“I believe you, Jackson.” She did. Everything from the way he held her to the way his gaze poured over her told her he wouldn’t let harm come to her. Hell, even the way he’d charged in during her attack, literally launching his body at her perpetrator to protect her, was proof he would give everything to make certain she was taken care of. And never remembering a time in her life where she didn’t have to fight for someone else, having a man like Jackson swear his protection to her and mean it made her stomach twist in knots and her heart flutter. This man was getting under her skin.Tell the truth. Shame the devil. You know he’s beyond getting. He’s already there.
The sting of unshed tears burned her eyes. There were too many emotions tumbling around inside her. Fear, exhaustion, anger, and desire all swirling together, each attempting to dominate. Which did she give into? Which would make the pressure in her chest ease a little so she could breathe through the obstruction of pain and anxiety? “I know you’ll protect me,” she whispered. “I just want to forget for a few moments. That’s all.”
“Aja?” It was a plea and a question rolled into one. With one word, he was asking her if she recognized the consequences and begging her to decide all at once. “It’s late. Or early, depending on your perspective. We should try to get some rest before the day calls.”
“I’m aware of the time, Jackson.”
He shook his head, stepping away from her as he rubbed at the back of his neck. “I’m trying to do the right thing here. This isn’t what you need.”
She should probably agree with him and let this go. But she couldn’t. She couldn’t let something else be decided for her because someone else had wreaked havoc in her life. She’d lived through that once before, and she wouldn’t allow it to happen again. “You’re wrong, Jackson. This is exactly what I need. It’s what I want.” She moved into his personal space, pressing closer to him as she looked up into his eyes. She could see the battle he was waging between his desire and his willpower unfolding in the depths of his deep-brown eyes. He wanted this too. “The question is: Are you going to give it to me?”
He swallowed and his Adam’s apple bobbed as the muscles in his throat tightened and released. The hum of desperation vibrated around him like the ambient heat of a powerful motor, making the air around them thick and heavy with aching want. But when he continued to stand there, his only movements his heaving chest and the open-close motion of his hands, she decided his will was more powerful than anything she stirred in him. She stepped back but was quickly pulled back against him by his large hands now gripping her shoulders.
“I will always give you exactly what you need.”
Chapter 16
“This isn’t exactly what I had in mind when you said you would give me everything I needed.”
Aja lay on her side with her eyes narrowed into slits as she watched Jackson pull the large, plush comforter over her and tuck her into bed. When he was done, he walked around the expanse of the bed and climbed in beside her, on top of the covers. She was about to comment on the number of layers between them and how much it displeased her when he placed his arm around her waist and tugged her closer to him.
“I know it’s not. But it’s what you need.”
She’d followed him into the guest room expecting they’d tear each other’s clothes off and get naked and sweaty within minutes of entering the room. Instead, she was frustrated and swaddled in a blanket like some oversized baby.
“Jackson—”
“I watched someone put their hands around your neck tonight. If you won’t do this for you, do it for me. Humor me. I need to know you’re safe.”
The fight building inside her deflated, and she settled in his arms. She hadn’t thought about how tonight affected him. If she were honest with herself, she hadn’t thought about how it impacted her either—and if she could help it, she wouldn’t.
She snuggled closer to Jackson, allowing the rest of her anger and disappointment to bleed away. Their current huddle in the middle of the bed might not have been what she’d pictured when she’d demanded he make love to her in the kitchen, but it had its benefits.
The easy way her body relaxed into his, as if his arms were something familiar and safe…she could definitely count this as a perk.
“You didn’t need me taking advantage of you.”
“It’s not taking advantage when I gave consent.”
“It is when my conscience tells me to decide with more than my little head. You’re a grown woman, and I’m sure you know how to communicate what you want. But mauling you after you’ve experienced something like this doesn’t sit well with me. You can call me old-fashioned, but I believe in taking a little more care with the women I’m intimate with.”
She took a deep breath, letting the last vestiges of her anger slip away as the deep rumble of his voice rippled against her back. “You’re such a Boy Scout.”
“A cowboy,” he corrected as he tightened his arm around her waist. He moved his hand to her hip and rubbed slow circles there as slumber called to her. She yawned, and he laughed before dropping a gentle kiss to the back of her head. “Go to sleep.”
“Yes, Ranger.”
* * *
A knock on the back door pulled Jackson out of his thoughts. He took a sip of his coffee before resting it on the kitchen counter and answering the door for Colton and Storm.
“Morning, Boss. How’s Ms. Everett?”
Jackson acknowledged Storm’s question, directing him and Colton to the kitchen counter. “She’s still upstairs.”
“She must be worn out after last night. She doesn’t strike me as the sleep-in-late sort.” Storm’s observation was spot-on.
“More than even she realized. She was still sleeping when I—” He stopped before he could finish the “left her in bed” sitting on the tip of his tongue. Deciding quickly his men didn’t need to know that, he took another sip of his coffee, then finished with “checked in on her a little while ago.”Good save.“When she wakes, I might try to convince her to speak with the crisis counselor we work with, depending on her mood.” He pointed to Colton. “Are Seneca and Brooklyn aware of what happened?”
