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“Why would she do that?” I questioned him.
Jesse shrugged. “I don’t know. I’m guessing it’s because she knew I went to her place looking for you, and you had just left. Clearly, she wanted me to be able to reach you, even when you didn’t want the same. Now, I’ve answered enough of your questions. Why didn’t you answer when I called?”
She wanted me to be able to reach you, even when you didn’t want the same.
What the hell was that supposed to mean?
With the expectant look on his face, I couldn’t exactly take the time to ask that question. Clearly, Jesse wanted an answer.
“I didn’t know that you called.”
“Your phone is right beside you,” he noted.
I nodded. “Yes, but it wasn’t beside me when I put the new sheets in the washer or when I went downstairs just now to see if you had an air pump. What’s the big deal?”
“The big deal?” he repeated. “The big deal is that I got a notification that my front door had been opened. I knew you were here, and I know that there’s a crazy woman who wants you dead. So, when I got that notification and then you didn’t answer your phone, I assumed the worst. Obviously, I didn’t expect that you were having packages shipped here in secret.”
“Are you… are you angry with me for buying something for myself?” I fired back.
“This isn’t about you buying something for yourself, Sawyer,” he assured me, frustration dripping from his words. “Though we’ll get into why you felt the need to purchase an air mattress in a minute, the problem I have is that I didn’t know that anything was being delivered, and I thought something happened to you.”
He was worried.
That had been the reason for the look on his face from the moment he made eye contact with me at the bottom of the stairs.
The confirmation that he cared that much about me forced my heart to pound wildly in my chest. I wanted to dive into that. I wanted to ask a million questions and demand answers. I wanted to know why, if he felt this strongly about my safety and well-being, did he say all that he did to me on the day of Faye’s funeral and then watch me walk away. Why didn’t he stop me?
My emotions bubbled to the surface, every question right there on the tip of my tongue, but something held me back.
Instead, I decided it was best to focus on something else he said. “Why is it a problem that I purchased an air mattress?”
“What do you need it for?” he retorted.
“Um, it’s meant for sleeping on,” I told him.
“Jesus, Sawyer, I know what an air mattress is used for,” he quipped. “What I want to know is why you thought you needed to purchase one?”
“I thought that since you were against me sleeping on the couch, I could get myself an air mattress. A real one doesn’t make sense, considering I won’t be living here permanently or anything like that. It’s just a temporary solution that gives each of us our own space at night.”
Something changed in his expression, but I couldn’t quite read it. For a long time, he just allowed his eyes to roam over my face, but he didn’t say a word. I didn’t think that I’d said anything that was rude or untrue, but something about the way he was looking at me told me that he didn’t like the words that had just come out of my mouth.
“You don’t like sleeping in the bed beside me,” he said, his voice a deep rasp.
I swallowed hard, unsure I was willing to answer that question.
Jesse moved closer, and I moved backward until he reached out and clamped his fingers around my wrist. He tugged me closer, to the point our bodies were touching, and his eyes continued to search my face.
My heart was still pounding wildly in my chest, and the look in his eyes was far too intense for me to be able to speak.
Apparently, that didn’t matter, though. Because Jesse seemed to have no problem assessing the situation and figuring out precisely what was going on.
“Or maybe that’s not it,” he said slowly. “Maybe the real problem is that you like it too much.”
My lips parted as my belly pitched. The sound of his voice held too much promise, and I knew what was coming. Or I hoped I knew what was coming.
A moment later, I learned I was right.
Jesse lifted one hand and placed it just beneath my chin as his mouth descended on mine. At first, he gently brushed his lips against mine, but the moment I whimpered, he took things deeper.
