So, he laid down on the couch anyway, his arm thrown over his head, eyes on the ceiling. He slept a little and thought a lot. About the arguments they’d had behind these walls. Those once impassioned disagreements that turned into apathetic silence, which then led them to split in the first place.
Around six thirty in the morning, he heard her shuffle into the kitchen. He was already at the desk, bleary-eyed and tired, since he’d thought a lot more than he’d slept.
“Morning,” he croaked, to let her know he was there.
“Morning.” Her dark hair was scooped into a topknot and she wore a short silk robe, white with big black flowers on it. She looked soft and approachable and adorable, and his hands itched to touch her.
“You’re wearing glasses,” he observed as he stood to stretch.
“They’re new.” She touched the frames. “I usually wear contacts at work.”
“Oh.” So much had changed, and yet whenever he was here he was somehow frozen in time.
She scooped coffee grounds into a filter basket. “Coffee?”
“Sure.”
She pressed the button on the machine and propped her fist on her hip. She was cute and sleepy and damned sexy. Especially in those dark-framed glasses. “You didn’t sleep in the pool house did you?”
“How did you—I didn’t feel right leaving you.” He lifted a hand to his hair, feeling strangely uncomfortable.
“And you in my house when I told you to leave felt right?”
“What are you trying to avoid by kicking me out, G?”
He could feel the sexual tension between them right now. She was likely trying to avoid this very situation. Them, together, wearing very little.
“You never listen. I have been sleeping alone for a while now. I don’t need a guard downstairs.”
He opened his mouth to tell her he wasn’t guarding her, he wanted to be here for her in case she needed him. But old patterns threatened. If he said that, she’d tell him that he could let go of the need to take care of her since they were divorced.
He didn’t want the conversation to go that way. Time to try something new.
Vulnerability.
Hadn’t that been what Chester recommended?
Jayson didn’t have a good track record with vulnerability. His father had seen it as a weakness to exploit, and his mother felt guilty that she’d caused Jay to feel unsafe. He’d shored up his emotions for a damn good reason—to protect himself and the people he loved. Only now he wondered if opening up to Gia might be the what they needed to bury their past once and for all. Still, opening up could be the ultimate humiliation for him if she rejected him—totally possible.
He needed her closer for this conversation. Tucking a finger into the silky belt at her waist, he pulled her to him. “You like to remind me how much you don’t need me, which makes me feel rejected.”
She blinked up at him. Now that he’d admitted what he was feeling, what he was feeling was exposed. Might as well have loaded a gun and handed it to her. Rather than backtrack, he decided to lean in a bit more. “When we were together I went about protecting you in the wrong way.”
Her eyes widened. She stared as if shocked by his words. For good reason. He’d rarely if ever admitted as his mistakes in the past. He’d always thought he knew best.
“I care about you,” he said. “I never meant to hobble or limit you. I never intended for you to feel like you were a child I was looking after. Despite not wanting to be like my dad, I guess I had a heavy hand after all.”
No, he’d never physically harmed her, but trying to stifle her when she should be wild and free hadn’t been much better.
She reached up and placed her hand on his cheek. “No, Jayson. You’re nothing like your father. I heard the stories from both you and your mom, and I believed then what I believe now.”
He stayed silent, as if part of him knew how badly he needed to hear what came next.
“You’re overprotective at times, but you’re also kind. And sweet.”
He grumbled.
She laughed and patted his cheek. “It’s okay to be sweet. You’re not your dad. You could never be that small of a man.”
The moment called for a kiss, so he bent his head. She inclined her chin to meet him in the middle.
Maybe vulnerability had its merits.
She tasted like Gia. Like the woman he hadn’t seen at this ungodly hour since he’d awoken next to her in the bed they shared. It was a bed he’d like to share with her again...say, right now.
She surprised him by reaching up and clinging to his neck, kissing him deeper. He untied her robe, slipping his palms over her warm skin. Beneath he found a simple white tank top and black panties. This outfit was one of his all-time favorites. No fancy lingerie needed, his ex-wife was sexiest when she wore cotton.
He sucked in a breath as he lifted the edge of her tank and tickled her skin. “So soft.”
Her own breathing sped as her hands roamed over his T-shirt. “We have to go to work,” she cautioned, but there was no conviction in her words.
“And if we don’t?” He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her flush against him. He was already hard from that kiss. “When was the last time you did something you weren’t supposed to, Gia?”
She laughed, the sound husky and sexy, and turned those dark eyes up to him. Her grin held. “It’s been frequent since we’ve been hanging out more often.”
He liked that.
He lifted and deposited her on the countertop, content to use the momentum they had to spend some serious quality time with her. Just as his mouth stamped hers and his hand closed over her breast, a sharp knock came from the front door.
“It’s us!” Taylor Knox called out. She hadn’t made it into the kitchen yet, but she would soon enough.
“Crap! I forgot.” Gia shoved away from him and hopped off the counter.
“What the hell...?” He adjusted the part of himself that had recently become large enough to be a distraction.
