19. Jackson
19
JACKSON
I ’d just finished telling myself that I needed to keep my distance from Jane. So inviting her to stay overnight at my place was one of the stupidest ideas I’d ever had.
My life was already complicated enough without adding to it.
But the way she was freaking out was killing me.
I couldn’t stand seeing Jane upset and I couldn’t let her go back to that controlling narcissist. It’d be like leading a cute puppy to get slaughtered.
‘What about your girlfriend? Won’t she mind?’
‘I don’t have a girlfriend.’
The fact that Jane had asked me that question was interesting. Had she been wondering if I was single just like I’d done about her, or did the thought come into her head for the first time just now?
‘Oh.’ Her brow furrowed like she was surprised. ‘I hate to put you out, but I don’t know what else to do.’ She lifted up her glasses, then wiped her eyes and cheeks with the back of her hand .
‘It’s okay,’ I said. ‘Tomorrow we can ask around town. See if anyone has a room they can rent you.’ I had to make it clear that this was just an arrangement for tonight.
‘Yeah.’ She nodded.
We spent most of the train journey in silence. I was mentally working out how to bring her home without telling her about Mum and making sure she didn’t somehow find out about the videos.
It should be okay. I’d woken up extra early to clean the house because I thought I had a viewing.
‘You’re in the same house?’ Jane said as we turned down my street.
Wow. Although she’d never been inside because her dad and brother watched her like a hawk and Shamwick was full of gossips, she still remembered the road I lived on.
‘Yeah.’
‘Will your mum mind me staying?’ she asked and my stomach dropped.
‘No. She’s, er… away.’ I put the key in the door and stepped inside.
‘Oh, okay. Has she gone anywhere nice?’
I dropped the keys on the hallway table and tried to gather my thoughts.
‘If you wait in the living room, I’ll just change my sheets so you can have my bed and I’ll sleep on the sofa,’ I said, quickly changing the subject.
‘No!’ Jane shook her head firmly. ‘Thanks, but you’ve already done enough for me today and you’re helping me out massively by letting me stay, so I’m sleeping on the sofa. No arguments. I just need a blanket and I’ll be fine.’
‘But I’m not sure how comfortable it is. ’
‘It’ll be fine! My bed at my parents’ is awful, so I’m sure this is much better. Please .’
‘Okay,’ I relented reluctantly.
It didn’t seem right to let a woman sleep on the sofa when there was a bed in the house. Mum’s room was off limits. It’d been stripped of most of her belongings as they’d been taken to the home to make her feel comfortable, so if Jane went inside, she’d instantly know something wasn’t right.
‘Back in a sec.’
I raced up the stairs, checked Mum’s door was shut, then pulled out some stuff from the linen cupboard.
Jane would probably need something to sleep in too. I went in my drawer and took out a T-shirt. Maybe she’d prefer a shirt? I pulled one off a hanger and added it to the pile.
‘Here you go,’ I said, returning to the living room. ‘Fresh sheets, towels, a blanket and a duvet in case you get cold in the night and I thought you’d need something to sleep in, so I brought you a T-shirt and a shirt. Choose whatever’s comfortable. There’s obviously shower gel and toothpaste in the bathroom. I’ll check if I have a new toothbrush. Anything else you need?’
‘No, all of this is amazing. Thanks again. I’ve got a toothbrush in my toiletries bag.’
‘Cool. Wanna use the bathroom first?’
‘You sure?’ she asked.
‘Yeah. I’ll make up the sofa whilst you’re in there.’
‘Jackson.’ She looked up at me and my heart raced. ‘Honestly, I don’t know how to thank you.’
‘Don’t worry about it. That’s what friends are for, right? ’
I didn’t know if I mentioned the whole friends bit for her benefit or mine. Definitely mine. I needed a reminder to keep my dick under control.
‘Yeah. Hopefully one day I can return the favour somehow…’ She bit her lip and blushed.
Did she mean…?
Nah. I pushed the thought that there was some kind of innuendo in how she was offering to return the favour out of my mind.
Jane would never say something like that. She was sweet and pure. Unlike my dirty mind.
She didn’t need to do anything, sexual or otherwise. I was genuinely doing this to help her. It was the right thing to do, that was all.
Jane pulled a toiletries bag out of her handbag, picked up the towels and the T-shirt, then walked towards the door.
‘Bathroom’s the first door on the left at the top of the stairs.’
‘Thanks.’ She nodded.
I made up the sofa, went to my room, then realised I’d left my bottle of water in the kitchen.
Just as I left my room to head downstairs, Jane came out of the bathroom.
Her wet hair was down and it almost reached the middle of her back. I hadn’t realised how long it’d grown because it was always tied up.
Jane wasn’t wearing her glasses, so I had a clear, unobstructed view of her big, beautiful brown eyes and fuck. She was wearing my T-shirt.
As I took in the sight of her creamy skin and the way my T-shirt skimmed her bare thighs, my dick thickened .
Especially when I thought about the fact that she couldn’t be wearing any underwear underneath.
Jesus.
The thought of Jane’s bare breasts and pussy being so accessible sent my mind into overdrive.
‘Oh!’ She looked up. ‘Didn’t see you there! No surprise, really, with my eyesight.’
‘Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.’
‘You didn’t.’
My gaze dropped to the T-shirt again. Her nipples were now poking through the fabric.
Was she cold or…
Nah. I dismissed my thoughts again and quickly dragged my gaze back up to her face before she caught me looking at her like a pervert.
Our eyes locked and once again my mind drifted. I imagined stepping forward, scooping her up and carrying her to my bed, where I’d lay her down and…
For fuck’s sake. This really had to stop. Jane was here because she was upset about going home. She wasn’t here to be ogled.
‘You… how was the shower?’ I stuttered.
‘Great! I feel so much better. Anyway, bathroom’s free. I’m going to bed. Sleep well.’
‘You too,’ I said, warning myself not to look at her arse as she walked away.
Too late…
Shit.
Jane had told me to sleep well, but something told me that I was about to spend most of the night dreaming about her.