We walked through the kitchen to the back deck. Jackson filled our cups and he leaned against the wooden railing and took a long swallow, his Adam’s apple bobbing beneath his perfect chin. I watched as he placed his cup on top of the rail and lit a cigarette. He watched me back.
“What?” I asked with a smile. My tongue was loosened enough from the beer to talk to him without feeling so nervous. Even though it was cold outside, I felt warm.
“You’re alright, Reeves.”
“I don’t even know what that means?” I said, shaking my head.
“It means I like you and I’m not sure why we weren’t friends before.”
I choked on my drink. “Because you didn’t notice me. Or, or according to your pal Hayden, because everyone thinks I’m a frigid, untouchable bitch.” I eyed him warily. “Or because now that things have changed, you think you can get in my pants.”
I don’t know what reaction I expected, but all Jackson had for me was a smile. “That’s where you’re wrong. I’ve noticed you for a long time.”
“Oh, really?”
“Yes, really. Pretty girls are usually on my radar and our school is in short supply.”
The tips of my ears burned. He called me pretty. I was still sure he was trying to get in my pants, but I had to admit, his methods were pretty solid. “You don’t seem like the type to hold back from asking a girl out.”
“True,” he said,
pressing the cigarette between his lips and inhaling. “But, I had my reasons.”
“Care to share?”
“Nope.” He shrugged. “But for the record, I never thought you were a bitch,” he smiled. “Well, not really. I kind of like bitchy girls.”
“That’s what I told Anderson!”
“Told him what?”
“That you and I would make a good pair since you’re a dick and I’m a bitch.”
His eyes were wide and he laughed. “You think I’m a dick.”
Shit.
“I didn’t say it.” Shit, shit. He tilted his head in question. “Your boyfriend called you a dick.”
“Oh, I see,” he just shook his head and took a final, long drag.
We stood there together with new understanding. We’re both attracted to one another. We both liked each other much more than expected.
“Thanks for sticking up for me at school all week. Things were getting rough.”
He grunts. “That place is a cesspool run on hormones, gossip, and pain. When Oliver told me what was going on…it made me so angry. Then I saw for myself how they were treating you and it make me sick.” He slid down the deck railing until we were only a hair apart. “I won’t deny that I’ve always been attracted to you, Heaven, so yeah, when you walked in with your new look I appreciated it. We all did. But that slut-shaming shit? Fuck no. Unacceptable.”
I shivered, partially from the cold but also just being this close to him. Jackson was so handsome; his face had the chiseled features of a Norse god. His hand gripped my hip and he pulled me against his body, sharing his warmth.
“Half of those kids will regretfully screw one another before the night is over. It’ll be one giant nightmare of sloppy hand-jobs, sticky blow-jobs, and drunken, one-and-done, unsatisfactory fucks.” His description makes me laugh because it’s so freaking true. I could see Mallory rubbing her butt all over Mark on the makeshift dance floor from the deck. “What we have, babe, is a whole different level. It’s not about sex. It’s about understanding one another. Sure, they’ll talk about the fact you walked in with two of the Allendale Four. They’ll make up lies about me and you out here right now, but we know the truth about our commitment to one another.”
His words slammed into my chest. Like Oliver, he seemed fully in on this relationship with me. And the crazy thing was that it had nothing to do with sex. They’d barely laid a hand on me. Oliver acted a gentleman in my bed, never taking it further than a kiss and cuddling. Had he wanted to go further? His hammering heartbeat and the noticeable tent in his pants told me yes. Same with the way Jackson’s eyes swept over me. He made my skin itch. Burn. Like the only thing that would cool it off was his touch.
But that was what made these guys different. They were respectful. Of me and my situation. They cared. And every time they revealed themselves a little bit more to me, I fell harder.
A group of kids stumbled out to the deck, talking in loud voices and filling their plastic cups. The second they came into view, Jackson threw his arm around me protectively.
“You cold?”