10. Alex
CHAPTER TEN
alex
As usual, I’m early. Way early. Like, the meeting doesn’t start for thirty minutes, and I’m standing on the front porch, wondering whether it would’ve been better to have waited in my truck outside the gate to Jake’s house. After all, no one is answering the front door.
What if Jake isn’t even here?
I glance at my watch, realizing it’s already been two minutes since I rang the doorbell. Maybe I should go back to my truck and wait. Or leave and come back when it’s closer to the start time.
Why do I have to be so intent on being extremely early to everything? It’s a blessing and a curse… Right now, it’s definitely the latter.
I turn around, adjusting the strap of my laptop bag, when a voice stops me in my tracks.
“Hello? Alex, is that you?”
My heart speeds up as my brain tries to process what she’s doing here. How she knows it’s me when I’m not even looking at her.
I whirl around and come face-to-face with the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen.
Holy shit…she’s in a fucking towel.
My mouth parts slightly as the pounding of my heart accelerates. All logical thinking escapes me as the blood flows straight to my cock. She must’ve just gotten out of the shower. Her hair is wet, and there’s a sheen on her skin.
Images of Chelsi naked as the hot water cascades down her body run through my mind. How the soap trails down her lush breasts, following a pathway to her pussy. What I wouldn’t give to press her up against the wall and listen to her scream my name as her voice echoes in the room.
“Alex, are you okay?” Chelsi asks, adjusting the towel and holding it tighter with both hands.
“Sorry,” I reply, shaking my head to get the dirty thoughts out of my mind. “I’m supposed to be meeting with Jake and the rest of the team in a little bit. I can wait in my truck if no one is here.”
She smiles softly, tucking a piece of her chocolate-brown curly hair behind her ear.
Is she trying to make me harder? Need to think of something else. Anything to get my mind out of the gutter when it comes to her.
My attraction to Chelsi is more than physical.
Although she’s breathtakingly gorgeous, it’s her incredible personality that makes it hard to breathe and my heart race.
The way her eyes sparkle when she laughs.
How she captivates a room whenever she’s telling a story.
The extreme protectiveness and love she has for Kate and Jake.
The thoughtful gestures she tries to hide from the world, not wanting anyone else to know it’s her doing.
The spontaneous texts she sends that brighten my day.
She’s the whole fucking package.
“Jake and Kate ran into town to pick up some food for the meeting. They should be back in a few minutes.”
“Okay. I’ll wait in my truck.” I start to turn around when her hand touches my shoulder.
“You don’t have to do that. Come inside.”
I nod, unable to say anything else as my mouth feels like it’s full of cotton.
Chelsi’s hand drops, and a wave of emptiness washes over me. My body instinctively craves her touch after only a few seconds of contact.
What is wrong with me? No other woman’s presence has ever made me feel this way. It’s unnerving for someone who thrives on control, desperately needing it to survive.
“I believe you’re going to meet in the kitchen.” Chelsi heads into the house, gesturing for me to follow her.
My eyes can’t help but notice the sway of her hips and the roundness of her ass as she walks in front of me. I’m not sure God could create a more perfect woman.
Pull yourself together. You’re a grown-ass man. She has a goddamn boyfriend. You can’t be gawking at her like a teenager. Grow the fuck up.
Once we’re in the kitchen, I set my bag on the table and grip the chair, trying to steady myself and lock down my raging hormones.
“Thanks for letting me in. I can wait here. Please don’t feel obligated to entertain me. I’m sure you have plenty to do.”
Chelsi chuckles, adjusting her towel once again over her perky breasts.
Goddammit, Alex. Stop looking at her chest. Eyes on her face. Or literally anywhere else in the kitchen.
“I’m happy to hang out with you,” she replies, pulling out a barstool and sitting down.
I lose the ability to breathe when she crosses her legs. The towel barely covers her thighs and edges up higher in this position, the opening right in the middle. What I wouldn’t do to be on my knees in front of her. Worshipping every inch of her skin.
I drag a hand down my face, forcing myself to sit. More than an arm’s length away, so I can’t possibly be tempted to touch her.
She’s not your girl. She’s with Logan. She’s basically your boss’s sister. You can’t be having inappropriate thoughts. You need to get your shit together. She’s so fucking off-limits it’s unreal.
