CHAPTER 30 #2
In a yellow Speedo. And taking benzodiazepines. What the hell had happened to the husband she knew?
Oh, well, it didn’t matter. By now, he should be … was he gone? She went to look outside, hoping to see an empty lounge chair.
Nope. Still there.
Irritation gripped her.
She marched outside, slamming the sliding glass door behind her. There was that twangy music again. Blake lay there, palms up, his lips moving in some sort of chant.
“I thought I told you to leave,” she said.
He opened one eye and peered up at her. “Not until we talk.”
“There’s nothing to talk about.”
He turned off his Zen music and sat up, slowly. “On the contrary. There’s plenty.”
Jannie said nothing.
“Look, Jannie, I fucked up. Big-time.”
“Yes, you did.”
He was silent for a few moments. “I didn’t take a job. I took time off and went on a tour.”
“A tour.”
“Yes. To find myself.”
Jannie’s mouth twisted. “Looks to me as if you found drugs instead.”
“They’re prescribed.”
“For what?”
“For anxiety.”
“Since when do you have anxiety?” She could practically smell the bullshit.
“You need to give them back,” he said, ignoring her question.
She tossed the bottle at him, and it fell to the deck with a rattling clatter. “Why are you here again, Blake?”
“You know why.” He bent to grab the vial and tossed it on a nearby chair, where his wrinkled clothes lay in a messy heap. That, too, annoyed her.
“No, I don’t know why. I thought I made it abundantly clear last time that I don’t want you back here.”
“You didn’t mean it.”
She wanted to scream in frustration. “I absolutely meant it.”
He ran a hand over his abs as a smile she used to find sexy spread across his face.
“I went on several wellness retreats. One of them was in India. I was there for a whole month. I learned all about the Kama Sutra and tantric sex. And you are about to benefit from all those teachings without even having to leave our house.”
“My house.”
“Our house. And I’m going to screw you nice and hard in it, and you are going to love it.”
She took a step back. “The hell I am. Leave. Now.”
“Oh, but you are, Jannica. You don’t know what good sex really is. Hell, I didn’t know, either, until I took all those lessons.”
“Lessons?”
He nodded. “From professional sex therapists. Cost me a lot of money. I’m going to teach you everything I’ve learned. Free of charge.” He smirked. “I’ll even show you how to suck a dick.”
“What part of ‘I don’t want you’ isn’t clear, Blake? Do I need to say it in another language for you to get it? Maybe in Hindi?”
He made a sound deep in his throat. “You’re so fucking hot when you get mad. God, no one else gets me this hard.”
Her gaze flicked to his crotch. Sure enough, to her horror, she saw he was rock hard, straining against that ridiculous banana-colored Speedo.
Her eyes widened.
He smirked. “Yeah, look some more, babe.” Without warning, he sprang up and grabbed her. Her body collided with his, the air in her lungs forced out in a rush.
“That’s it, pant for me. I knew it. You want this.”
“You’re crazy!”
“Crazy for you. I’ve missed you. I want you back. Take me back, Jannie.”
“No!” she shrieked.
How on earth had she ever been attracted to him? So many red flags she’d either missed or refused to see.
He grabbed her ass, grinding against her. “I can last longer now too,” he murmured against her neck. “So much longer. Screw you for hours.”
That sounded like a nightmare. She pushed against his chest. Apparently, he had also been working out, because it was impossible to break free from his iron hold.
“Blake! Stop!”
He laughed, an unhinged sound that made her skin crawl. “You always liked it rough.”
He squeezed her so tightly that her ribs hurt. Fury gripped her, and she clenched her fist, knee ready to strike.
“Yeah, Jannica, I’m gonna pound your puss—”
Footsteps.
A sickening thud.
The next second, Blake’s head snapped violently to the side. His eyes went wide, his grip on Jannie loosened, and then he was falling, taking her with him.
But the next second, someone caught her, keeping her on her feet as Blake slid to the limestone deck, collapsing in a heap.
