28. Bryn
Chapter twenty-eight
Bryn
“So I do need you to wait to accept until at least tomorrow. Monday would be best.”
Jameson nods. “Okay, I can definitely do that. I don’t even really want to accept it anymore.”
“No, you’ve got to.” Oh, shit. “I mean, you obviously don’t have to. It’s just the only way that my plan works. You should do whatever is right for you and your career.”
“B, I’m in. Whatever this plan is.”
I outline my plan. I know I can’t fight the fraternization rule. It’s too risky, especially with how high-profile of a guy Jameson is. I might not be getting what I want, but maybe I can take Kyle down with me.
When I finish, we nestle on the porch swing together, Jameson throwing his arm around my shoulders again as I lean into him. “I mean, it’s not as diabolical as him somehow getting you to recuse yourself from the promotion project, but I like it,” he says, giving the side of my head a kiss.
We sit there in silence for a few minutes before I say, “I really enjoyed celebrating with your family today. Thanks again for inviting me.”
“Of course. I’m so glad you could make it. Usually, it’s just me stuck playing peacekeeper between Lila and JT.”
I slide my hand into his. “You think that they hate each other…?” I don’t want to give anyone’s secrets away, but it sure seems like there is something more going on there.
He scoffs. “Oh, yes. Most definitely. Deep animosity between those two.”
“Hmm,” I reply.
His hands are warm in mine, his thumb slowly rubbing circles on the inside of my wrist as he says, “You know, I was thinking during dinner that maybe it’s time for me to sell my Florida house.”
“Really? Why?”
He kisses my forehead, my absolute favorite gesture. It’s just so…selfless. “It’s full of bad memories. And Florida made sense when I bought the place, but now it’s just”—he pauses, staring out into the yard—“a long way from all the people I love.”
“I kinda forget that you actually live in Florida. I always think of you like me, a bit of a nomad who just travels around, no permanent residence.”
“It’s not wrong. I may have had a house in Florida, but it was never really a home. It was basically an Airbnb I paid a lot of money to store my stuff at. But I also don’t really think of you as a nomad. Sure, you don’t have a house or an apartment, but you have a home. Your life is in Wild Bluffs.”
That’s true. My life is in Wild Bluffs. My sisters are there. My parents are there. But there has always been something that has held me back from pulling the trigger on making it permanent.
“Sure,” I say. “For now, at least.”
“Do you ever think about settling down? Buying a house in Wild Bluffs?”
I’m not opposed to settling down. If I had a reason to slow down my travel schedule, I would, but up until this point, I haven’t had a good reason to. And I don’t want to put the pressure of being my reason to put down roots on Jameo. He has to travel just as much as I do, if not more.
So I hedge, replying, “I’m not opposed to it. It’s just never made sense with my life so far.”
We sit in companionable silence for a bit before I ask, “Will you buy a new house? Or try out the nomad life for a while?”
He shrugs his strong shoulders. “I’m not sure yet. How would you feel if I just fly to wherever you are between my tournaments?”
I think about the flight schedule, airport drop-offs, and logistics of it all before finally answering, “Chaotic?”
He laughs. “I’m kidding. I’m not actually planning on following you around the country every week. But I would love to get to see you more. And it doesn’t make sense for me to be flying back and forth to Florida when I hate it there, anyway.”
“I would love to see you more too.” With that, I lean in, kissing the strong column of his neck. He reaches up, his thumb stroking my cheek as he moves my mouth to his and immediately deepens the kiss.
Our tongues tangle, and a spark ignites deep in my core, sending a shiver down my spine.
“Shit. Are you cold?”
“No.” I kiss him again. “Definitely not cold.”
A smug smile crosses his face, and he leans in, kissing me again before moving down, peppering my neck with hot kisses. I groan, unable to stop myself.
Making his way back up my neck, he leans into my ear, whispering softly, “You’re so sexy.” He glances down, swallowing deeply as he stares at my cleavage. “This dress makes your chest look fucking amazing.” As if he’s unable to resist himself, his hand reaches up, the back of his fingers tracing the side of my breast. His eyes shutter, and his mouth captures mine again.
My senses are overloaded by the taste of his tongue, the warmth of his body pushing me backward on the swing, the strength of his arm keeping me upright. His other hand traces the curve of my side, touching me everywhere.
And suddenly, he’s gone.
“Lila!” he groans, his eyes locked on the door over my shoulder. “Why are you always such a cockblock?”
Mortified at being caught making out like a couple of teenagers, I make sure the girls are where they are supposed to be in my top and discreetly tug the bottom of my dress down off my upper thighs.
Lila crosses her arms. “Mom was going to come get you guys for dessert, but I, being the kind, benevolent, helpful sister that I am, offered to do it instead. Next time I’ll just let Mom catch the two of you playing tonsil hockey.”
“Thanks, Lila. I don’t know if I could’ve ever shown my face in your house again if your mom had caught us,” I say, grimacing at the thought of Lori catching us.
“Well, I can see how you thought no one would see you out here. It’s clearly a very secluded spot.”
I feel the heat rise to my cheeks again. “Feedback noted.”
“Come on, Bryn, let’s head in. Jameson”—she covers her eyes as I catch sight of the noticeable bulge in his jeans—“clearly needs a minute to get himself composed.”
I shoot a look at Jameson, as if to say “Well, turns out it could get more awkward.”
He just closes his eyes and shakes his head, his chest lifting with a deep breath.
“You know, that is actually fairly mild for the various positions I’ve interrupted my brother in.” Lila leads me inside, happy to carry on a one-sided conversation. “He always wanted to be invisible as a kid, and I sometimes wonder if he doesn’t think he actually is when he’s getting busy. It’s like it’s always a surprise to him that our family might actually, ya know, move around the house and, gasp , be able to see him groping his girlfriend.”
I continue to follow her back into the dining room. “That seems…awkward for you.”
“Oh, it is. But I’ve decided to just move past it. I just hope he never returns the favor someday and catches me with someone. That seems much worse.”
Someone coughs from the table, and we both stop talking to stare at JT as he chokes on his water.
“Are you okay?” I ask.
He waves his hand, signaling he’s fine, and Lila just rolls her eyes as she flounces over and plops herself in the seat next to him.
“Come on there, big boy. I know it seems hard at first, but drinking water isn’t so hard. I believe in you.”
He lifts his middle finger as he takes a couple gulps of air.
“Worried about getting caught with someone, Lila?” he questions when he can breathe again.
“I would only worry about getting caught with someone if I were ashamed to be with them, JT,” she fires back.
They both sit there, glaring at each other well past the normal mark.
“Well…” I drawl. “This has been…awkward. I’m going to go…somewhere else.” I stand back up, heading for the kitchen to see if I can help Lori bring the cookies in for dessert before I have to leave for my flight in an hour.