“There’s that humility,” I tease him.
Jax laughs, his thumb running over the hem of my skirt. “Why do you like the parade so much?”
I look around the bar once to make sure none of my tables need me before settling into the conversation. “Ah… I don’t know. I guess the lights,” I answer with a shrug. “I love the lights. They make me happy.”
“What else makes you happy?” he asks.
“I don’t… I’ve never thought about it. I guess my dog. My cat. My home—I’m really comfortable at home. It has all of my favorite things.”
“Being alone?” he asks.
I contemplate his question. “Yeah,” I decide. “Yeah, I’ve spent a long time learning to love myself. Learning to be the person I can count on instead of folding to the pressure that I shouldneedsomeone in my life to be whole. I used to think being enough of a person meant bending to become the person they wanted me to be. That I should make myself less just for a partner.”
“And now?”
“Now I say fuck that. And since making that decision, it feels like a weight is off my chest. No more feeling like I need to be watered down.”
“Watered down Juniper doesn’t sound as fun,” he says, smiling.
“She’ssuperboring,” I agree, returning his smile. “She used to fold like a shitty napkin. Ripped edges and torn middles as she tried to become his favorite origami. Now, I consider myself a fitted sheet.”
Jax chuckles. “Not the fitted sheet,” he jokes.
I laugh alongside him. “I love it. It helps weed out the ones who aren’t willing to work through their frustration,” I say, grinning.
He sits up in his chair, fingers gliding higher on my thigh. “You’re wortheveryounce of frustration, darling. Anyone who thinks differently doesn’t deserve to breathe the same air as you.”
My tongue darts out over my lips at the sentence. “Why does that sound like a promise you’re itching to fulfill?”
“Which part?”
“Making sure I don’t have to deal with someone who doesn’t deserve to breathe the same air as me.”
Another low laugh leaves him before he glances around the room again. “How long until you kick these people out?”
I notice the way he avoids the question. “A few minutes. Why? Are you getting restless?”
“I’m always restless with you,” he replies. He taps his phone twice, eyes scanning over a message on the screen. “Nick says he’s taking the car back so it won’t be sitting in the lot overnight.”
“Wow, you two just invited yourselves over, didn’t you?” I tease him.
He huffs his mirth. “Darling, we’re never leaving.”
I don’t know why my next breath is so ragged.
These two are going to make me pass out before they touch me. I can hardly breathe around them now. With both of them surrounding me, I…
My entire body heats, thighs clenching.
Jax’s eyes narrow over me. “What are you thinking about?” he asks, voice low.
I exhale nervously. “Am I that obvious?”
His delight reaches his eyes. “And just how is that pretty little cunt, love?” he asks, and I hollow at the sound of his gravelly rasp.
Our eyes lock. He already knows the answer, he’s just waiting for permission.
“Maybe you can find out before Nick gets back,” I answer.
