Chapter 4 #2
He smiled. The thought of doing something domestic like that appealed to him.
He didn’t take much time off, and he’d like to take Adalyn around a bit, explore the sights.
They were only there for their friends’ bachelor and bachelorette parties, but Adalyn had divulged that she hadn’t seen much of the town.
He didn’t care all that much to see the sights; he just wanted to spend some more time with her before they had to part ways.
She hadn’t mentioned when she was leaving, and thoughts of how they could spend their last day together spun through his mind.
His imagination must have been running overtime, because the woman stepping off the elevator reminded him of Adalyn, right down to a pair of long, slender legs that he’d thoroughly enjoyed having wrapped around his waist last night; she was practically a doppelganger for his new wife.
His brows pulled together as he looked closer.
Large sunglasses covered the woman’s eyes, and she moved at a fast clip across the lobby, pulling a small suitcase behind her, a powder-blue garment bag hooked over one shoulder.
His eyes narrowed, and the words Something Blue jumped off the pale blue fabric.
Striding across the lobby, he caught up to her on the sidewalk just as she’d stepped outside. He reached out and grabbed her wrist, bringing her to a halt. Adalyn jumped and let out a high-pitched squeak. He almost felt bad for scaring her—almost.
“What do you think you’re doing?” he growled.
She slapped one hand over her heart. “Oh, my God, Jaxon! You scared the life out of me!”
He snorted. “Well, it’s nice to know you at least remember my name, even as you’re trying to run out on me.” Anger seeped into his tone, and Adalyn’s face contorted in aggravation.
“Come on. You and I both know this is best. We did something stupid last night that both of us regret.”
His grip on her wrist loosened, and he ran his fingertips up to her elbow, then back down, slipping her palm into his and lacing their fingers together.
“I don’t regret it.” Or he hadn’t anyway, not until he saw how much it bothered her.
Did she really want away from him so badly that she’d run off without even saying goodbye?
“Jaxon…”
He knew he’d have to act fast if he had any chance of keeping her. “Listen. I ordered us some coffee. Let’s just go sit down and talk for a while.”
She glanced indecisively over her shoulder toward the parking garage, and his voice turned hard. “You at least owe me that. If you want an annulment, you can spare ten minutes of your precious time.”
He released her arm and turned on his heel, stalking through the lobby to the coffee shop. At his approach, the barista picked up his carryout container with the three drinks and set it on the small side counter. She started to smile as they made eye contact, but she froze when she saw his face.
He could only imagine the thunderous expression; he could feel the scowl pulling at his mouth.
Quickly averting her gaze, she moved to the back counter and busied herself with one of the machines.
He picked up the container and strode to a table tucked into a corner furthest away from the comings and goings of the early morning crowd.
Kicking out a chair, he placed himself with his back to the wall and sat heavily.
His eyes stayed glued to the coffee cups in front of him, but he saw her approach.
No, that wasn’t true. He felt her. As if his body was attuned to her, he knew the second she drew up next to the table.
She stood there for a moment before pulling a chair out and sitting primly on the edge of the seat.
He pushed the tray of drinks across the table, angry at her but mostly at himself for being such an idiot. “Coffee, tea, or some girly thing.”
One corner of her mouth kicked up in a tiny smile. Her voice was soft when she spoke. “Tea, please.”
He rolled his eyes. Tea. Go figure. That was just one of the many things they didn’t know about each other, wasn’t it?
Adalyn plucked the cup labeled Tea from the container and sipped tentatively. He snagged the plain black coffee and set it in front of him, transferring it from hand to hand to keep his body busy. His brain wouldn’t stop, and he needed something to do with his hands.
Maybe this had been a stupid idea. She didn’t want to be with him, that much was clear.
No matter how well they’d gotten on last night, come morning she was already regretting their decision.
Heck, she didn’t even remember it. And that fact alone made him believe that maybe he’d begun to regret it, too.
It’d been rash, but he’d expected her to at least talk to him, not run away.
They sipped their drinks in silence for several moments, and he listened to her breaths moving in and out of her chest. The tension between them continued to grow.
