“With polite kindness.”
My gaze is locked with his. My insides are a mess of lust, joy, and fear.
“And how do I look at you?”
“You look at me like I’m a man who deserves you.” He crowds my personal space but doesn’t touch me. He doesn’t have to. There’s a live wire of energy that courses between us, binding me to him with a power no one else holds. “I don’t get your polite smiles. I get your real ones.”
He’s right. “Clint and I are just friends,” I blurt.
“Good.” Jackson’s lips twist with the hint of a smile. “But you should know, I don’t want to be just friends with you. I want to be the kind of man who deserves you, Rosalie. In fact, I’d prefer we use this time to plan our next date. Or make out. But something tells me you aren’t going to let me kiss you at work.”
“I’m not.” He’s probably disappointed by that. “Boring, remember.” I shrug. “I tried to warn you.”
“Oh, darlin’,” Jackson rests his hand on the wall over my shoulder, and leans forward. Our mouths are millimeters away. “I haven’t been bored a single day since you stole my heart.”
I stole his heart? My pulse races again. This time, with a feeling that’s unfamiliar and new. I swallow back my fear. I swallow back my urge to run. Because as terrified as I am of getting hurt by Jackson, I’m more scared of a life where he’s not present.
“I want you, Jackson.”
His lips part in the widest smile. Joy stretches across his entire face.
“You make me so happy, you know that?”
“You make me happy, too.” It’s true.
“I want to kiss you so bad.”
I want that, too. If I didn’t know about the security camera in thisroom, I’d probably toss all my rules of professionalism out the window.
“Save it for our date.”
He takes a step back, as if he needs the physical distance to respect my boundaries.
“Next Saturday night. I’ll pick you up at six.”
“I’ll have to find a sitter first.”
“Already got it covered.” His grin is full of pride, and I can’t help but smile back.
“Oh?” We’ve spent a lot of time together, but this will be our first official date. “What should I wear?”
“One of your uptight little dresses. And the pearls.”
“You’ve always made fun of my pearls.”
“Yeah, well, I was an idiot. I happen to like everything about you, including the way you dress.”
He likes me. Everything about me. He’s not playing it cool or hiding the fact. He’s not lying, either. He must not be, because he’s seen everything. He knows the ugly parts of my life. He knows all the things I hide, and he likes me.
Something inside me must break, because I can’t stop smiling. My face actually hurts from how hard I’m smiling. But I’m not the only one. We’re both staring at each other this way. Two smitten idiots.
“Okay, well, I better let you get back to work.” He nods toward the door.
“Yes,” I agree. “I should do that. I guess I’ll see you on Saturday, then?”
Five whole days from now. That seems so far away. I’ve gotten used to seeing him more often. Edward has, too. On the way to school he asked when Jackson could take him fishing again.
Jackson walks to the door and opens it, holding it for me to go first.
