16. Chapter 15
J esse woke up alone in Julia’s bed. The sheets were thrown back on the side where she’d slept, baring one of his legs up to his thigh.
His hand lay against the space where she’d been, and his head was on the edge of the pillow she’d been using, opposite from the rest of his body.
He’d invaded her space while he’d been asleep.
That wasn’t much of a surprise. He probably should have warned her that he was a bed hog. He often starfished when he was alone.
She’d been spooning him when he’d fallen asleep. Having her body and arms wrapped around him had been like a dream. He loved being her little spoon.
He hadn’t even woken up with an erection this morning.
Heat flooded his face as he remembered coming inside her, twice.
The second time, she’d orgasmed, too, and it had felt more than amazing.
Not just physically. His heart skipped a beat just thinking about how she’d enjoyed having sex with him.
He’d been more than enough, despite his early ejaculation.
Scrambling out of bed, he went to the bathroom.
When he turned to wash his hands, he found an unopened toothbrush left on the counter.
After washing his hands and face and brushing his teeth, he stared in the mirror, startled by the giddy smile he wore.
Who would have thought sex would do that to him? He’d been avoiding it for so long.
Instead of throwing out the toothbrush, he set it in the holder beside hers. It was wishful thinking, and his stomach tightened as he stared at it there. Julia had been clear. There wasn’t likely going to be a repeat of the night before.
His smile fell as he gripped the bathroom counter. No, he couldn’t do this to her. He could fall apart once he had left her apartment.
He didn’t regret being with her, despite the certainty that she had ruined him for anyone else. She was so calm and sexy and confident. Nothing about him had bothered her, and they’d both been in a blissful state afterward.
Jesse wished she really had been his first. He shoved the thought away as he opened the bathroom door.
The tousled sheets made him think of sex.
He straightened them, smoothing the wrinkles from the black comforter before reaching for his pants.
He’d been comfortable in only his boxers while they slept, but now it felt like ants crawled along his bare skin.
His fingers were clumsily working on his shirt buttons when he heard her voice behind him.
“Oh, you’re up.” Julia moved into the room.
“Uh, yeah,” he mumbled, somehow missing the next hole. “Sorry about that.”
Her hand gripped his shoulder, and he followed her urging and turned, but he couldn’t quite lift his eyes to meet hers. Her fingers moved to his chin, forcing it up.
“Don’t do that.” She pinched his chin. “What are you even apologizing for? Giving me one of the best orgasms I’ve had in a while?”
The ants turned into racing tingles. “N-not that.” He swallowed to ease his suddenly dry throat. “I took over the bed, didn’t I?”
She released his chin, ruffling his hair instead.
“Don’t worry about that. I’m not used to sleepovers, that’s all.
I’m more of a fuck and leave type.” She frowned, her forehead wrinkling.
“I’ve never invited any guys to my place since that first year in the dorms, now that I think about it.
” She glanced at the straightened sheets.
“Oh, and you even made my bed. You’re something special, you know that?
” Her hand was gentler as it slid out of his hair.
He swallowed the urge to remind her he’d been a one-pump chump. She’d just tell him she didn’t mind again. Looking at her open and smiling face, she really didn’t seem to be upset. That increased his urge to draw closer to her. What would she think if he threw himself into her arms?
“Oh, hey, you missed a button.” She reached for his shirt to fix it. Her fingers brushed against his chest with each adjustment to the buttons, making the tingles spread until he was lightheaded.
She wore those silky sleep pants with a faded t-shirt again, he noticed, even though she’d slept naked in the bed with him. No, he couldn’t think about her being naked. Getting an erection right now would make everything worse.
“So you slept okay?” he asked, trying to distract himself.
“Well, not really. But that’s my issue, not yours.” She finished with his buttons, smoothing the shirt over his chest before letting her hands drop. “I enjoyed our date and last night, Jinx. Really.” Her eyes captured his again, and she looked so calm.
“Me too,” he mumbled, tension tightening his shoulders. All he could hear was the reminder that their one and done was now over.
She grinned at him. “Oh, I know you enjoyed it. You’re sexy when you fall apart. Do you know that?”
He flushed. “I’m not sexy.”
“Yes, you are.” She leaned forward, brushing a soft kiss over his lips. He wanted to linger, but she was already pulling back. “So, do you think it helped? Will you be able to pick up girls now?”
