Chapter 57

Jesse

Jesse felt more free and happy than she had in a long time. For years, she had felt oppressed by her own ambitions. She had been either searching for jobs, near to starvation on the streets or working for an employer who took advantage of her and didn’t allow her to stretch her wings.

Even recently, she was worried that she would never find a job as stable as the one she had just left at The Edge.

For now, though, she felt liberated of all her worries as she stood knee deep in a river with the man she was slowly falling in love with. Yes, she was definitely falling deeply in love with Hal Roberts.

She had been reluctant to admit that to herself for quite some time, in spite of what her heart was telling her. For so much of her young adult life, she had been fearful of not being good enough, and that was still the case.

In spite of everything that Hal said to her and did for her, she was still fighting her fears of being dismissed. She knew that if she really invested herself in her relationship with Hal, and he merely tossed her aside in the end, she would be absolutely broken-hearted.

The more time she spent with him, the more she was willing to let herself believe that she was worthy of something more than she ever thought. Little by little, she was starting to believe him when he said she was beautiful. She had even quit her job simply based on his opinion that she was worth more than what Elaine was allowing her to be.

So, she really felt that it was about time that she stopped letting her brain rule over the rest of her entire being, and for once let herself experience love at its fullest.

Jesse knew that to do this, she had to tell him.

The problem with that was that she didn’t really know how.

As they played around in the river, occasionally splashing each other and laughing as a soft breeze whirled around them, Jesse couldn’t help taking in just how incredibly handsome Hal looked. His shorts were nearly completely soaked from the water of the river lapping at his knees. His hair was not slicked back in its usual well-groomed look and seemed to be getting a little long, as it often fell into his face, leading him to toss his head like a horse to get it out of his face.

Jesse’s eyes seemed to be permanently affixed to him, and more often than not, he seemed to be looking at her as well. Sometimes, the mood seemed to shift from one of playfulness to something darker and needier.

Whenever the mood shifted that way, Jesse could feel heat brewing deep in her stomach. She could feel her heart pound a little faster, and her blood run a little thicker in her veins. She could not dispute the effect he had on her, and it seemed that he was aware of it as well.

Jesse felt completely exposed to him and a part of her delighted in it.

Jesse had no idea how much time had passed before Hal finally stood close to her and wrapped his arm about her waist, pulling her close to his side.

“It’s going to get dark soon,” he said softly. “Want to head back to the cabin?”

“Okay,” Jesse answered, looking up at him with a smile. Hal smiled softly back at her and offered his hand, which she gladly took.

Jesse allowed Hal to help her up out of the river, making sure she did not slip on the wet rocks that lined the bank. They both sat down on the dry dirt of the bank where they had left their shoes. They were quiet as they put their shoes and socks back on, and then they returned to the narrow trail that would lead them to the cabin.

It was not long before the trees began to subside and the beautiful cabin was revealed to them. True to Hal’s word, the sun had sunk low on the horizon and a set of automatic lights came on just as they began to approach the cabin, including the set of lights set into the awning over the pool.

Jesse thoughtlessly headed for the door of the cabin, but she was diverted from her path when she felt Hal take a grip on her hips and pull her back against his chest. She released a soft gasp at the hard planes of his body pressed against her, and she felt a sudden and acute pang of desire shoot through her body.

“Would you care for a swim?” Hal asked her softly, his breath tickling against the shell of her ear.

“I- I …” Jesse stammered as she searched for an appropriate response. “I didn’t wear a bathing suit under this.”

From behind her, Hal released a soft laugh.

“Neither did I,” he all but purred into her ear.

Jesse swallowed drily at the implication of his words, and she turned to face Hal as he slowly stepped back from her.

Jesse could only watch in awe as Hal began to slowly strip in front of her. She felt her breath catch as he took a grip on the hemline of his shirt. She bit her lip subconsciously as he revealed his muscular torso, then carelessly tossed his shirt onto a chair by the side of the pool.

As Hal proceeded to kick off his shoes and socks, Jesse could already feel her body responding to him as she saw him partially undressed for the first time. Well, for the first time in person, anyway. She had seen him shirtless in movies before and on a few magazines. In person, however, in spite of their past intimate encounters, she had never seen him in a state of undress.

Now, though, he seemed to be intent on changing that, and Jesse felt her heart quickening as Hal’s hands moved to the belt on his pants. When he pushed them down over his hips, allowing them to fall down to gather at his ankles, Jesse once again failed to withhold a soft gasp. Hal stood entirely naked in front of her.

Jesse felt her core begin to weep as she took in the incredible sight of his nudity. His chest was toned, a light dusting of auburn hair decorated his chest, and a trail of hair led down the middle of his defined abs, and led to a triangle of curly hairs just above his already half hard cock.

Jesse did not have long to look, though, before Hal gave her a smirk and then turned to jump into the pool.

Jesse watched, holding her breath, as he seemed to linger at the bottom of the pool for a long moment, and then shot up toward the surface. He tossed his hair out of his face as he broke the surface of the water and looked over at her and gave her a smile, his eyes glistening darkly as he watched her.

“Whenever you’re ready,” he called from the pool as he treaded water to keep himself from sinking.

Jesse shook her head to focus and gather the necessary boldness to trip as he had. Ultimately, Jesse decided that she had little choice and that it was truly what she wanted to do.

So, she took her time peeling off one item of clothing after the next, slowly but surely baring her skin. She could feel Hal’s eyes on her the entire time, and when she was finally naked, she could tell that she was sporting the blush that was quickly becoming her trademark, as well as a healthy layer of goosebumps.

She finally lifted up her head to look at Hal and saw that he had moved to the edge of the pool, his arms crossed and resting on the edge as his eyes devoured her hungrily. She could see that his pupils had dilated, and his mouth was parted slightly.

Jesse released a shaking breath, and she knew she could wait no longer. She took off in a run and effortlessly leaped over Hal and splashed into the middle of the pool.

Jesse easily took in the shock of the cool water. She appreciated the clarity that it offered her and the sharp contrast from the heat that was coursing through her veins. She lingered in the water for as long as possible before her lungs finally demanded air.

With that, she kicked off the bottom, rocketed toward the surface and gulped in a breath of air as soon as her head popped out of the water. Jesse smoothed her hair back and opened her eyes.

Only to see Hal floating less than a foot away from her. Jesse felt him take hold of her hips, and she let out a soft moan at the ravenous look in his twinkling green eyes.