AllFreeNovel
Share Us
His touch made her feel so needy, so vulnerable. She wanted more of it, and she felt off-kilter being so close to him. “Um, trying. Just—” She forced a smile. “Okay, deal.” Jake released her wrist.
“Okay, I’ll start cutting up cheese,” he said. “What’s the main dish? Shrimp something?”
“Scampi,” Rakell said, turning to walk out of the kitchen.
“One more question,” he called after her.
“Jake, I swear…” She scolded, her jaw tightening.
“Where are your knives?” he asked with the look of a naughty little boy who knew he was pushing it. She started toward the kitchen and Jake interrupted, “How ’bout you tell me where the sharp things are from a distance?” Again, with the same look on his face.
Rakell rolled her eyes before breaking into a short laugh. She gave him a quick kitchen tour, opening cabinets and drawers to show him where the cookware and dishes were.
Chapter Two
After piling her wet hair on top of her head, she slipped on a pair of faded jeans and a thin, heather-gray sweater that hung low off one shoulder. She caught herself in the mirror and grimaced. She was way too spent to give any more effort, even for Jake. Rakell threw on socks and walked out to the kitchen. Jake had cut the cheese and prosciutto up and arranged them with some crackers on a plate.
“Glad to see you still dress up for me,” he said, smiling and filling her wine glass.
“This is as good as it gets right now,” Rakell retorted, returning his smile.
“Still looks pretty damn good.” His eyes perused her body, staying a little too long on her breasts.
It dawned on Rakell that she probably should have put on a bra, but she didn’t have the energy for it. She gave him a pointed look. “One more rule: no eye-fucking me tonight. Okay?”
Jake put his hands up. “All right, all right. Probably should have worn a bra. Actually, forget it. It wouldn’t have mattered.” His blue eyes bore into her. “I know what’s under there.” An overly lusty tone dominated his voice, making her lower stomach tighten.
“Jaaake.” Rakell purposely drew out his name, scolding him with her tone, squinting her eyes with mock disapproval.
“Okay, I’ll try not to think about that hot body. Promise.” He stuffed a cracker with cheese on it into his mouth, holding a small smile while he chewed. “Just glad to be here.” There was a sincere edge to his words.
She eased back from her guarded stance, soaking in his soothing demeanor, even if the logical part of her brain kept reminding her what the path forward would mean. “Glad you are, too,” Rakell remarked, matching his tone.
It took them two glasses of wine and a few more stilted exchanges before they softened, interacting as if this, them sharing a meal, was a regular occurrence. The sexual pull was still there, but both concealed the verve, not letting themselves succumb. Rakell showed him her expansive deck overlooking Austin. They leaned against the railing, scanning the buildings that formed the landscape of the city. When Jake saw her shiver, he put his arm around her, coaxing her into him. Her torso folded into his warmth.
Standing there, taking in the vast array of city lights highlighting the stunning Austin skyline, he thought about the metamorphosis of this city over the past twenty years. Starting when he was a young boy, Jake had witnessed the evolution of the quirky university artist town snuggled around the Colorado River—with its humble skyline whose pinnacle had been the dome-shaped capital—explode into a trendy destination city with modern-level skyscrapers stretching jaggedly across its horizon. Although Austin bursting into a globally sexy city was exciting, there was also a sense of mourning for long-time Austinites. They had proudly boasted “Keep Austin Weird,” which essentially meant,We can do it all.So it had a blended down-home feel where rural danced with urban: BBQ and sushi, music and high tech, nature and dimly lit bars, and—of course—art and education. Well, as Jake’s dad said, “Maybe we should have kept our mouths shut because now everyone wants a piece of Austin.”
Jake told Rakell stories about how Dwayne had literally been rehearsing his touchdown dance, from the hip wiggle to the strip show thrust of his pelvis.
“Love that sound,” he said when she laughed, his head leaning into the groove of her neck and shoulder, his lips brushing up against her skin.
Her jaw went lax in response to the feel of his warm breath feathering across her collarbone. “Mm…mm, Jake,” she murmured into the air, feeling her chest rise and fall. She rotated, facing him. “Jake…”
“Just one kiss?” His lips grazed her jaw as he whispered.
“Umm, …yes, okay,” Rakell replied. Jake’s arms closed around her as his mouth met hers. Her head tilted back as she parted her lips. There was a sweetness in the touch of their lips meeting that masked the growing pressure, the rising intensity. Rakell pushed her chest into him. She felt like she might shatter from this, even if it was just a kiss. “Jake… Jake…” she groaned into his mouth, her body betraying her as she folded into him.
Jake lifted her chin. “You make this hard, Sweets. But I came over here for you. I knew you were overwhelmed; anybody would be.” He squeezed her into his chest, a low tremble within his core as he constrained himself, just holding her tight.
Rakell had to concentrate on breathing—in through her nose, steady, out through her mouth. Her hands slid up to his biceps, gently pushing back as she distanced herself slightly.
“Not sure this is such a good idea.” Her hand moved back and forth in the air between them. She shook her head. The invisible force generated by the two of them together proved to be relentless and indomitable, almost more than she could endure. And it absolutely wasn’t fair to Jake.Thatshe knew for sure—he deserved some version of the truth, not just a vague idea of what her life had looked like in London and why she was here in the first place. She wanted to run an idea by Matt, ask his permission before telling Jake about their arrangement, thinking maybe that’s all she’d need to reveal. She shoved thedialogue to the back of her brain, knowing she didn’t have it in her to think about any of this right now.
Jake put his hands up again. “I’m being good. Just need a little self-control from you, Sweets.” He puffed out his chest. “I get that it’s hard.”
“I know—it’s me.” She smiled, relieved for the reprieve he was offering, yet taking his hand and leading him inside, wanting so much to parade him straight to her room and into her bed, to stop all this bullshit. But the niggling in the back of her head unsettled her. She needed to answer his questions and offer some truth. But once he knew the truth, she was sure his yearning for her would wane. “Let’s eat. Not kicking you out until you eat some of this food you helped me make.”
“Sounds fair, but only if you promise you’ll be in the stands for the Super Bowl. You can sit with my family. This time, you’ll be sitting in the right box.” He sounded clearly excited.