She smelled him even before she saw him. “Nick!”
“Jannie.”
Shock, relief, the thrill of him appearing out of nowhere like an avenging dark angel slammed into Jannie all at once as his arms wrapped around her in a fierce embrace.
“God … Nick …” Her eyelids stung.
He kissed the top of her head.
“You’re here,” she said.
“Right here, beautiful girl.” Against her back, she could feel his heartbeat pounding in his powerful chest.
She didn’t question his presence, just leaned into him, deeply grateful.
He spun her around. “Did he hurt you?” he demanded.
“No,” she murmured, “no.” She buried her face in his neck and, inhaling, took her fill of his comforting scent, still unable to believe he was here.
“Because if he did, I’ll—”
“No. Just … hold me.”
He did, and for a few seconds, nothing and no one else mattered.
Only Nick.
Her body hummed with the heady feeling only he could evoke, and Jannie closed her eyes, allowing herself just to be in his arms.
At their feet, Blake slowly sat up, his hand going to his jaw as he gingerly moved it from side to side. “Fuck, man! That’s my wife!”
“Wrong, asshole.” Nick moved Jannie into a tight one-armed hold. “She’s mine.”
Warmth spread through Jannie’s chest, and her heart took flight.
Yes, she belonged to Nick. She knew it with her entire being.
She looked down on her pathetic ex-husband, whose lip was rapidly swelling, trickling blood, and wondered what she had ever seen in him.
Right now, all she had for him was pity.
That, and a touch of gratitude for his decision to file for divorce.
Through narrowed eyes, Nick watched Blake struggle to get up and moved his shoe to trap Blake’s fingers.
Grimacing, Blake looked up.
Nick’s furious glare locked on him. “I guess what I said last time didn’t get through your thick skull.
I’m feeling magnanimous toward a fellow pilot, so I won’t break your fingers today.
Just in case you get your head out of your ass and decide to fly a plane again.
” His jaw flexed. “Go home and get yourself together, man. Or don’t.
But never, ever come within a thousand feet of her, or you’ll regret it. Guaranteed.”
·
“You clocked him pretty good,” Jannie said, smoothing her hands over Nick’s shirt front. She couldn’t seem to stop touching him. But she wanted to keep an eye on Rolf, so they were sitting on the sofa with the TV muted.
“Shit,” Nick muttered. “Just wearing that Speedo justified punching him in the face.”
She laughed, running her fingertips along his chiseled jaw. “Yeah, that was …” She shook her head.
“In case you were wondering, I didn’t let him drive that piece of crap.”
“What piece of crap?”
“That old Subaru.”
She remembered the rusty white car in front of the neighbor’s house. “That heap is his?”
“He said it was. I called an Uber. I didn’t think he was fit to drive on whatever the hell he was using.”
After tossing Blake’s clothes at him, Nick had marched him out of her backyard to make sure he left the property.
“What was he on?” Nick asked.
“Xanax. And that was nice of you. Not to mention it’s illegal to drive with it in your system.”
Nick shook his head. “Jesus. All that work to get to captain, and he throws it all away. If he wants to keep his job at JetBlue, he needs to get off that stuff ASAP.”
“He knows.”
Nick eyed Rolf, who was sleeping on his dog bed, belly and paws up. “I can’t believe he gave it to the dog. Did he say why?”
Jannie grimaced. “He didn’t feel like throwing the ball for him.”
“Are you serious?” Nick cursed under his breath.
“Enough about him.” She leaned in to brush her lips along his jaw. “Kiss me hello.”
He grinned. “Again?”
“Uh-huh.”
He kissed her until she gasped for air.
“I missed your mouth.” He lowered his voice. “Would you like it if I kissed you in other places?”
“Very much. But the vet said we have to keep an eye on Rolf.”
He nuzzled her neck before he pulled away. “OK.”
“You still haven’t told me what brings you here.”
He grinned. “My Learjet.”