Claiming the Enemy: Dustin (Porter Brothers Trilogy 3)

“Okay.” She shyly left the bedroom, unable to explain why she was so nervous with him tonight.

She tried to pinpoint the reason while she took her shower but couldn’t. Drying off, she blow-dried her hair before putting the pajamas on, feeling comfortable in the flannel material. She was going to have to ask Holly where she got them.

Giving herself a pep talk to have enough courage to leave the bathroom, she finally opened the door to see Dustin sitting on the couch with his back to her.

When she came around the corner of the couch, his eyes slid down her body. “Feeling better?”

“Yes.”

“Good. What do you want to watch? I rented a movie last night. I have another night on the rental. You want to watch it?”

“Sure.” Sitting down cross-legged next to him, she watched as he used the controller to find the movie.

“You comfortable?”

“Yes.”

Instead of pushing Play on the movie, Dustin stood. “I’ll be right back.”

Jessie started to look to see what he was up to.

“Nuh-uh. Don’t look.”

Jessie faced forward again, listening to the sounds he was making in the kitchen. She became frustrated when she couldn’t figure out what he was doing.

She was about to give in to temptation when he came back into the living room and set two plates down with forks.

“What …?” she started to say, but he was gone again.

Again, when she turned to look, she was shot down.

“Nuh-uh.”

This time, she heard the refrigerator door opening, and then he returned to set three pints of ice cream down. Taking the lids off, he exposed the creamy goodness within.

“I had to hide these from Tate last night. I’ll be right back—”

“I know not to look,” Jessie said before he could.

Grinning, Dustin went back to the kitchen. When he came back for the last time, he set a cake down with candles poking out of the gaily decorated birthday cake.

Jessie stared at the cake in surprise, then at Dustin in puzzlement. “I don’t understand. It’s not my birthday, and it’s not yours.”

Dustin gave her a breathtaking smile that had her breath catching in her throat.

“I know.” He started lighting the candles one at a time. “I’ve always felt bad that I didn’t give you a piece of my birthday cake the next day when I told you I would. I’m hoping this will make up for it. And I got the biggest cake they sold to make up for the birthdays we missed together since.”

Jessie could only stare at him speechlessly. He looked the same way Logan did when he wanted you to be happy at something he did, seeking approval. It was a moment that would be engraved into her memory for the rest of her life. It was sentimental, sweet, and showed without words that he had loved her when he was nine as much as she had loved him.

“Dustin ….”

“Do you like it? I know it’s not the same, but—”

“No, it not the same,” she said huskily, seeing his lips start to drop. “It’s better.”

His smile returned as he sat down next to her.

“I would have never been able to appreciate the gesture of you giving me a slice of cake back then, but this—” Jessie motioned to the cake. “—this—” She continued after she cleared her throat. “—is special.”

“You are special … to me. You always have been.”

“I see that now. It’s kind of hard not to,” she said, giving a tear-filled laugh.

“You ready to help me blow out the candles before we burn the house down?”

They blew out the candles together, then plucked out what was left of the little stubs from the cake before Dustin started cutting them both a slice.

Jessie added a scoop of strawberry ice cream to hers, while Dustin added a scoop of all three flavors to his larger slice.

Each off them ate two slices as they watched the movie before Jessie put what was left of the ice cream in the freezer and Dustin put the plastic top back on the cake. After they straightened the mess they made, they returned to the couch to finish watching the movie.

Halfway through, Dustin started to stretch out on the couch, tugging her down next to him.

Jessie lost focus on the movie when she felt his hand trailing over her arm from her bicep to her wrist. His touch sent tingles down her spine until she was the one who turned in his arms.

“I don’t want to watch the movie anymore.”

“You don’t?” He didn’t look at her, his eyes remaining on the television behind her.

She combed her fingers through his hair, drawing his attention to her. “No.”

“I paid sixteen dollars for this movie.”

“You paid sixteen dollars for this movie?”

“Yep.”

Jessie snuggled closer to him, kissing him at the base of his throat. “You were ripped off.”

“Have you got anything better to do? I’m kind of enjoying it.”