To Catch A Player

A wide smile split her face and she shook her head, blond hair tumbling messily around her shoulders. “I have some recollection about you being sick to your stomach, but I don’t think a do-over is necessary. Do you?”

“Hell yeah, I do. You deserve better than that.”

Reese’s expression softened and she cupped one side of my face with a gentle smile. “Jackson, I love that you think that. In fact, it only makes me love you more. But it was actually kind of perfect.”

Now it was my turn to laugh. “Not that I mind at all, but this isn’t some kind of love-inspired rose-colored-glasses thing, is it?” Because I loved her, but that shit was creepy.

“No.” She laughed and pressed a soft, slow kiss to my mouth. “I am perfectly aware of your flaws. Your many flaws,” she added with an amused smirk. “And I love you, anyway.”

She shrieked out a laugh when I squeezed her hips and flipped our positions. “You love me in spite of my many flaws? How sweet.”

“I meant your many, many flaws,” she offered with another laugh, a sound I knew I would never get tired of hearing. “Not just your flaws, Jackson. This thing between us has been strange from the beginning. We started backwards as a one-night stand, and then enemies. Then friends.”

Her soft, affectionate smile hit me in the chest like a ton of bricks and another wave of love washed over me. “Then lovers,” I reminded her with a thrust of my hips.

“Yes, and then lovers. But this whole thing has been unorthodox, and the way you confessed to loving me,” she sang, moving her hips, “is right in line with that. I love it. And I love you.”

And that was more than enough for me. Though I would make it up to her, and I planned to do it in a way that would blow last night out of the water. “Good, because I love you, too.”

My lips brushed against hers and we kissed for an eternity, neither of us caring that we hadn’t brushed our teeth or gotten out of the bed. Gotten dressed. Started the day. Nothing else mattered, just the feel of her lips on mine. My hair-roughened legs against her silky-smooth ones. My semi-calloused hands grazing her skin.

Three quick rings of the doorbell pulled us both from the kiss that never ended, both of us with wide, bright, lust-filled eyes. And a matching knowing smile on our faces. “Cock-blocked,” she said with a laugh and pushed at my chest. “It could be a barbecue sauce emergency.”

“Now I’ve heard everything. A barbecue sauce emergency, huh?” I rolled off of Reese reluctantly, taking my time as my gaze raked over her naked body. “I feel my own barbecue sauce emergency popping up,” I told her, looking down at the uncomfortable erection jutting out between us.

She laughed. “That is unfortunate, but I promise to bring some home later… if you’re serious.” The smile she wore and those little circles pinking her cheeks were too much and I grabbed Reese before she stood, sliding her body underneath mine so I could kiss her like I meant it.

Because I did. I really meant it. “I’m damn serious.”

“Oh. Okay.” Her words came out low and breathy and, instinctively, my hips flexed against hers. “Jackson.”

The bell rang. Again. “Dammit. Who is ringing the bell this time of morning?”

Reese reached over for her phone, swiped the screen to life and burst out laughing. “It’s almost ten o’clock, hardly the crack of dawn.” She rolled off the bed once again and reached for her robe. “Maybe you should stay up here until your discomfort passes.” With a sassy smile, she turned and walked out of the bedroom, and I kept my gaze on her until she disappeared.

Then I smiled.

Reese loved me.

She was in love with me. And it felt amazing.Reese“I know where you’ve been hiding out the past few days,” Ginger said as she breezed into the kitchen, looking incredible in a green dress and matching espadrilles that had me equally green… with envy. “What I want to know is why?”

I frowned over my shoulder at my nosy friend and continued to roll out the biscuit dough, giving her a shake of my head. “Nice to see you too, Ginger, and I’m not hiding, I’m working. Thanks to your write-up online, I now have to figure out if I want to jar my own sauce sooner rather than later.” And it was a decision I wasn’t ready to make. Yet.

“Well, that is good news and I’m happy to help in any way I can.” She flashed a wide grin and took her spot on the stainless steel table in the corner that was more of a storage area than a usable piece of equipment. “So, things are good with you and Jackson?”