The Reluctant Romantics Box Set (The Fall, The Mind, The Heart)

What if?

I gave him a small grin despite the sick but dissipating feeling in my gut. “You are quite the gentlemen, Jack.”

He returned my grin as he removed his hands. I felt their absence immediately, their warmth gone.

“I try,” he said, surveying me once more with concern. “You okay?”

“Yes, I’m okay. I’m embarrassed but okay, thank you.”

“Nothing to be embarrassed about, but it must have been some dream.”

“It was,” I replied, not meeting his eyes. His voice soothed me as I took a deep breath, finally able to shake the rest of it off.

I looked toward the driveway, expecting to see his bike but came up empty. “I thought we were going for a ride?”

“We are,” he said, jutting his chin out toward my Tesla.

“Oh,” I said, a little relieved I wouldn’t have to fight his Harley again for my dignity. “Okay, I’ll grab the keys.”

I walked inside the house, shivered from the coolness of the air conditioning, and caught my reflection in the mirror. I was flushed and my cheeks were tear stained, but I was smiling. I couldn’t believe the sight in front of me. It was me, but not the me I was used to seeing when I looked at my reflection. This was a version of me that I hadn’t seen in years. She was a little more loose and carefree, even with the recent emotional outburst. I grabbed the keys and met Jack back on the porch. He was leaning against the deck railing on his forearms, his back to me.

“There’s something special about this place,” he said, studying the ducks as one by one they took their turn getting into then gliding across the still water in a perfect pattern, leaving ripples in their wake.

“I know. It’s the perfect place for the center, don’t you agree?” I asked with pride.

“One hundred percent,” he said, still immersed in his surroundings. I approached him and stood next to him as he spent a few moments looking around. I loved that it had that effect on people, on Jack. He wasn’t immune to its charm. I sent a prayer up, thanking God once again for my father’s quick work in ensuring it was mine after Grant’s death. Losing it would have been my biggest mistake. And now, years later, what I’d initially thought about the land and the serenity it brought was reaffirmed over and over by the people who came to visit it. Soon it would bring healing to hundreds, hopefully, thousands. Even though there would never be a justifiable reason in my mind for his untimely death, I knew deep down Grant being a part of my life, sharing this place with me, was not in vain. It was always supposed to be the home of where I’d leave my legacy. I knew that now, without a shadow of a doubt.

I hadn’t realized Jack was watching me as I’d drifted off in thought. When I noticed, I gave him a sideways smile in question. “What?” I asked as my flesh flushed with the weight of his stare. He was so shameless when he looked at me the way he did.

“What do you think?” he said with a twinge of playful sarcasm.

“I think you’re staring at me,” I said as I nudged his shoulder playfully before I turned and began to walk toward my car.

“You want me to say what I was thinking?” Jack stayed where he was, stopping my footfall with a dare in his voice. A new shiver made its way up my spine. Sudden thoughts of him behind me, branding my skin, raced through my brain, and my lips moved with a soft and barely audible “Yes.”

I waited for him with bated breath, loving the way it felt.

“I was thinking that I’ve never seen a prettier mouth on a woman.”

“I’m flattered,” I said, keeping my back to him as I gripped the keys tight in my hands as the evident sex in his voice sent shivers throughout my body. I welcomed them like the old friends they were.

“I was wondering what it tasted like,” he said directly behind me, making me jump. He chuckled and gripped my hips, gently pushing me forward and down to take the deck stairs. He let go as soon as we reached the bottom, and I paused at the hood of my Tesla, holding my keys out toward him. He took them but walked around to the passenger side. Opening it up, I obliged, sliding into the leather seat like it was a second skin, thankful for its ability to hold me steady. We’d started a flirtation. I thought about what Jules said earlier about anticipation and decided she was right. Things had just gotten a little bit more exciting with Jack’s declaration that he wanted to taste my lips.

Jack slid into the driver’s seat and adjusted it to his size before turning the key and looking at me.

“Let’s stretch her legs.”

An uneasy feeling crept over me. “Jack, I’m not a fan of speed. Like not at all, okay?”

“I tell you what, how about I just take you to dinner,” he said without protest. The rumble in my stomach reminded me I hadn’t bothered to tend to my appetite all day.

“Great,” I said as he slowly pulled out of the driveway at a snail’s pace. I giggled and rolled my eyes at him as he cut his eyes at me with a smirk. “Smartass.”

“Nothing wrong with being a little cautious,” he said, putting the car into gear. I pulled my hair up and fisted it into a knot as we made our way through the grounds. When we reached the front of the main building, Jack paused as he surveyed the finished three-story center then turned to me.

“Wait until you see what we did today.” His pride-filled grin was enough to m

ake my heart start pounding in my chest. He was so close and all I wanted to do at that moment was pull him in. He must have sensed it because his grin slowly disappeared and his eyes wandered to my lips, which I licked on impulse. Tension thick in the air, my eyes implored his. I wanted him to kiss me. I wanted him to know how I tasted, and I’d hoped when he did it turned into a craving. I wanted to explore our chemistry, but I didn’t want to be the one to make the first move. He’d seen the permission in my eyes and apparently ignored it as he pulled the car out of the center and hit the gas.