What had they been thinking? He almost snorted at the thought.
Clearly, they hadn’t. They’d been more than half-drunk on alcohol and sexual attraction.
“What’s your favorite color?” Her voice cut through his musings, and he lifted a brow at her. Adalyn just shrugged.
“Green.” Although as he stared into her gray eyes, he began to reconsider. His new favorite color was platinum—bright and untarnished, just like her big, beautiful eyes, surrounded by those thick, dark lashes.
Said lashes swept against her cheeks as she glanced down at her cup. “Mine is red.”
Interesting choice. Such a bright, vibrant color for a subdued woman like Adalyn. But she’d surprised him on multiple levels last night. With him, she’d been completely uninhibited, free of her mother and idiot ex.
She’d come completely out of her shell when they’d made love, her passion lighting a fire deep inside him.
They’d destroyed the bed once they’d stumbled back into her room late last night—or was it early this morning?
—then repeated the act when they’d woken.
Had that really been less than an hour ago?
He couldn’t get enough—being even just a few feet away from her made his blood boil with lust. All he wanted to do was kiss away her reservations, take her back to bed and treasure her for the next several hours until life came calling.
And it would, all too soon. Within a week he’d be off on another deployment, she’d be back at work in her bridal salon, and… then what?
“Favorite movie?”
The corners of her mouth tipped up. “Overboard.”
The irony was not lost on him. She suddenly sobered as their situation bore down on her. She hadn’t fallen off a boat and been picked up by a near stranger, but the similarities were there. They’d been thrust together, and now they had two options: fight to make it work or walk away.
Jaxon wasn't a quitter—never had been, never would be. But he couldn't do it alone; it would take both of them to work this out.
He rolled his shoulders. “What do you want, Adalyn?”
Her eyes widened a fraction before dropping back to the table. “Jaxon, I—”
“Listen. I'm leaving in just a few days.” Her gaze snapped back to his. “Tell me what we're doing. Are we going to make this work, or are you going to walk away?”
“That's hardly fair.” Her gray eyes narrowed to slits, and her lips thinned. “This is crazy. We live in different cities; we like different things. We don't even know anything about each other. What if we're totally different?”
“What if we're exactly alike? What if we're perfect for each other? Maybe we don't like the same things. Do all couples agree on everything?”
“No, but—”
“What are we going to do, Adalyn? I'll do my damnedest to make this work if you will. What's it going to be?”
Her grip tightened on the coffee cup, and his gut clenched as he watched her chest rise and fall, her breath unsteady.
“I just… I can't.” The words floated out on a whisper, and his heart fell to his toes.
He should have known better. Why would a beautiful woman like Adalyn want a hardened, battle-scarred soldier like him?
He was too hard, too rough, and she was too delicate.
Maybe she was right. She was perfection, and he was lethal, deadly.
He didn't deserve to breathe the same air as her, let alone have her for himself.
He let out a harsh laugh. “Of course not.”
Pushing back his chair, he stood abruptly and strode to the counter to pull a napkin from the holder.
He scribbled down an address and stalked back to where Adalyn sat.
He could feel her eyes on him, but he refused to meet her stare.
He dropped the napkin on the table in front of her. “Send the paperwork here.”
Without another word, he spun on his heel and left, his long-legged stride carrying him quickly through the lobby and into the bright sunshine outside.
He turned to the right and stormed toward the parking garage that housed his rental car, silently berating himself.
One thing was for certain: He would never do anything impulsive like this again—never let a woman make him feel like he wasn't good enough, worthy enough.
He didn't slow even when he heard her calling his name, didn't turn around.
He didn't know exactly where he was going, but it didn't matter.
He could come back for his clothes later.
Right now, he just needed to put some distance between them.
Because if he saw her again, he wouldn't be able to control himself.
He'd beg her to think things over and give him a shot.
But he'd already given her a choice, and she'd made her decision.
She didn't want him, and he didn't need her.
He rubbed a hand over his heart.
Too bad he didn't believe it.