Mallory
Waking up and stretching, there’s only a small twinge in my ribs. I haven’t slept that well in months. Shuffling out to the kitchen, I pull a mug out of the cabinet, place it on the counter, and get coffee started. While it’s brewing, I grab the creamer out of the refrigerator. The coffee finishes and I top the cup off with mocha creamer and sugar before taking a small sip.
Heading to the couch, I get cozy before picking up the remote from the table and tuning into the local news. Halfway through my cup of coffee, someone knocks on the door, and I jerk around to stare at it, my heart racing and palms sweaty. The fear threatens to swallow me as my pulse pounds in my ears. Then, a voice breaks through the terror. Jason.
“Mallory, are you up?” My hand to my chest, attempting to slow my heart rate, I breathe a sigh of relief.
“Give me just a sec,” I shout, untangling myself from my blanket and setting my cup down before making my way to the door. I pull it open and take in the way he’s standing, his arms braced on the doorframe, muscles bulging under his faded t-shirt. My eyes shift up to the black cap pulled down low on his forehead, shading his deep, brown eyes, then down to the well-worn jeans hugging his thighs and thick-soled, black, lace-up boots. He clears his throat, and I realize I’m gawking at him. He gives me a sexy little smirk as heat fills my cheeks.
“Come in, please.”
“Have you eaten yet?” As he passes by me, I can’t seem to stop myself from checking out his ass in those perfect jeans.
“No, I’ve just started my first cup of coffee.”
“Get dressed, and we’ll head out for some grub.”
“I don’t know...” Just the thought gives me chills. Fidgeting with the bottom of my top, my gaze drops to the floor.
“Mallory, look at me.” His authoritative tone draws my attention immediately to his face. No man should have lips that look that biteable. I just want to lean in and nip his full bottom lip.
“Have you left your apartment since you came home?” Shaking my head, he continues. “It’s time. We’ll get some breakfast. Get some fresh air. My treat.”
“Jason,” I squeak out, the trepidation in my voice noticeable.
“It’s not good for you to stay cooped up in here, Mal. I’ll take you somewhere no one will know you. We won’t run into any of the guys or Kris or Camryn. It’ll just be us. You need some sunshine.”
Taking a deep breath, I nod, and he gives me a full-on grin.
“Go get dressed then. Unless you want to wear that,” he says, looking me up and down. “I don’t mind.” He grins, and I roll my eyes, then hobble to my bedroom, realizing I’m in a large shirt, shorts you can’t see, and don’t have a bra on. Perv.
Grabbing a maxi dress out of the closet along with a cardigan, I change, then head to the bathroom, brush my hair, and pull it into a messy bun. Not wanting to give myself any time to talk myself out of going, I add a dab of powder and a coat of lip gloss before grabbing a flip flop to wear on my right foot. It’s just thick enough that I don’t have a weird gait when I walk. Walking out into the living room, Jason is looking at the painting on the wall. He’s facing away from me, and all I can do is stare at his ass. Those jeans love his ass. Lord, I wonder how many squats he does to get it that perfect. “I’m ready.”
“Do you need to bring anything with you? Pain medication?”
“No, I should be good.” Turning toward the door, he interrupts before the first step.
“What about a purse or bag?”
“I’m glad one of us is thinking straight,” I laugh, turning back to grab my purse from my room.
As he locks the door behind us, I being to descend the stairs when his voice halts me.
“Wait for me before you head down. I don’t want you to lose your balance.” Grasping my arm, he steps down, making sure I’m safely at the bottom.
“Let me go get the truck.” He jogs across the lot and around the corner. A loud rumble reaches me just before he pulls up in his lifted black Dodge Ram, the vibrations from the bass making the windows tremble. The music becomes louder as the door opens, then diminishes with the slam as he rounds the front, heading my way.
“Hold up. Let me get that for you.”
Got to love a southern gentleman.
Looking up into the truck, I reach for the handle inside the door, already knowing there is no way on God’s green earth I’ll be able to. Jason moves in behind me, and I stiffen.
“May I?”
Peering over my shoulder at him, our eyes connect, the heat of his hands warms my hips. He gives a light squeeze, bringing me back to the present.
“You ready?”
Taking a breath, I nod, and before I realize it, I’m up in the air and placed onto the seat. As I put on my seatbelt, he climbs in and shifts the truck into drive.
We drive for about twenty minutes, the radio breaking the silence of the cab. Pulling into the parking lot of a little café I’ve never heard of, Jason parks the truck and gets out, heading to my side. As I reach down to unbuckle my belt, he opens the door, then helps me from the truck, our bodies brushing as he lowers me to the ground.
He pauses when we are face to face, and the irresistible urge to lean in and kiss those pouty lips runs through me. Our eyes lock, and I swear, for a second, he leans in toward me, but then catches himself. As soon as my feet hit the concrete, he steps away, but keeps his hands on my hips until I’m steady, and I shake my head, wondering what the hell even came over me. With a hand at the small of my back, he steers me toward the café.
We are led to a booth in the back corner, and Jason waits for me to pick a side before sliding in opposite me. As Jason sits down, the lady flips over the coffee cups sitting on the table and pours him a cup, steam rising from the top.
