Page 42 of True Abandon

I squeeze my eyes shut, hoping to mentally block him out.

“Enough,” I shout as I lean up and look over at him.

Jax raises his head; his face in a dazed state.

“You’re getting a freaking massage, not having an orgasm!”

Jax lifts a sleepy looking brow at me. “What’s the matter? You want Fernando back?”

My blood races to my face. I swear I can feel the steam rising out my ears. “Gah!” I cry out as I put my head back down.

Shannon places two hands on my shoulders and leans in close to my ear. “If the man does this to you with his voice, I can’t imagine what he’d do to you in bed.”

I lift my legs up and slam them down, hard. He better have fun now because what I have planned for him next is going to be the exact opposite of what he’s currently feeling.

We finish the rest of our massage in relative silence. Every once in a while, a moan escapes Jax’s throat, but it’s followed by a laugh and Shannon’s continuing reminders for me to relax. At one point, I think Jax actually falls asleep which is a Godsend.

At the end, Fernando and Shannon leave the room. I wait for Jax to get his robe on and walk out the door before I even move. Once I’m completely covered, I walk out into the hall where Jax waits for me.

“Relaxed?” he asks. He has a crease on the side of his face, confirming he did, in fact, fall asleep. If it were anyone else, I’d say it was adorable.

“I could have done without the theatrics,” I bellow as Shannon appears to escort us down the hallway.

“That was an honest-to-God reaction to the massage. You really missed out by switching masseurs. That man’s hands are like a machine—a giant, hot stone machine. I was nervous my leg would hurt, but he managed to work around the wound.” He pauses briefly to look in the direction of where we’re walking. “Where are we going?”

Continuing our walk, I respond, “To our next appointment.”

Jax thumbs back toward where the locker rooms are. “I didn’t make another appointment.”

“You didn’t, but I did.” I smile. It’s big and luminous. “Before I knew we were having couple’s day, I tacked on a wax for myself.”

His pierced brow is raised. “Why are you smiling like that? I mean, I like your smile. It’s one of your greatest features. It’s just the first time you’ve smiled since I’ve been here. It’s kind of freaking me out.”

Swaying from side to side I sing, “What I do, you do. And what you do, I do.”

His brow falls, as does the sides of his mouth. “I’m not waxing.”

“Fine. Then the deal’s—“

“My legs. I draw the line at my legs,” he states with a serious expression.

I stammer back. “Are you sure? So whatever it is I have booked to wax, you’re game?”

He leans in and annunciates with a punch, “Positive.”

The way he says it, so totally sure, with his clean-shaven jaw squared and unwavering, makes me uneasy.

Shannon opens the door so I gesture to Jax. “After you.”

“Ladies first.” He holds the door open for me.

I follow Shannon inside where an esthetician is standing beside the bed. “Welcome, I’m Giovanna.” She sees Jax and says, “I’m sorry, we don’t allow visitors into appointments.”

I pull Jax’s arm and yank him toward me. “He’s a first timer and was looking for moral support.”

“So this is two appointments?” she asks.

I nod my head enthusiastically.