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Kemara’s nonverbal cues begged me to stop him and apologize. She said, “Tameka, you’re my sister, and I love you, but it’s not fair to him to have to leave just because you can’t deal with your feelings. Put on your big girl panties and deal.”
“Oh, is that how you feel?” I asked then turned to Channing. “How about you? Is that how you feel, too?”
Channing threw his hands up, professing his innocence, so my attention went back to Kemara. She had no right to belittle me in front of her husband.
“I don’t appreciate your tone with me,” I said plainly.
She put her fists on her hips. “I don’t appreciate you kicking Jeb out of the house, just because you’re not in control of your feelings. We wanted him here, and he’s staying. You both are our guests,” Kemara demanded.
I threw up my hands. “Fine! Let him stay.” I stormed out of the kitchen and went back up the stairway to my bedroom where I flopped down on my bed, thinking about when I walked in on Jeb coming out of the shower.
I had heard a noise in the room across the hall from mine and followed the sounds. I thought the room was empty and that maybe someone had left the shower water running by mistake. Imagine my surprise when Jeb’s towel fell to the floor, and every rippling muscle of his body greeted me for old time sake and new. I was nervous about being in the same house as Jeb for six more days and nights—long, hot, summer nights.
I wasn’t nervous about what he would do but of what I would do. I couldn’t control my feelings for him as long as he was in my presence. I put up a believable front that what we shared was only one night of lust, but I’d dreamed of that man and yearned for his touch many nights since we made love. But maybe, just maybe, if we set boundaries we could both stay here in this big ass mansion for one week. I hopped off my bed and went across the hall to talk to Jeb and found him coming out of the room with luggage in his hands.
“Where are you going?” I asked, and my breath caught in my throat at the thought of him actually leaving.
“You wanted me out, so I’m leaving,” he said with a hard glare.
“Look, I apologize for what I said down there. And…” I paused. “I’d like for you to stay,” I said softly.
“I was wrong for coming like this. I thought we could get to know each other better and enjoy time together in Aruba, but I didn’t know you felt so strongly against me.” He took a few steps toward the stairs. “Enjoy your vacation, Tameka.”
“Please,” I said in a rasp, and he stopped walking and turned to look at me. His heated look sank inside of me and warmed me to the core. I walked over to stand in front of him. I placed a hand on his luggage bag. “Stay…”
I understood how that one word could hold so much power, and so did Jeb who shifted his weight from one foot to the other and looked at me with mystery in his ocean blue eyes.
“If that’s what you want,” he said, his deep voice sounding hopeful.
“I do, but we do need to set boundaries.”
“What kind of boundaries are we talking about?”
“You stay on your side of the house, and I stay on mine. That’s the first one.”
He chuckled slightly. “You’re on my side right now.”
When he winked, I glared at him. “Second rule…no flirting.”
He shrugged. “I can live with that.”
I frowned. That wasn’t the response I wanted to hear, but I was the one setting boundaries. “Third rule…”
“Yes,” he said, smiling.
“Under no circumstances is anything sexual going to happen between you and me. Got it?”
He smiled as he inched closer to me. I stood my ground until his breath brushed against my lips.
“Boundaries, Jeb.”
“I would think the third rule is a given since there’s no flirting.” He bit down on his bottom lip. His face was still dangerously close to mine.
When a light moan left my mouth, I knew there was no way I would make it. “Goodbye, Jeb,” I said as I backed away toward my room.
“Wait. Do I get to add a rule?” Jeb asked.
“Sure, if you want to.”
