Jack kissed me with a fervency and level of desperation I’d never felt with him. His body quaked under my moving hands. I was destroying him and for some reason the knowledge fueled me.
This was not just a kiss.
And we’d long surpassed a minute.
The realization should’ve caused me to slow, to backpedal. But he asked for this. And I wanted this moment. I lifted his shirt and he arched his back, allowing me to pull it over his head. I tossed it to the side, giving my fingers the freedom to feel him again.
I wasn’t sure where I snapped and how I lost the handle on my control. But I would be forever unsated. Always empty without him.
How had I let “just a kiss” escalate to this? How could I beafraid to give myself to someone I craved? It was instinct to give my body—but my heart?
Richard’s words from a few days before rolled around in my memory, bursting into our moment, uninvited.
You’re afraid to put your heart on the line while you work together.
I tried to silence my stupid thoughts. But they raged, clanging between my ears. I wanted to put my heart on the line. I didsomuch. Could I? What if we broke again? Would I survive? I didn’t know.
I backed off, a painful moan escaping as our lips separated. “Jack.” My voice was heavy with desire. I forced my eyes open. “We can’t?—”
I pushed away from him, taking a deep shaky breath. His hands encircled my waist. Starving eyes and flushed cheeks gave him such a vulnerable look. His hard bare chest heaved under my palms.
I took another deep breath, gathering my wits. Then I scolded him. “You—you said just—a kiss.”
He stared at me for a long moment, a frown and a smile at war on his face. He spoke as a laugh peppered his words. “You’re blamingme?”
“Yes!”
Jack laughed, his fingers gently squeezing my sides. That sexy laugh probably traveled across the lake. He ran a hand over his face trying to gain some composure. “Miranda, I’m—” He stopped, laughed again and muttered a cuss word. “I’m not the one on top right now.”
Embarrassment sank into my chest like an arrow and my cheeks flamed with red. I was plastered all over the front of him, while his back was on the dock. And I was blaminghimfor taking things too far!
“Shut up!” I shrieked, as I drove the heel of my hand into his pec, simultaneously attempting to scramble off.
But Jack was fast. He caught my wrist and pulled me down as one of his strong legs curled around one of mine. In one fluid movement, he turned, bringing my back to the dock. Now, he was over me.
He smothered his laugh with another kiss. One that started, deepened, and ended in a single motion. He pulled back, a stupid smile stuck on his face. “I’ll happily give you something to blame me for if you want.”
I squirmed, trying to get free of his gaze. But Jack’s leg was still wrapped around mine like a vise and he had my wrist pinned out to the side. I needed to move because my whole body was screaming at me to kiss him again.
I stilled, my attention pulled into his blue gaze like a magnet. He braced himself with his forearm alongside my shoulder.
His smile was so cocky, far too pleased. His laugh had diminished to a low, throaty chuckle. “I knew you wanted to kiss me.”
“It was a pity kiss!”
Jack didn’t even respond. He died laughing, his head hanging low next to mine. I felt myself laughing too. Did I purposefully make a joke? Didn’t know what the heck was going on with my emotions.
He laughed through his words. “Ifthatwas a pity kiss, I’d pay some big bucks to have a real one, Miranda Barkley.”
Every cell in my body ached to pull him closer, to make him transfer his weight into mine. I didn’t trust my appendages. They might move without permission. So, I laid stock still, trying to resist.
His warm breath bathed my throat. “Miranda. I am crazy about you.” He spoke between gentle kisses to my neck. “Youownme.” His kisses traveled to the spot beneath my ear. He paused then whispered so low the hum of his voice tickled. “I wish you could see how much I love you.”
My spirit shattered into a million pieces. Jack had laid his heart on the line for me over and over again. And still worried I didn’t see it. I hated the fears that had slowly resurrected walls around my heart throughout the years. Hated the way I’d handled my hurts. Why couldn’t I be more like Jack—blunt and honest? Willing to follow a hunch and take a risk despite the odds?
I was too tired to keep fighting. Maintaining a wall of protection was so freaking exhausting—especially when Jack worked to tear it down every chance he got. I swallowed hard, needing to tell this poor man I saw his love and all his sacrifices, but that I just didn’t know what to do with them. The words pushed through the emotion clogging up my throat. “I see, Jack. I know you love me.”
“Kacey too. Both of you.”
