Chapter 19
Chapter Nineteen
Maggie
“ H eads up. Savannah sighting,” Alice murmurs, passing me in the kitchen, where catering is setting up and getting organized.
The weeks have flashed by in a haze of prep work for the reunion. I guess I’m grateful I’ve had this to focus on, to give me something to do other than fixate on the fact Jackson leaves tomorrow.
It’s his last night here. I’ve tried my best to live in each moment we had together, but the fact remains, he drives out tomorrow, and I don’t know when I’ll see him again.
I blink away the moisture from my eyes and focus on what Alice just announced. “Where?”
“At the bar. Want me to distract her?”
I sigh and plate the last of my contribution to the evening’s festivities.
“No, I’ll go. I have to face her at some point.
” So far, I’ve managed to avoid seeing my sister for nearly a year.
The last time I saw my family, I swore I’d never allow them the satisfaction of making me feel invisible. It’s time to be true to myself.
I retreat to the office to find my purse and reapply my lip gloss.
Removing my apron feels like taking off a layer of armor, but I do it anyway, smoothing a hand over the waist of my retro-style dress.
My sister will be dressed to the nines. My choice is stylish but also shows my personality, and when I first tried it on, I felt like a million bucks. But now?
The door hinge squeaks as Alice joins me in the small office we commandeered for personal item storage. “Why’d you let me wear this dress, Alice? Savannah is probably out there in some designer dress, and I’m going to have to meet her looking like some old-school pinup.”
“Hey, Marilyn Monroe is still fabulous.” Instead of it being Alice, Jackson is smug and smooth as he slips a hand around my waist from behind and pulls me into his broad chest. God, it’s been too long since he’s touched me.
He drops an open-mouthed kiss to the top of my shoulder, playfully running his teeth up to the juncture where it meets my neck. “And you taste fabulous too.”
Pleasure floods my system. I want nothing more than to steal him away and convince him to stay.
We need more time to work through the Alice issue.
More time to explore what this could turn into.
It’s more than friends with benefits for me.
This connection between us, feelings soul deep.
Like he’s my person, the one who sees all my ugly inside thoughts and still comes back for more.
Still accepts me as I am and encourages me to be my best self.
There’s no judgment, no pushing me to be something I’m not.
Is this love? Or what love is supposed to be? The way he looks at me makes me think he feels it too, but I know him. He’s never mentioned being in love with anyone or anything other than chasing his next goal. Finding his next thrill rush.
And that’s why I have to let him go. If Jackson has taught me anything, it’s that I am worthy and deserving of someone who will stand by my side. I just wish it would be him.
Instead of voicing those thoughts, I fall into the now familiar pattern of distracting myself with his body, so I reach behind me and grip his length. He’s hard, growing harder as I leverage the smooth material of his dress pants and stroke him.
“Jesus,” he groans. The hand at my waist flexes, and then he spins me around, devouring my mouth the moment I face him. I love kissing this man. It’s like nothing I’ve ever felt with anyone before him. A connection that makes me weak in the knees and instantly ready to take him.
“Ah, fuck. Baby, stop or I’m gonna make a mess of you before the night even gets started.
” He drags my hand away from his hard cock and pins it against the wall over my head.
But he doesn’t stop kissing me, and I have two hands and a willing mouth.
I want him feral for me. He’s leaving tomorrow, and I’m making tonight be about what I want.
I resume stroking him with my free hand. The low rumble that rises from his chest tells me everything I need to know. He’s in this with me. He’s not going to stop me.
My fingers dip into the waistband of his pants, barely grazing the tip of his cock, eliciting a hiss. I smother the sound with a kiss, then remind him, “You have to be quiet. Can you do that?”
His molten gaze searches my face. “Mags…”
I stop him with a finger to his lips and shush him silently. A thrill runs through me as I sink to my knees and make quick work of undoing his belt, freeing him, and sliding his thick, hot erection into my mouth.
I look up the length of his body. He’s got one elbow braced on the wall over me and his shirt pulled out of the way so he can watch me. I smile with my eyes as I flutter my tongue against the sensitive underside of his cock. He sucks in a breath and bites his fist.
Footsteps sound outside in the hallway, and in the blink of an eye, Jackson pulls me off his dick and lifts me. He’s barely got himself tucked away, with his back to the door, when a shadow passes the open doorway and one of the catering staff steps inside.
“This where we leave our personal stuff?”
I note the time. She’s late, according to Alice’s schedule. “Yep. Then go check in. Stations have already been assigned.”
Jackson shuffles up behind me, leaning low and whispering in my ear, “Rain check.”
I bite my lower lip to stop the smile. But I’m pretty sure there’s a twinkle in my eye when I wink at him as he turns back like he’s taking one last look at me. “Deal.”