‘Jesse,’ she started as we finally slowed, my cock twitching at the sound of my name in her mouth, the way her accent shaped it, made it something else. ‘Are all line dances this good?’
I held her eyes for a moment, unable to suppress a chuckle.
‘Best one yet,’ I replied, now distracted by the rosy flush that followed her cheekbones, the way the floodlights turned her hair to glistening fire. I reached up, running my thumb over the colour in her cheeks, watching as her lips parted.
‘We should probably . . .’ she began after a moment, glancing over to our left as the sound of voices echoed across the car park.
‘Right, shit, sorry,’ I replied, startled by the realization that I’d completely zoned out to everything else, to the fact that we were outside, in a public place with only my truck between us and everyone else.
I had one hand on her hip as we gently disconnected, eyes meeting for a moment. That same expression as in the kitchen hovered in hers, an unanswered question. Forcing myself to focus, I lowered her down, reluctantly releasing her once I knew she had her balance.
‘Listen,’ she murmured as we adjusted ourselves and I wrapped and dumped the condom in a nearby trash can, trying and failing not to think of what it’d be like to fuck her without one. ‘This is just a physical thing, right? I mean, I’m not here for that long, and . . .’
Her voice was softer, the ball-breaking certainty fading for a moment to reveal something else. My chest squeezed tight and I resisted the urge to touch her again, wanting to bring her into me and hold her for a moment, maybe even kiss her, knowing what would start up all over again . . .
‘Whatever you want, Jessica,’ I replied, offering out my hand for her to shake instead, figuring this was the only way to touch her without pushing it too far. Her lips curled at the corners, eyes lighting up as she clearly imagined what she wanted.
‘Deal,’ she breathed, giving her slow smile as her fingers slid into mine and shook my hand firmly. I felt her hesitate as she looked into my face, my attention drawn to the goosebumps gathering down her arms, the now visible nipples hardened beneath her shirt.
‘Let me get you my jacket,’ I began, reaching into my back pocket for the truck keys, but before I could, she’d reached up to me, shaking her head with a small smile.
‘I’m not cold,’ she whispered, letting her lips graze my ear. ‘Now come dance with me.’
Even some four days later, the memory alone was making me shift in my jeans again. And given I was on my way to see my mom and sisters for Sunday dinner, I needed a distraction, like now.
I spent the rest of the drive with the music turned right up, windows down and my elbow resting on the door, humming along and running through a few issues I needed to iron out in roping practice this week ahead of the rodeo next weekend.
‘Howdy.’ My brother-in-law, Dean, opened the door to Mom’s apartment as I arrived, a troublemaking grin on his face. He took the pack of beers I offered up. ‘C’mon in! Although, with the line of questioning Clara’s got for you, I’d turn right around and—’
‘So who is she?’
Clara, my eldest sister, all but pushed her husband out of the way to get to me. Our other, more reasonable sister, Belle, was trying to call her away in the background, telling her to give me a minute.
‘Good to see you too,’ I smiled, giving her a patronizing pat on the arm and barging past her, chuckling as she called me an asshole under her breath.
In the tiny kitchen, Mom turned at the commotion, her face lighting up as I stepped inside.
‘Jesse, honey!’ she exclaimed, taking off her glasses for a second and turning to pull me into a hug. I returned it as hard as I dared, that shitty voice in the back of my head telling me I’d never know when it would be the last time. ‘Now, let me look at you. Is Lil working you too hard?’
‘Nah,’ I replied, picking up what looked to be her drink from the counter and handing it to her, swapping it out for the oven mitt in her hand. Face flushed from the cooking, she gave a grateful nod and took a sip, watching as I dipped down to check on the chicken in the oven. ‘She’s over in London, anyhow. Lottie’s in charge right now, doing a fine job.’
‘Uh-huh,’ Mom hummed as Clara stood in the doorway, her tall frame filling most of it as she narrowed her eyes at me. ‘You gonna answer Clara’s question?’
I turned back to catch them grinning at each other.
The relief at seeing Mom have one of her good days, of their tag-teaming me again, was almost enough to persuade me to say something. But frustrating my busybody sister was too tempting.
‘Who do you mean?’ I asked, reaching over to the fridge and taking out a beer, angling the cap under my canines to pull it off, then flicking it at Clara with my thumb and forefinger as if tossing a coin.
Dean laughed from behind her in the corridor as she caught it in her right hand.
‘The redhead, smartass. I heard from three different people about my brother dancing the whole night with one girl, a redhead with tattoos and an accent, ignoring just about everyone else.’
I shrugged, smiling to myself as I caught Mom’s eye. She studied my face thoughtfully.
‘Chrissy was kinda pissed, from what I heard,’ Dean added, ducking under Clara’s arm to stand inside the kitchen. ‘Aren’t you guys—’
‘We’re done,’ I clarified, refusing to feel guilty. ‘I’ve told her, and we’ve talked about it. I can dance with whoever I like and so can she.’ I shrugged again. ‘And I’m not sure why it’s any of your business.’