“Royce and Taylor asked if they could swing by on the way to work today to drop off something.”
“What something?” It’d better be important, that was for damn sure.
She waved him off. “Go hide.”
“Hide?”
“Jayson, it’s seven in the morning and neither of us are dressed.”
“Last I checked we’re not teenagers. You have nothing to explain.” He folded his arms. He wasn’t going anywhere. “You’re a grown woman.” As a grown woman she could sleep with Jayson—or almost sleep with him—anytime she liked.
“At least act casual?” she pleaded.
“Casual went out the window with that kiss.”
She glared, a sure sign she agreed, and then walked out of sight.
A moment later, Taylor was chattering her way excitedly through the house. Royce’s low murmur followed. Jayson poured himself a cup of coffee and leaned against the countertop. When Taylor entered the kitchen, her sentence trailed off into an ellipsis.
“Hi, Coop,” she said carefully, exchanging glances with Royce before swapping a lengthier one with Gia.
“Morning.” Jayson sipped his coffee.
“Cooper.” Royce’s expression was harder to read than his wife’s.
“Coffee?” Jayson offered.
“No, thanks,” Taylor said. “We brought a few souvenirs and I wanted to drop them off before Gia took off for work. We have something for you, too, but it didn’t occur to me to bring it.”
“For good reason,” Royce murmured. “We didn’t expect to find you here.” He didn’t often play the big, bad brother card with Jayson—or at least he hadn’t in a while. If he thought he was intimidating... Hell, Jayson was older than Royce.
“Why don’t we have our coffee outside,” Royce added.
“I’
ll have mine right here, thanks, but you can go outside if you like.” Jayson grinned.
Royce glowered for a beat before Taylor interrupted the short standoff.
“We should go. Don’t you have to be in the office soon?” Taylor asked her husband.
“Nope.”
“What’s the matter, Royce? Afraid to admit your feelings in front of your sister? She’s an adult, you know.” Jayson informed him.
“Afraid has nothing to do with it.” Royce faced his sister. “Are you being careful with him? In every way imaginable?”
“Royce!” Taylor shot him a peeved look.
“Gia knows what she wants,” Jayson said. “She also knows what she doesn’t want. She’d never allow me, or anyone, to trample her wishes. You know that better than anyone. She’s damned well capable of making decisions for herself regardless of what you or I want her to do.”
Royce’s nostrils flared.
Gia took a step closer to Jayson and he instantly realized what he’d done. He’d spoken for her instead of giving her the space to speak for herself. Dammit, would he ever learn?
“Thank you, Jayson.”
Wait. Did she just thank him?
“I’m not interested in your advice when it comes to Jayson,” she told her brother.” She winked at Taylor. “Yours I’d consider.”
“Aw, thanks, G.” Taylor smiled. Royce did not. She gave her husband’s arm a light slap. “Oh, stop being so overbearing. Jayson’s right. Gia can take care of herself.” Taylor set the gift bag on the counter before curling her arms around one of Royce’s. “We’ll be leaving now. See you at the office.”
Once they’d gone, Jayson turned to his ex-wife. “Did I have a stroke or did both you and Taylor admit that I was right?”
“Don’t ruin this moment by being arrogant.” But Gia was smiling when she said it. She pulled the coffee cup from his hand and set it on the counter. “Now, where were we? We have a few minutes to continue what we started before going in to work.”
He didn’t hesitate, setting her on the countertop next to his coffee and kissing her.
They didn’t end up having sex, but second base wasn’t bad.
Eighteen
The moment Gia sat down at her desk later that morning and opened her laptop Taylor appeared as if a magician had abracadabraed her there.
“I leave for my honeymoon and apparently miss a really big development between you and Jayson! Did you not each bring your own dates—the first time I’ve ever seen that happen, by the way—to my wedding? Tell me everything. Every last thing.” She dragged a chair over and sat, elbows propped on the desk’s surface, chin in her hands.
“Well—”
“Addison told me you had sex after the wedding, but I thought she was mistaken. I mean it was the morning after and there were still guests mingling at the breakfast bar.”
“Well—”
“I never believed you with that skateboarder for a second. Or Cooper with that model.” Taylor rolled her eyes. “Give me a break.”
“Yeah, um... Our dates weren’t really doing it for us.”
“So you did it to each other?” Taylor giggled at her own joke. “Sorry about busting in on you two this morning.”
“It’s okay. He wasn’t supposed to be there, actually. I asked him to sleep in the pool house.”
“Boundaries are important,” Taylor said carefully.
About that... The second Taylor and Royce left, Gia happily made out with Jayson. He’d admitted he handled things poorly when they were married and then defended Gia to her brother. It was beyond sexy hearing him say she could handle herself. She’d wanted to see that change in him for so long. Now that she had, she was having trouble trusting it.
“Sex is a normal, natural thing,” Taylor said. “If that’s where you and Cooper are, enjoy it.”
“You, too? Addi told me to go for it. It’s not that easy, you know. Jayson and I are divorced.”