Chelsi stares at me as a smirk grows on her face. “So…what have you been up to lately?”
Besides looking at your gorgeous face and body…I’m not sure. You’ve wiped my mind clean of everything else before the last five minutes. Today is seared in my brain for eternity.
I clear my throat, buying myself a few seconds to give my brain time to come up with something.
“Work. Been busy with work.”
Smooth, Alex. You finally get a chance to talk to the woman you’ve pined after for more than a year and that’s what you say? No wonder you’re alone.
“Uh-huh. Care to elaborate?” She moves one of her legs slightly, causing the towel to creep up higher.
“Umm…tour stuff.” I swallow hard, attempting to lubricate my throat to get rid of the dryness in my mouth that’s exacerbated every time I look at her. “There were some changes to the schedule.”
Chelsi laughs, tossing her head back with a huge grin. “Kate mentioned something about Jason rearranging a bunch of tour stops. I assume he dumped all of that on your lap.”
I nod, locking eyes with her as my chest tightens.
“That blows. Jason’s kinda an asshole. Jake swears he’s a great guy once you get to know him, but he has a stick up his ass whenever I see him. What’s the deal with him and Anna anyway? They seem to be on the verge of hate fucking or killing each other.”
I shrug. “No one knows. It didn’t used to be this bad.”
She taps one of her fingers against her mouth, lightly dragging it down her lower lip and sending a goddamn jolt of lust to my already hard cock.
I swallow hard again. “How long are you in town visiting?”
She yanks at the top of the light blue towel, opening it slightly to tighten how it’s wrapped around her. Why in God’s name doesn’t she have clothes on? Why am I being tormented?
“Not visiting. I live here now… Well, at least for the foreseeable future.”
My mouth drops open as my brain tries to comprehend what she said. She lives here.
In Nashville. In my town.
With Kate and Jake.
“What about your boyfriend? Is he… Is he moving down here, too?” Unease rises in my stomach at the thought of having to see the two of them together.
They’ll probably become a fixture at every event Kate and Jake host and will occasionally join us on tour.
I’ll get a front row seat to it all as well.
Chelsi scoffs. “That motherfucker…absolutely not. We’re over. Don’t get me started on that shitshow.”
Wait… What? Did I hear her correctly?
She’s single.
Holy shit.
Inner me is jumping for freaking joy while I’m trying to remain calm externally until I know more about what led to their breakup. It takes a delicate balance of being supportive without bashing the ex too much unless it’s made abundantly clear they’re never getting back together.
“I’m sorry to hear that,” I reply, lying through my teeth and keeping my eyes locked on her.
“Don’t be. He isn’t worth the energy. It’s just me and my trusty vibrator collection from now on. Who needs a man anyway? I give myself better orgasms than any of them ever could.”
Unable to control my reaction, my mouth drops open slightly as my brain short-circuits. She just… She… Vibrator collection. Orgasms.
Chelsi arches her eyebrows and smirks. “Cat got your tongue, Alex?” Her voice has almost a purr-like quality, making my brain go even further haywire. A soft laugh escapes her as she breaks out into a grin, the complete opposite of the anger masking her face a few moments ago.
“For what it’s worth, I wasn’t a big fan of Logan’s.
” I rub my hands on my dark jeans, trying to wipe away the sweat on my palms and needing a distraction to prevent me from walking across the room and taking her into my arms like a lunatic.
“There was something about him that didn’t sit right with me. ”
“Yeah. He was the biggest red flag of them all.” Her smile falters slightly before recovering. “He made Jimmy look like a saint.”
“Seriously?” I ask, confused by how that’s even possible. Jimmy’s picture is right next to red flag in the dictionary.
“Turns out he was only dating me to attend the wedding. More interested in meeting a celebrity than really getting to know me.” She sighs and stares down at the kitchen floor. “I probably shouldn’t be surprised…”
“Fuck, Chelsi. You deserve so much better than that asshat.” I run a hand through my hair, hoping it’ll somehow reduce the tension building in my shoulders.
Lessen the need for me to drive seven hours north to beat the shit out of a man I barely know.
How could he hurt her so brazenly? Discard her like she meant nothing when she’s… everything.
“Thanks,” she replies, meeting my gaze. “I guess I’m one of those people who is great at giving dating advice and shitty at actually dating. Oh well…I’m coming to terms with being single forever.”