My eyes squeeze shut, and I inhale his scent, doing my best to hold it in my memory, trying to absorb every part of him.
There’s no way in hell I could even begin to argue. I am his, and he’s… my everything. Jackson Cane is every first I’ve ever had. My first real kiss, my first real boyfriend, the first time I had sex… made love…
“Hey.” He pulls back, blue eyes full of concern. “I’m right, aren’t I?”
Blinking quickly, I try to find my bearings. “What?” I don’t know why he looks so worried.
“You are my girl, right?”
My chin jerks forward, and I have to cover my mouth. “You have to ask?”
Warm hands cup my cheeks, and he trails his thumbs lightly along my cheekbones. “So beautiful,” he murmurs. “My Ember Rose.”
His eyes move around my face, along my hair, down the side of my jaw like a caress.
“I’ll never forget this.” I’m ashamed at how desperate my voice sounds. “I mean… I just…” I’m such a baby.
He blinks a few times, and a smile curls his lips. With a nod, he pulls me against his chest, strong arms surrounding me. We
stay that way a long time, listening to the crashing of the surf, the beat of our hearts. The seagulls cry, and the moon climbs higher. It’s all so perfect, but it’s all at an end.
Finally, with a sigh, he lifts me, helping me stand. We hold hands as he takes me into the gentle waves to clean up. I slowly restore my dress.
I feel so stupid. College girls don’t need to be cared for like babies. They don’t whine and cry about being left behind. They blow kisses and wink over their sunglasses. They sway their hips and turn the tables on saying goodbye.
My best friend Tabby is already one of those girls, and she’s my age.
I’ll never be one of those girls.
“Don’t cry, Ember Rose,” he says in a low whisper. “I never want to see you cry.”
I hold him a while longer, listening to the steady rhythm of his heart. His hands slide up and down my back in a soothing motion.
After a while, they slide down my forearms to lace with my fingers. He steps back and leads me the way we came, stopping at the edge of the woods where I left my bike.
“Get on home before your momma wakes up.”
That sexy smile curls his lips. He shoves his hair behind his ears, and I step forward again, clutching the front of his shirt before I press my lips one last time to his.
Red-hot cinnamon.
Sparkling blue sin.
Salt rocks breaking my heart.
One
Jack
Ten years and eleven months later…
“Last one in has to ride home naked!” Tiffany hurls her silky red dress over her head and runs through the trees headed for the lake.
The wheels on my black Audi R8 have barely stopped moving. I haven’t even killed the engine. An empty wine bottle clatters against an empty tequila bottle rolling around on the floorboards, and I briefly think I should toss them in a nearby trashcan.
Propping my elbow on the steering wheel, I scrub the back of my neck with my fingers. My hair is so short now, it’s the best I can do.
I haven’t had a drink in almost an hour. I’d finished a bottle of scotch in my office, standing in front of my floor to ceiling glass windows looking down on the city, disbelief vibrating in my chest.