking out of my shirt.
“Let me get you inside before you catch a cold.”
I lost track of everything other than Luca as he led me up the stairs. I could smell his cologne and felt the warmth from his fingers intertwined with mine as it travelled up my arm and settled somewhere deep inside me. When the door opened and I stepped inside onto the huge white tiles and looked around, I realised just how easily I could fall if I wasn’t careful.
“Wow! Luca this place is…it’s incredible.”
The lounge room had ceilings that were double height and there was the world’s biggest sofa covered in throw pillows and blankets, and suddenly I was picturing curling up in Luca’s arms, with a bowl of popcorn, watching a movie.
“It’s just home. Wanna give me a hand getting dinner in the oven and then I’ll give you the grand tour?”
“Sounds good. Although I probably should warn you, I’m the world’s worst cook,” I admitted, letting him lead me through his home.
“I don’t believe that for a second.”
“It’s true!” I confirmed. “I burn eggs.”
“No you don’t. No one burns eggs.”
“Seriously. I do. Ask Jax. He gives me shit all the time because all the delivery drivers in my neighbourhood know me by name.”
Stepping into his kitchen was intimidating as hell. It was all white marble, stainless appliances, and along the windowsill was a pot overflowing with herbs. It was a proper adult kitchen. Part of me wanted to jump up and rummage through his cupboards until I found his stash of ramen noodles and tinned baked beans just to prove he was normal. All this perfection was going to be hard to keep up with.
“What can I help with?” I asked, depositing myself on one of the white barstools pulled up to the bench.
“Well, for starters, you can tell me if you’d prefer white or red?”
“White or red what?”
“Wine, Elise. What would you like to drink?”
“Oh. White please.”
A moment later Luca had a bottle of wine in his hand, and I watched with fascination as his muscles flexed as he popped the cork. I didn’t even know wine came with actual corks these days. Or maybe it was just the cheap bottles I bought had screw tops. After he poured me a glass, he slid it across the bench and waited until I took a sip.
“This is delicious.”
“Enjoy it.”
After a few more sips, I asked again how I could help.
“I’ve just got to throw this in the oven and then we have about half an hour before it’s ready. I did the heavy lifting earlier.”
“You really cooked that?” I questioned, pointing to the pan in his hands. I had no idea what it was, but I could smell cheese and bacon and cream. A combination you couldn’t go wrong with.
“I did. From scratch too. You impressed?”
“I am. Can I at least set the table or something?” It was weird. If I went to a restaurant, I wouldn’t have felt uncomfortable having someone cook my meal before serving me while I relaxed and drank my wine. But sitting here in Luca’s home, it was different. Maybe it was the silence surrounding us that had me anxious.
“Why don’t you tell me about Jax?”
“Jax?” I repeated, not sure I heard that correctly. Why would Luca want to talk about Jax when we were on a date? It was definitely odd.
“Yeah. What’s your relationship with him?”
“Ah.”
Chapter Nine – Luca
I didn’t mean to just blurt it out like that, but it’d been playing on my mind and now it was out there, no matter how much I wanted to take it back. I couldn’t put the pin back in the grenade.
“I’m sorry, Elise. That came out wrong. I need you to help me understand your relationship with Jax,” I backtracked, trying to pull my foot out of my mouth.
“Why? We’re a package deal. If you can’t handle that, then I’ll call an Uber and get out of your hair. Your choice.”
“No! That’s not what I meant. Look, Elise, I like you but I’m a competitive guy. Just look at what I do for a living. I play to win. So, if Jax is going to be an issue and I don’t even have a shot, tell me now and I’ll take a seat on the bench.”
“You’d really do that?” Elise questioned, a bit stunned.
“There’s no point fighting a losing battle.”
“I need more wine.” Her comment did nothing to calm my fears. Instead of saying anything, I refilled her glass, checked the oven, and steeled myself. “Jaxson’s my best friend, but he’s more than that. He’s my family. He was my brother’s best friend when they were kids. Michael wa
s three years older than me. I used to follow them around and get in their way. I drove them nuts. They complained and bitched to Mum about it, but they always kept their eye on me. When I fell off the monkey bars one day, while Michael ran home to get Mum, Jax sat with me and let me cry.”
Feeling like something painful was coming, I swallowed down the lump in my throat. “Where’s Michael now?” I was hoping he was living an incredible life in a penthouse in New York or a ski chalet in Switzerland. The sinking feeling in my stomach suggested reality was a different and much sadder story.
“When I was fourteen, Michael was diagnosed with leukemia…”
“Oh shit.” It was worse than I guessed.
“Eighteen months later I had to say goodbye to my big brother. He died on my sixteenth birthday.”
As Elise swiped a tear from her cheek, I rounded the bench and dragged her into my arms. Holding her against my chest, I felt her tears soak through my shirt but didn’t give a shit. When she shuddered, I felt how much this was taking out of her. I was an arsehole for pushing. Why I couldn’t just keep my big mouth shut, I’d never know. But now the flood gates were open, I wasn’t about to force them closed again.
It took a while, but when she pulled back, she looked tired. Drained even. Shifting back, I looked at her, seeing the pain in her eyes, before sinking into the stool next to her and dragging her into my lap. I needed to anchor her. Whether it was to hold me in place or her.
“Jaxson saved me. He pulled me out of hell and helped me put one foot in front of the other. For a long time I was messed up. I did some stupid shit and got myself in a whole bunch of trouble, and Jaxson was there to save me. He’s been there ever since.”
Jaxson and Elise were a package deal. I had absolutely no doubt in my mind about that. And now, knowing their story, I was even more captivated by her strength.
“I’m glad you’ve got him in your life,” I told her, meaning every word.
When she was ready, she climbed out of my lap, sucked in a deep breath, letting it out with a cute sigh before running her hands through her hair, tying it in a knot at the base of her neck. “How long til dinner’s ready?” she asked. Obviously, the gut-wrenching portion of the evening was over.
Overtime (Playing The Field Book 1) Page 5