She looks toward me, lifting the carafe. “You want coffee, sweetie?”
“Just some water with lemon, please.”
She gives me a nod and moves toward the counter. Jason reaches over by the napkin dispenser, grabs one of the laminated menus, and hands it to me without getting one for himself.
“You already know what you want?”
“I get the same thing every time I come here.”
Nodding my head, I scan the menu. There are a ton of options, but nothing sounds good to me.
“Anything looking good? All of their breakfasts are delicious,” he says as I continue perusing.
“There are a lot of options. It makes is hard to choose one. Maybe just a bowl of oatmeal.”
“You need more than oatmeal, Mal. Are you allergic to anything?”
I shake my head, and the waitress walks back to the table, her shoes squeaking on the linoleum. She places my water down in front of me.
“The usual, Jason?”
“Please, Gladys. And bring her the same with a side of pancakes.”
Gladys’s eyes widen for a second in surprise as she looks me over.
“You’ve got it.” Her retreat from the table is barely noticed as I look at him with surprise.
“Did you really just order for me?”
“You were taking too long, and I’m hungry. I’m used to eating after I work out and it’s about an hour later than usual.” He sips from the cup, his hand dwarfing the white, chipped ceramic.
“You didn’t have to wait on me.”
“No, I didn’t, but I wanted to have breakfast with you. It’s a warm day out. The sun is shining. We need to enjoy the warm weather while it’s here.”
“I missed Texas weather. Being able to wear shorts and flip flops most of the year. It’s in the eighties today and could be in the thirty’s next week.”
“Speaking of next week…” his finger taps against the cup, “what are you doing for Thanksgiving?”
“It’s time for Thanksgiving already? Man, time flies. I don’t have any plans.”
“How about we spend it together? I’m thinking about driving down to my sister’s in Katy.”
“Oh, no, I don’t want to impose.”
“Mallory, I want you to come with me. You don’t need to spend the holiday alone. Unless you are going to let Kris and Camryn know you’re back, you’re coming with me. My sister is very nice, and my niece is a handful. They won’t mind you coming with me.”
“If you’re sure she won’t mind…” I hear myself saying, then turn my head toward the table, wondering what the heck I just agreed to and why. Before I can spend too much time thinking about it, Gladys returns with three huge plates, placing one in front of Jason and the other two in front of me. Mounds of scrambled eggs, sausage links, bacon, biscuits covered with gravy, and three fluffy pancakes with butter melting over the top...my eyes widen at the sheer volume of food.
“Are we feeding an army? You actually eat like this and look like that?”
“Not all the time, but I usually eat here once or twice a week. I try to stick to a healthy diet, but I allow myself a cheat meal or two. Eat up. You need some meat on your bones,” he says, gesturing to the overflowing plate in front of me.
“Excuse me?!” I choke out, affronted.
“Mal,” he huffs out, “you’ve lost a lot of weight since the last time I saw you. You were already skinny, but now I’m afraid a strong wind will blow you away.”
He tucks into his food, and I pick up my fork and spear some scrambled eggs, indignation riding high, though I can admit he’s probably right. Placing the bite in my mouth, I nearly moan at the taste.
“Mal. Mallory.”
My eyes dart up from my food, connecting with Jason’s.
“I’m sorry,” I say. “I was apparently having an affair with my food. Didn’t hear you,” I laugh, and he smiles.
“You’re fine,” he says, amused. “I just want you to know I wasn’t trying to be mean, I’m just worried and don’t want you getting sick because you are run down.”
“You’re right. I guess I hadn’t thought about it that way. But there is no way I’m even going to make a dent in this much food.”
“Eat what you can.”
Grabbing a slice of bacon, the crunchy, saltiness is quickly devoured before I move on to the pancakes, drowning them in syrup. As the bite melts on my tongue, another moan escapes.
“Good, huh?”
“Oh my god. I don’t know if I’ve ever eaten a pancake this good before.”
Several minutes later, my plate is nearly empty and my stomach is stuffed, almost uncomfortably.
“I think you needed that.”
“I think so too. Now, I need a nap,” I chuckle. He raises his arm to signal for the check as I rest my head on top of the booth. As footsteps approach, Jason stands, hands Gladys some money, then gives her a hug and a kiss on the cheek. Blushing, she smacks him on the arm and he smiles, then helps me rise from the seat. He leads me to the truck, and I almost immediately doze off, waking at a slight touch.
“Wake up, sleepy head. We’re back.”
I peer around, blinking sleep from my eyes, and stretch before letting him get me out.
Slowly moving up the stairs, we arrive at my door. As I unlock it, I ask, “Do you want to come in?”
“I better not,” his says, his voice tinged with…disappointment, maybe? “You need to rest. This is probably the most active you’ve been in a while.”
Opening the door, I step inside, aware he’s still behind me, the heat radiating off him, warming my back. His boot scrapes the concrete as he steps away, and the loss of his heat makes me shiver.
“Get some rest. I’ll come by later, okay?”
The door shuts, and I lean against it, listening to Jason’s footsteps fade.