His chest tightened, and he ended up telling her the truth. “I’m pretty sure being with you ruined me for being with anyone else.”
She laughed as if he was joking. “I really am good at sex, aren’t I? Lots of practice.” She slapped his arm. “But don’t worry. If you continue to be willing to follow directions like last night, you’ll do fine.”
Jesse didn’t want to be with anyone else. “I should get out of your hair,” he said, searching his pockets to make sure he had his keys and wallet. He needed to get out of there before she offered to be his wingman again.
“You’re not in my way, but I do have to head out soon. Lunch at my parents’ today.” She started heading toward the closet but paused. “Did you want to come with me?”
He blinked at her. “To your parents’ house?”
“Yeah. My mom loves when we bring more people. You know how she is. She loves to host.” Julia shrugged, as if it wasn’t up to her to understand it, and disappeared into the closet.
“My parents would enjoy seeing you. You used to come by pretty often with Phoebe.” She’d grabbed her clothes but paused with them in her hand after saying his sister’s name.
“Have you talked to her lately?” he asked. He’d been avoiding Phoebe after what she had said the week before. He knew he couldn’t do that forever, but since she hadn’t called him, he figured it worked for now.
“No.” The word came out clipped. “Not really.”
Jesse wondered if his sister had given Julia an earful, too. He bit his cheek, not knowing the right thing to say.
“Don’t worry about it.” Julia tossed her clothes on the bed. “I’ll forgive her eventually.”
“You don’t have to.” He met her eyes as she looked toward him. “She said some shitty things about you.”
“Like what? That I sleep with anything that moves? She wasn’t lying.” Julia’s smile looked sharp this time. “I mean, I was pretty clear with you about my history, so it’s not like it could have come as a shock.”
“The way she talked about you wasn’t right,” he repeated stubbornly. There’d been way too much judgment in his sister words.
“That’s sweet, but you really don’t have to worry about me. I’ve got thick skin.” She dragged her shirt off, giving him an eyeful of her gorgeous breasts. There was something so intimate in watching her put on her bra, even more so than when she’d stripped her clothes off.
He rubbed his tingling palms against his pant legs as she pulled a shirt over her head.
“So, do you want to come with me or not?” she asked, beginning to change her pants as well. “No pressure.”
“You’re really not sick of me?” he asked.
Her glare was the one he remembered whenever he worried about tagging along with the older girls as a kid. “I could never be sick of you, Jinx. Trust me, if I didn’t want you there, I wouldn’t have bothered to ask. I don’t play games like that.”
That was true. If she was tired of his company, she would have said so.
Jesse already knew his answer. There was nothing quite like being around her, and he’d grab hold of all the time she’d give him. “Sure. I’ll come,” he said out loud. Then he glanced down at his outfit. “But shouldn’t I change first?”
Julia’s eyes slipped over him, and she made an appreciative hum in her throat that sent his mind spinning. “I like the way you look in that shirt.”
His flush returned, and he warned himself not to take her seriously. Julia had been more than clear. They weren’t dating.
No matter how much he might wish otherwise.
J ulia walked into her parents’ kitchen with Jinx trailing behind her. Her mother stood at the stove, flushed from the heat of cooking and stirring something in a big pot.
“Hey, love!” her mother called, her eyes flicking over to Jinx. “Oh, you brought a guest. Jesse, so good to see you.”
Her father let his hand fall away from her mother’s back to turn to them. “It’s been a while, son,” he greeted and crossed the kitchen for a proper handshake.
Jinx’s cheeks reddened, and she wondered what thought he’d had to put that adorable, embarrassed look on his face.
Her father had always been especially kind to Jinx, and Jinx had looked up to him. While he’d had his older brother, there hadn’t been a lot of men in Jinx’s life when they were kids. He got a certain glow while speaking to her dad.
Julia left them to it to, approaching her mother and kissing her cheek. “Sorry for not giving you a heads-up,” she said, more out of habit than genuine worry.
“No problem. The more the merrier.” Her mother added more butter to the pot of mashed potatoes, even though they already looked like they’d stick to the ribs. Julia loved her mother’s potatoes more than anything. “Your sister is setting the dining room table if you want to help.”
“Sure,” Julia said, the sounds of laughter and voices deeper in the house settling something inside of her. She was a loner, but she appreciated the time spent around her family. In small, scheduled doses, of course.