AllFreeNovel
Share Us
The energy shift in the truck was palpable. A sick feeling settled in my belly. He’d gone out of his way to do this nice thing for me and I was ruining it.
Not knowing what else to do, I doubled down, hoping to fix whatever I’d said that was upsetting him. “I’m just saying if you wanted to hang out with her, or anyone, it’s okay. You can see or not see anyone. We’re not…you know…this is not…I’m just saying I don’t want you to, you know, restrict your social life because of me. That’s it. I know you have a lot of…” I searched for the right word. Admirers sounded antiquated. Women sounded a little harem-ish. Female associates sounded too formal. “Friends. I know you have a lot of friends. And you should have friends. I mean, I’m not asking you not to have friends.”
I forced myself to stop talking because every time I opened my mouth, I felt like I was just digging myself deeper in a hole. I had to bite down on my bottom lip to keep it shut, rather than give in to the temptation of rushing to fill the awkward silence that hung between us. It felt like it went on for at least five minutes, but probably only lasted about forty-five seconds.
Finally, he asked, “You done?”
“Um…” I wasn’t quite sure what he was asking I was done with, so I went with my best guess—he wondered if I was done talking. “Yes.”
Without saying a word, he pulled the truck over onto the side of the road and stopped. Then he shifted in his seat, turning toward me. The intensity in his light caramel eyes, caused my breath to catch in my throat. He just stared at me, still not saying anything for, again what felt like an eternity…but most likely was thirty seconds or so.
“You’re right. I do have friends. I have a lot of friends. I have a lot of people that I can do things with. But a wise person told me that I should find someone that I wanted to do nothing with. I want to be with someone I want to do nothing with.”
Does he mean me?
I wished I was better at picking up on social cues. But as it stood, I was clueless.
Jimmy must have read my mind. Either that, or my facial expression said it all.
“Yes, you.” He grinned my favorite flavor of grin, which was the sexy half-grin. “You’re the only person that I’ve ever wanted to do nothing with. And thank you for giving me permission to see or not see anyone, but if it’s all the same to you, I’d like this to be an exclusive sort of deal.”
“Exclusive?” I thought I’d been excited about this day before, but Jimmy telling me that he wanted to be exclusive had just super jet-fueled that excitement right into the outer atmosphere.
He lifted his hand and cupped my face, running his thumb across my jawline. His voice dropped an octave as he confirmed. “Exclusive.”
“Okay,” I quickly agreed, hoping he would seal our deal with a kiss. Whenever I was around Jimmy, I wanted to be touching him or kissing him, or both, or more.
His presence was a real, tangible force. I felt wrapped in it like a warm blanket on a stormy night. It was comforting and I wanted nothing more than to sink into it and pull it closer to me.
He leaned toward me and goosebumps rose on every inch of exposed skin. I closed my eyes in anticipation of his lips pressing to mine. His breath fanned against my face and I could smell the mix of coffee and peppermint, that same intoxicating scent I’d noticed that first day on the boat.
But instead of his lips, I felt his forehead resting against mine. “I want to kiss you so bad right now. But we’re already late.”
And then he was gone. He was no longer cocooning me with warmth. I opened my eyes and saw that he was back in his seat and was pulling out onto the road.
“Do you have any idea how fucking tempting you are?” he asked.
“No.” I wasn’t trying to be coy. I honestly didn’t.
Still, I liked hearing him say that. And I really liked that he looked genuinely agitated not to be able to kiss me. There was no reason I should be the only one who was sexually frustrated. I’d heard of guys getting blue balls, but I’d never considered that women could get them. Or whatever the lady equivalent was.
“Close your eyes,” Jimmy instructed.
Excitement raced through me as I shut my lids tight and put my hand over my eyes.
He chuckled beside me. “You don’t have to put your hand up if you just shut them.”
“I don’t trust myself not to peek.”
Jimmy’s chuckle got louder. Again, I wasn’t kidding. I was so excited that I was sure my lids would involuntarily open, and I needed the extra barrier so that I didn’t ruin my surprise.
The truck came to a stop and Jimmy teased, “Keep ’em closed, now.”
I heard his door open and shut, quickly followed by my own door opening. The next thing I knew, Jimmy’s strong arms lifted me out of the truck and set me down. He took over blindfold duty as he guided me. I could tell that we were walking on uneven ground and the air smelled fresh, like the ocean—but then again, that could be said for most of the terrain on Firefly Island.
“Ready?” he asked, his large hand still covering my eyes.
“Yes!” In the back of my mind, I saw my father staring at me with disdain for my inappropriate level of excitement, but I pushed that image away.
