In the center of the guest room with her arms folded over her chest, she worked her hard stare into a full-on glare. He motioned for her to take a seat, but she continued to stand there, staring at him. Her beautiful eyes were bright, the fire of her anger transforming them from their rich, soothing brown into something like a dazzling chocolate opal. His body responded to that fire, and he was this close to forgetting why he’d brought her upstairs in the first place.Focus, Jackson.
If he weren’t so mad at her, his mouth would be hitched in a grin. She was sexy, even when she was being as hardheaded as his daddy’s old mule. But now wasn’t the time for smiles or for satisfying the need simmering beneath his skin.
No, now was the time to lay down the law. The problem was, Aja knew the law better than most, and Jackson knew from the sharp set of her jaw that she was ready to tell him to go straight to hell before he’d even started the conversation.No sense in dragging this out. Let’s get to it.
“What do you have me up here for, Jackson?”
“Aja, don’t play dumb. It doesn’t suit you. You know damn well why I asked you to come up here. Why is Mat sitting in your house?”
“I don’t think that’s a question that requires answering. I explained his presence in my home the first day you arrived here.”
“Aja, I asked you to limit his access to the ranch. He could be the person who had his hands wrapped around your neck two nights ago.”
She shook her head and waved a dismissive hand in the air. “You know damn well your problem with Mat has shit to do with my attack and everything to do with your jealousy.”
The truth of her accusation struck him in the gut, and it was all he could do to keep from folding over at the center. “I’m not jealous.”
She lifted a skeptical brow and pointed a finger at him. “That’s bullshit. Every time he gets anywhere near me, you act the ass. I watched you watching him touch me—a platonic, meaningless touch, by the way. I’m surprised you didn’t melt the man into a bubbling puddle of goo with the angry laser beams you were directing at him.”
She was right again, but damn if he would concede that fact right now. He needed to get the conversation back under control. His control.
“It didn’t look all that platonic from where I was standing.”
She huffed, as if she were trying to keep her blood pressure down. By the exhausted sound she made, he didn’t think it was working, though.
“That man has no interest in me. I’m not the one he’s sweet on—Brooklyn is.”
Jackson’s mouth hung open. “He’s dealing with Brooklyn?”
Aja shook her head. “I didn’t say anything about him seeing Brooklyn. I said he’s attracted to her. He helped Brooklyn a lot when she got out. I think they both developed a bit of a crush on each other as a result. But Mat wouldn’t cross the line with her as long as she was his parolee.”
“And you believe him?”
“Yeah,” she answered. “He used to have separate meetings with Seneca and Brooklyn. But shortly after Brooklyn started living and working here, he stopped their individual visits. He never allows himself to be alone with her. He really is a decent guy who’s just trying to do the right thing.”
Jackson stood with his arms crossed and lips pushed out into a petulant pout. “Maybe. But I still don’t like him touching you.”
She waved her finger in front of his face until she was certain she had his attention. She hadn’t needed to do that because Aja always had his attention, even when she didn’t know it.
“Newsflash, Jackson—you are the one who said we couldn’t have a relationship. I would’ve gladly made it more. Hell, as good as we were together, I would’ve considered making it last beyond your time here on Restoration. But that’s not what you said you wanted. All you offered was a night. And since I’m not about begging a man to give me his time, that’s all I accepted.
“You were clear on your boundaries, so let me be clear on mine. This is my home, my land, and my business. Mat plays an integral role in that as Seneca and Brooklyn’s parole officer. You will respect my decision that he is allowed on the ranch. Just because I spent a night with you doesn’t give you rein over my life.”
“I don’t get it.” He threw his hands up in the air in frustration. “You will take on anyone, including the sheriff, to protect Seneca’s and Brooklyn’s rights, but you won’t lift a finger to protect yourself. Why are they more important than you?”
Her shoulders drooped a little, as if some of the fight was leaving her. “Because sometimes you help people so you can live with yourself, so your own life can have meaning.”
“Live with yourself? You were a lawyer for debutantes and celebrities. What could you have done that requires this kind of atonement?”
She looked down at the floor for a moment, shaking her head before she looked at him again. There was sadness there. Something so serious, it made goose bumps rise underneath his skin.
“I’m not perfect, Jackson. I’ve never claimed to be. And I hope that’s not how you see me. We all have things in our past we’re not proud of. I’m simply trying to be a better version of myself. And the best way I know to do that is to help people like Seneca and Brooklyn reestablish their lives.”
He groaned, trying to hold his temper at her refusal to see herself the way he did. Aja might not think she was perfect. But in his eyes, aside from her stubborn streak, she was about as perfect as he’d come across.
“I know you want to help them. But let me tell you, as worthy as they are to live their lives in peace like the next person, you are the only one I care about saving. You are the one in immediate danger. Not them. So maybe I am a little possessive about you, more than I have the right to be. But I make no qualms about admitting you are all I care about in this scenario.
“Perhaps I can’t give you a relationship, Aja. But that has no bearing on the way you’ve burrowed yourself under my skin, the way you’ve made your presence and well-being a priority. Even if I can’t have you for my own, I’ll be damned if I’ll see anything happen to you. If you won’t protect yourself, I must. And the only authority I need to protect you is my badge, and whatever this thing is that’s been sitting inside my chest since the moment I laid eyes on you. I’ll do what I have to in order to keep you safe.”
