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Seth was the first to reply. “Hell if I know. Usually I’m pushy and stubborn. I go after what I want. But with AJ it’s…different.”
Jason rolled his eyes. “For the love of God, I’m getting sick of hearing you two pant after her. Ask her out already!”
Jason had been friends with AJ since high school. She barely reached five foot, but she was a firecracker. When Seth and Ames had come into her life, the three of them were rarely seen apart. Jason didn’t think AJ had even dated since she’d met the two dorks. “Has it ever occurred to you that she might be into you? That she might be waiting for you to ask her out?”
Ames turned around and crossed his arms over his chest. “Yeah, but which one of us does she like?”
“Hell, maybe both.” He shrugged. “Only one way to find out.” Seth started to speak, but Jason spoke over him. “Or she just might get tired of waiting and move on to greener pastures.”
“Christ, it’s not that I don’t want to walk up to her right now and kiss the daylights out of her,” Ames said, and Seth nodded his agreement. “But what happens after? We’re friends, and I don’t want to ruin that with sex.”
“I’d be great sex, though,” Seth said under his breath.
Ames shoved a hand through his hair. “Damn straight.”
Jason moved to the window next to Seth and Ames and looked out. Jason whistled low. AJ was now bent over and used a vacuum on the front driver-side seat. Evidently, she’d decided to take advantage of the warm, clear weather. She wore a pair of old, frayed, jean shorts that had stains on the back pockets, and a red tank top. Her dark hair was pulled into a messy bun. “You know, she is awfully cute, isn’t she?”
Seth and Ames swung icy gazes toward him. “She’s off-limits, Kershaw,” Seth ground out.
Jason allowed a small smile to slip, but when he noticed a few other men from neighboring businesses watching AJ with avid male interest, he said, “You might want to tell those other guys that, then.”
Seth and Ames glanced in the direction Jason had pointed. “Ah hell,” Ames muttered.
Jason pushed away from the window, slapped Seth and Ames on the back, and proceeded to goad them into action. “The clock is ticking, fellas.”
He looked at the time on his phone and realized he had an hour to shower and get to Emma’s for their date. “Speaking of that, I’ve got a date. Lock up, boys,” he said as he grabbed his keys off the desk and sprinted toward the door. That easily, he forgot about the three musketeers. Tonight was about Emma. If he played his cards right, it would be the first of many nights.
The restaurant he took her to was a small, quiet Italian place across town. She’d heard good things about their food. It was a classy place. But she almost wished they were somewhere alone rather than a crowded restaurant. Just as the thought flitted through her mind, his brow arched up in inquiry, as if he could read her so easily. As if he knew what she was thinking. Heat crept into her face, and Emma glanced away.
“You look amazing,” Jason said as he finished off the last of his cannelloni. His gaze traveled over her face. “And I’m not the only one in this place who thinks so either.”
Emma put her fork down and pushed her plate away. “Thank you.” A little thrill of excitement raced up her spine at Jason’s words. The dress had been more than her budget allowed, but worth it, judging by the heat in Jason’s dark eyes. It was a little black number with a hem that stopped just above her knees. Tonight she was seriously glad of all the hours of exercise. She felt pretty. Like maybe she wasn’t the lumpy, dull woman she often imagined herself to be.
When Emma’s gaze landed on Jason again, she had to force back a moan. He wore a white button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up, and the view of his sculpted arms turned her body to liquid fire. He’d combed his messy dark hair, and he’d even shaved away the five-o’clock shadow. God, he was so handsome. Jason leaned in close. His hot breath caressed her ear, and she wanted to purr like an eager kitten. “Care to dance?”
Emma looked over at the small dance floor, noticing a few couples swaying to a slow, romantic tune. She took a deep breath and gave Jason her hand. He stood, bringing her along with him. Jason had effectively stopped her heart with his intensely sexual glances. Asking her for a dance was the final straw. She had no idea what she was going to do about the attraction between them, but it was potent. She shut her mind off and let him lead the way.
Together, they walked out to the dance floor. Jason turned her in his arms and pulled her close. Instantly aroused, Emma felt his tight embrace all around her, inside her. She glanced over his shoulder and realized no one else was dancing quite so intimately. “Uh, you really shouldn’t hold me so close.”
“You don’t like it?”
“Well, yes, but—”
He continued to hold her against him. “That’s what I thought. You want distance between us because it’s the proper thing to do. But I’m not interested in proper. Not when I have you in my arms.”
Her heart sped up. He was so close she could smell his masculine scent. God, he was delicious. “Jason,” she breathed out.
Jason licked her earlobe, then gently bit the sensitive flesh. “Baby, I’m seriously loving your sweet body pressed to mine right now.”
He kissed his way down her neck and sucked at her pulse. Surrounded by his large, powerful body, Emma forgot all about dinner. Everything vanished as Jason’s mouth made an erotic journey over her skin. When he pulled back an inch, she whimpered.
“I want you,” he murmured. “Tell me it’s mutual.”
Did she dare? She was sinking deeper into Jason’s net until she wasn’t sure which end was up. But as he began smoothing a palm over her back, she knew she was powerless against him. In the end, there was never any other choice.
“Yes, it’s mutual,” Emma blurted out.
“I want to get you alone,” he told her with blunt honesty.
