Chapter 28 #2
Once he’s down to just his black boxer briefs, he carefully climbs in, and, oh my God, I think I just lost all my ability to speak or move.
Jason Hawkins is, quite frankly, the finest specimen I’ve ever laid eyes on.
He’s all broad shoulders, powerful arms and legs, and abs sculpted to perfection.
He’s literally built like an Ancient Roman gladiator.
Ink scatters across some parts of his skin, mainly on his arms and chest. And then there’s the butterfly tattoo just above his heart, the one Jake once said he got to honour his late mother.
It’s almost identical to the one I have.
I quickly avert my gaze before he catches me drooling like a sex-deprived housewife, and to hide the blush creeping up my neck and cheeks, which I’m certain has deepened by at least three shades.
He settles into the spot directly across from me, leaning back with unhurried ease.
When his hands rake through his hair, leaving it damp, my focus snags on the way his biceps bulge and tighten. Not sure what else to do, I follow his lead, scooping handfuls of water and running them through my hair, soaking it.
When I glance back at him, he’s watching me with an intensity that sends a rush straight to my lower abdomen. Heat pools low, and I suddenly feel exposed, acutely aware of how little I’m wearing in front of him.
As if sensing my awkwardness, he reaches for the bottle of wine perched on the edge of the spa and pours our glasses halfway. “Not too cold out here for you?” he asks, holding a glass out to me.
I accept it and take a small sip. “No, it’s not,” I reply, setting my wine glass behind me on the edge. “You were right, a spa is definitely perfect for a night like this.”
“It’s been a while since I’ve been able to just relax. When Jake is around, he’s usually always on the go, and when he’s not, I’m in the study catching up on some work. So it feels good to finally unwind a little.”
“Well, I won’t say no if you ask me to join you in the spa again. This seriously feels incredible.”
He raises an eyebrow. “Yeah? You won’t mind?” His voice is low and gravelly.
“Are you kidding? Relaxing in a spa with a hot guy…” The words slip out before I can stop them, and I slap a hand over my mouth, eyes wide.
He bursts out laughing, and all I want to do is sink to the bottom of the spa and drown from sheer embarrassment.
“Don’t do that. There’s nothing to be ashamed of. I kind of like it when you just say what you think.”
“I didn’t mean to sound like a perv.”
“You can perv all you like. I don’t mind,” he teases with a playful wink.
Suddenly, I feel a little nervous and sheepish under the energy he’s radiating, so much so that I have to fix my gaze on the water instead, bubbling, popping, and reforming as if it’s the most fascinating thing to watch.
But then he splashes a little water in my direction, drawing my eyes back to his.
“Hey, how about this,” he says. “Let’s play a new round of twenty-one questions, but there’s a catch. You have to say exactly what’s on your mind. No pausing. No filtering. Just say it how it is.”
“I don’t know. That could be dangerous.”
“Where’s all the fun without a little danger, right?” he quips. “How about I start. Ask me a question first and I’ll answer.”
I take my time searching for a question that might help me understand him a little better. One that I’ve always been curious to find out. After a couple of minutes, I finally settle on the one I like. “What attracted you to Gemma?”
He smirks, as if he was expecting me to ask that very question.
“Well, she was stunning, funny, and laid-back. It was just easy being around her—like a breath of fresh air. Beyond that, she only wanted something casual, which suited me perfectly fine at the time. I guess dating her just seemed like a good distraction,” he answers confidently.
“A distraction from what?” I ask.
“Nuh-uh, Rivera. It’s my turn to ask a question.”
“Right, sorry.” I give a soft chuckle. “What do you want to know?”
His expression hardens just a little. “Do you miss him?” He doesn’t need to say the name. I already know who he’s referring to.
“No,” I answer without hesitation. “The truth is, when I think about him now, all I feel is anger and resentment. We weren’t together long enough for it to feel like real love, not the deep kind. Any good feelings I once had for him are long gone.”
He nods slowly but doesn’t press further, and for that, I’m grateful.
“Okay, next question,” I say, leaning forward slightly. “What was the distraction from?” I ask, determined to get to the bottom of his first answer.
He chuckles. “You don’t give up, do you?”
I shake my head. “Nope.”
Jason takes a long sip of his wine, then carefully sets his glass aside. When he turns to face me again, his gaze holds a trace of vulnerability in them. “It was to distract myself from you.”
I frown, confused. “Me?” I ask, pointing to myself.
“Yes, you. I needed a way to distract myself from thinking about you, day and night.”
“I don’t get it. Why would you be thinking about me, at all?”
“Hey now, greedy. You can’t be the one asking all the questions. It’s my turn next,” he teases.
“Sorry. I just get carried away. Go on, then.”
He clears his throat. “Did you really have a crush on me when you were younger?”
My eyes widen, and I’m pretty sure my face is about as red as a strawberry. How the hell did he know about my crush? I could’ve sworn I hid it well.
“Who told you that?”
He smirks then shakes his head. “Answer the question, missy. Truthfully.”
“Yeah, I did. I had this innocent little crush on you when I was a teen, which was kind of ridiculous, considering you barely said more than a sentence to me whenever you and Kaden came over the house.”
“Well, it would’ve been weird, and illegal, for a guy in his twenties to start chatting up his friend’s teenage sister.”
“I know that. But most of the time, it felt like I didn’t exist to you. I know you never meant to make me feel that way—it’s just how I felt back then,” she admits at she lifts a shoulder in a casual shrug. “And just so you know… you were actually my first real crush.”
His eyebrows shoot up, eyes widening in disbelief. “You’re joking.”
I shake my head. “I’m being totally honest. But anyway, that’s all in the past now.”
“Yeah,” is all he says. A flicker of something, disappointment maybe, briefly crosses his face before he masks it again. “So, what’s your next question?” he asks.
“Why were you thinking about me?”
He exhales slowly, leaning forward just a little.
“Because the more time we spent together, talking, connecting, the more I felt something for you. And I didn’t exactly know what to do with that.
You’re my son’s babysitter, and my friend’s much younger sister.
I wasn’t supposed to be feeling the way I was with you.
So that’s why I started dating Gemma… hoping it would distract me from having thoughts about you. ”
“And did it work?” I ask, surprised by my own boldness. I’m not sure where this sudden boost of courage is coming from, but I’m not ready to stop now.
“No, it didn’t. If anything, being with her only made what I felt for you so much stronger. But then you started seeing Dean, and I knew I’d missed my chance. You seemed happy with him, and I won’t lie, that stung a little.”
“I’m sorry. I had no idea you felt that way.”
He shrugs casually. “It is what it is, I guess.”
Our eyes lock, and in that instant, something unspoken and undeniable passes between us.
I can’t help but think that if I’d known about Jason’s true feelings for me, Dean and I would’ve never happened.
I could have spared myself all the pain and heartache.
The irony is that Jason has no idea I’ve always felt something for him too—something deeper, more real, than anything I’ve ever felt with anyone else.
Neither of us makes a move to break the silence, but the tension grows heavier with each passing second. Finally, unable to bear it any longer, I ask the one question that I know will change everything between us.
“Tell me, what are you thinking right now?”
He bites his bottom lip, the gesture dangerously seductive, his gaze lingering on my mouth with intense heat and desire.
“I’m thinking about coming over there,” he murmurs, his voice low and rough with intent, “pinning you against the edge and kissing you so hard that for a moment, you forget where we are.”
Oh. My. God.