“Yeah, and you’re still human. Plus, you two have a very unique relationship, even with a marriage behind you. Mistakes are always made in relationships. Sometimes you have to grow and learn. Maybe your timing was off the first time around.”
“Or maybe I’m going to lose my heart to the one man I should know better than to hand it to.” Jayson was a wonderful person and hotter than Hades in the summertime but him admitting he’d overstepped one time wasn’t going to fix everything.
“Oh, honey.” Taylor patted her best friend’s hand. “I love you. I wish you every happiness in life, whether you end up sharing a life with Jayson or not. But sometimes you have to take a leap of faith even if you’re not sure it’s going to work out. Look at me. After all the mistakes I made, I have Royce. I have Emmaline. Can’t blame me for wanting you to have that same happiness.”
“No. I can’t blame you.” Gia smiled. What Taylor and Royce had was beautiful and everlasting.
“It’s okay to screw up.” Taylor stood. “I know you think you have to be bulletproof—to hold your own and make sure you do everything for yourself, but in the end it’s not worth it. It’s okay to admit you messed up. Messing up is a sign that you tried.”
Gia had tried in her marriage, but she was haunted by the worry that she hadn’t tried enough. If she and Jayson were to realize they’d made a mistake divorcing, would she ever be able to forgive herself for causing them so much pain? After all, she was the one who’d offered divorce as a solution.
Rather than say any of that, she nodded at her friend. “Thanks, Tay.”
“You bet, doll.” Taylor slipped out of Gia’s office at the same time Jay passed by the door. He stopped and leaned in, both hands on the door frame. He looked good. Somehow better than he had a few hours ago. She was struck with the overwhelming need to touch him.
“Brainstorming sesh tonight at the house?” he asked.
The house. He’d worded that carefully. “Sure.”
“Wine?”
Maybe she’d been overthinking—a hobby she was intimately familiar with. Maybe she should take her sisters-in-law’s advice and enjoy the moment. “Sure.”
“Red? White?”
“Chardonnay would be lovely.”
“Consider it done.” He tapped the door frame and walked away. She watched him go, admiring his strong, straight back, dark wavy hair and long legs.
* * *
That night Gia was propped up on her sofa, tablet in her lap. Jayson sat at the desk on the other side of the room.
She thought about her conversation with Taylor when she should have been focusing on solving the tablet issue. No one on their team had made headway. When she suggested to Jayson they should scrap the update, he nearly blew his stack.
We can’t let this beat us, G. Those improvements are vital to the survival of this tablet. If we give up now, we’re signing its death warrant.
That made her think of them, their marriage. Had they given up rather than improve?
The longer she sat in the same room with him, the more irresistible he became. That same old familiarity smacked between them, here in their former shared house. Even when they weren’t having sex, she felt the sizzle of attraction. Even with the unromantic pizza box on the coffee table, what was left of their dinner having congealed into a rock-hard mass of cheese and olives.
It was important for her to define boundaries not only for Jay, but for herself. She shouldn’t have continued kissing him this morning. She should have marched upstairs and dressed for work, and kept her cool. That lengthy physical interaction with him made it harder for her to bury those thoughts about their marriage and the mistakes that were made. In short, it’d made it harder for her to continue moving forward.
She was stuck. On the damn tablet issue, and on Jayson.
With a sigh, she restarted the tablet for the nine-hundredth time and began poking around. A
s expected, it powered down before she’d had a chance to—
“Oh my God,” she muttered. While part of her mind had been turning over her current situation, the processing part had shoved two puzzle pieces together. She knew exactly what to do to fix this update.
Jay swiveled in his chair, barely reined-in excitement in his eyes. “That sounded promising.”
She had to smile. He knew her Eureka! voice.
She rushed to the desk, physically moved his hand from the mouse, and clicked out of what he was working on. A few clicks and keystrokes later, she knew she had it. A zap of intuition told her that she’d tripped upon exactly the right code.
She was a superhero.
“That’s it. The fix. I know it. I know it, I know it...” Heart racing, she stood over the desk staring down at Jayson, her chest rising and falling with each truncated breath.
“Why am I not surprised?” His slow blink communicated that he was proud. His approval, while dangerous to covet, was oh-so welcome.
“Hand it over. I’ll update the software and we’ll do a test. We’ll see if you just won the bet. Or if I have another shot at winning it myself.”
Right. The bet. She hadn’t been thinking about that. Her thoughts had narrowed to fixating on him and finding the glitch.
What felt like years later, but was more like fifteen minutes, she chewed on the side of her thumb and paced from kitchen to living room.
Finally, she heard the telltale chime of the tablet firing up. She raced over to watch as his blunt fingers tapped from screen to screen. He powered down and glanced up at her, warmth in his blue eyes. While her breath stalled in her lungs, he powered up the tablet one more time and tapped on the screen.
“It didn’t crash. Yet.” His lips curved. “The shutdown typically occurs immediately. Just to make sure, have at it.” He handed over the tablet and instructed her to test it for herself. “I’ll do the same with mine.”
* * *
One Last Kiss Page 10