For a moment, I got lost in his eyes. I’d never seen a guy who looked like Jax. He was gorgeous. Had the all-American boy vibe nailed with bright blue eyes that almost looked teal against his skin. His chiseled jawline, blond hair, and perfect white teeth finished off his handsomeness.
His body was lean and muscular. He was tall, probably around 6’4, maybe 6’5 to my 5’5 frame.
I looked so tiny against him.
When he backed away from me, I resisted the urge to groan before we both reached for the kernels in the jar beside me at the same time. Our fingers brushed against each other, triggering electricity to spark along my skin.
Ignoring that too, I got off the counter and quickly pulled my hand away from his, taking the jar with me. I poured some kernels into the pan, pitifully trying to distract myself from every emotion known to man. Feeling them one right after the other with a force of a hurricane tearing down everything in its path.
“You’re making it wrong,” was the last thing I heard him say before I felt his chest press against my back.
In one swift movement, his arms caged me in as he took the jar out of my hand. The heat of his chest had me weak in the knees and dizzy in the head.
“You have to separate the kernels, or they’ll burn. Unless you want to eat burnt popcorn, Baby Soph?”
I tried to pay attention to what he was saying, but for the life of me I couldn’t pay attention to anything other than his body against mine. This was much closer than his hands around my waist. My heart was once again pounding against my chest. I could feel it in my ears.
Was I having a heart attack?
His chest felt firm against my back. Despite his muscles feeling hard, his skin still felt warm.
Cozy.
All-consuming.
I wanted to say so much, but I couldn’t get the words to come out. I silently wished he could read my thoughts, but then I realized he’d just think I was a baby like everyone else.
I wanted him to see me differently—I felt different around him. The second I felt him abruptly back away, I missed the warmth of his touch and the emotions they evoked throughout my entire body.
Except it was cut short when my mom’s voice boomed, “Sophie, what are you doing?”
My eyes locked with hers. She was supposed to be having dinner with friends. I knew this wasn’t going to end well. She’d warned me to stay away from Jax.
Thank God he intervened. “I was just showing your daughter how to make popcorn, Miss Carlisee.”
Her gaze shifted from him back to me. “We have bagged popcorn in the guesthouse, Sophie. You shouldn’t be bothering Jax.”
“She wasn’t bothering me. She was actually keeping me company.”
“She has no business doing either.”
Could this get any more embarrassing?
“Mom…”
“Let’s go, Sophie. Now.”
I looked over at Jax, feeling two feet tall. “Thanks for the cooking lesson.”
He smiled, but I could tell his guard was back up.
“Goodnight, Jax.”
“Goodnight, Baby Soph.”
Bowing my head, I followed my mom to the guesthouse. Once we were inside, she shut the door and didn’t waver. “How many times have I told you to stay away from him?”
“I know, but it’s not a big deal. He was just showing me how to make popcorn.”