He had seen me in a bikini Tuesday when he’d shown up at my house after school. I’d been on the beach trying to get a little sun since it was so warm out. At one point, I’d turned over after having fallen asleep and found him in the lounger beside mine.
His eyes had devoured me then just as they were doing now. But on Tuesday, I’d been able to run into the house and lock him out, whereas I couldn’t get away from him so easily now.
Couldn’t run away from the feelings he kept forcing me to acknowledge. Fighting my need and love for him was annoying. And painful. But I did it anyway.
Ever since Remington’s party, Jagger had been showing up even more often at places I happened to be. There were plenty of parties Vi and I had gone to that he’d mysteriously gotten an invite to. It pissed me off that he was basically stalking me.
Even as it did something funny to my heart—the stupid thing.
Apparently the damn organ hadn’t completely gotten the memo that we weren’t going to let anyone—especially this dickhead —have even a small part of my heart. There was no fucking way I was going to get involved with him.
Or any guy, for that matter.
They weren’t worth my time. Having a relationship was like begging to have my heart broken. And that was a big hell no for me.
But being around him so often made it so damn hard to fight my feelings. I wanted to melt into him. Let him ease the pain in my heart—and the other, more pressing ache that kept me up at night because he wasn’t there to make it better.
I knew it was his goal. To wear me down until I caved and gave him a chance.
Only, I knew as soon as I did, he would break my heart, and I’d be a shattered mess just like Violet.
Yeah, no thanks.
It wasn’t long before we were in the air. I put in my earbuds and tried to ignore the guy sitting in front of me. He’d tossed his hat and glasses into the seat beside him and reclined back. Hands folded behind his head, he continued to watch me like it was his favorite thing to do, and I did my best to pretend like he didn’t exist.
Eventually, my exhaustion caught up to me, and I dozed off.
When I opened my eyes an indeterminate period of time later, it was to find myself lying on one of the couches farther back on the jet. A soft blanket was covering me, and my head…
…was pillowed on Jagger’s lap.
I started to sit up as soon as I realized what I was using for a pillow, but he put a hand on my shoulder, keeping me locked in place. With his other hand, he traced his fingers over my brow, murmuring for me to go back to sleep.
“We still have another hour before we get to New York,” he said quietly. “Get some rest. You’ll be run off your feet all day tomorrow.”
The way he was stroking my forehead had me closing my eyes again, and I could admit—if only to myself—I liked being this close to him. I could pretend he was mine and he wouldn’t break my heart. For a little while. With a sad sigh, I let sleep take me again.
Sometime later, the pilot’s voice over the speaker system telling us we were going to be landing soon roused me. Groaning because I’d been having the best dream, I reluctantly sat up. As I did, Jagger stretched his legs out, and I realized they must have fallen asleep with how long he’d been sitting in the same spot with my head on his lap.
“You should have just put a pillow under me,” I chided him.
Reaching out, he pushed a few strands of my hair behind my ear. “Then I wouldn’t have gotten to hold you,” he murmured. “I would have sat here for days if it meant you were this close, Dimples.”
Outwardly, I rolled my eyes, while inside, something squeezed and began to melt.
Once the plane was on the ground, I saw two SUVs waiting for us on the tarmac. The drivers were members of Jagger’s brother-in-law’s security team, and they started loading our luggage into the backs of the vehicles even as we exited the jet.
“Shaw, ride with Jagger,” Mom called as she got in the back of the first SUV, while Dad held the door open for her. “That way, your dad can stretch out, and we won’t be cramped.”
I huffed in frustration at her. It felt like she was setting me up, making me spend as much time with Jagger as possible. And not just her. It was our dads too. Like they were pushing us together for some reason.
Annoyed, I stomped to the second SUV and angrily opened the back door. Tossing my purse in, I started to climb into the back seat, but my foot slipped.
Strong hands caught my hips, locking me in place against a hard body. Air caught in my throat, and I couldn’t fight the shiver that traveled up my spine when I felt Jagger’s breath against my neck. “Easy, Dimples.”
I elbowed him in the stomach, hard, and I hid my grin when I heard the air get knocked out of him. Pushing his hands off my hips, I slid into the back seat and scooted over to the opposite door. With a grunt, he got in beside me.
“Brat,” he muttered, but when I glanced at him, he was fighting a grin.