Chapter Ten
JANA AWOKE TO someone banging on her front door at five thirty in the morning. She clutched her blanket, heart pounding, and tried to coax her sleepy brain into functioning.
The banging stopped and she grabbed her phone. She’d missed three calls from DO NOT RESPOND!
Come on, Hunter. What now?
Without reading the texts she went to the front door and peeked outside. Sure enough, Hunter was standing there in a pair of low-slung jeans and a sweatshirt, with the hood pulled over his head. She yanked the door open.
“What are you doing here this early, and why do you look like a gangster?”
His eyes roved over her clingy tank top and panties. “Do you always answer the door nearly naked?”
“Only to strange men who knock before sunrise. What do you want, Hunter? To drive me insane again and leave me high and dry? Because that’s not really romantic.” She turned and walked toward the kitchen.
He grabbed her arm and spun her around. “I tried to text you, but you didn’t respond.”
“Most guys wait until morning to text, so…” He smelled like cologne again, and now that she was more awake, she realized he’d shaved, too. She reached up and touched his cheek without thinking. The muscles in his jaw tensed against her palm. “I like you clean-shaven almost as much as I like your scruffy bad-boy look.”
The edge of his mouth tipped up as he stepped in closer, backing her against the wall. “Glad you approve.”
Her heart nearly stopped. Oil and water had never felt so good.
“Go get some clothes on before I finish what we started last night.” He stepped back, leaving her hot and bothered…again.
She was too confused to even try to comprehend what game he was playing. “Clothes?”
“Yeah, you know, the things that cover up that beautiful body?” He took her hand and pointed her in the direction of her bedroom, then gave her bottom a pat. “Go on or we’ll miss the sunrise.”
“Sunrise?” she mumbled as she walked toward her bedroom wondering what he had up his sleeve.
They drove to the beach in silence, save for the low hum of the truck engine. Hunter looked over at her every minute or so, but he didn’t say a word, just rolled his eyes over her face like he, too, was trying to figure out what they were doing. He parked at Indian Neck Beach and came around to her side of the truck as she was getting out.
“I was going to open your door for you.” He reached for her hand and she stared at it for a beat.
“Why? What’s going on?” She let him take her hand and help her out, then watched as he pulled a cooler from behind the cab of the truck and tossed a blanket over his shoulder. Wow. You came prepared and everything.
“We’re watching the sunrise. I hear it’s romantic.” He took her hand and led her to the dunes, where they toed off their shoes and walked barefoot across the cool sand. Hunter wasn’t exactly being warm, but she could see he was trying to bridge the gap between them.
Jana liked the feel of his hand laced with hers, but this whole scenario confused the heck out of her. “Hunter, why are we watching the sunrise?”
As they crested the hill, ribbons of blues and purples spread across the horizon, reflecting off the water with slivers of light.
“Wow.” She stood for a moment, soaking it in. “It’s so beautiful.”
Hunter looked up from where he was spreading a blanket on the sand. He knelt on the blanket and opened the cooler. “Almost as beautiful as you.”
He patted the seat beside him. He sounded so sincere that she was having a hard time reconciling his efforts with the man she knew. Or rather, with the parts of the man she knew within the confines of their relationship. She knew Hunter said nice things to people all the time, but the two of them didn’t compliment each other in that way. They told each other they were hot or sexy, but only during sex.
She sank to the blanket beside him, and Hunter handed her a to-go cup of coffee that he must have had in a carrier inside the cooler, and then he handed her a napkin and a paper plate.
“What is all this?” she asked, as he set a banana-nut muffin on the plate, then set one beside it for himself. “Hunter? You brought my favorite muffin?”
He held up his to-go cup and smiled. “Here’s to romance, pretty girl.”
“You did all of this because I dared you to learn how to be romantic?” Warmth spread through her with the realization. “No one has ever done something like this for me before.”
“Maybe you didn’t challenge them in the right way.” He took a sip of his coffee and lifted it toward her, as if he were toasting.
“So, you did this because you want to hear me say that I want you.” She shook her head. “You’re unbelievable. I should be in bed, sleeping.”
He was about to take a bite of his muffin, and he stopped, mouth open, hand in midair. “Seriously?”
Her life was chaotic enough without confusing what was going on between them as something more. She still wasn’t sure exactly what all of this was supposed to mean, and she was afraid to put herself out there on this new level with Hunter. What if she gave in and told him the truth—that she wanted him more than she’d ever wanted anyone or anything in her life—but this was all a game to him? She hedged her bets and went with a middle-of-the-road response.
“You could work on your delivery.”
He shook his head, then took a bite of his muffin. His brows knitted, and he nodded as he chewed. “My delivery.”
“Yeah. You basically burst into my house and dragged me out here. A woman likes a man with finesse.”
He cocked his head. “How would you know? You’re not exactly a relationship expert.”
“I’ve had boyfriends before. Besides, a woman knows these things.”
She turned away, watching a seabird land by the water’s edge and peck at something in the sand. Hunter took her drink and plate and set them aside. He wasted no time in straddling her waist and taking her down to her back, arms pinned beneath his hands. This she understood. This was Hunter.
“Hunter.” She laughed.
“Finesse, huh?” With a wicked glint in his eyes, he lowered his mouth to her neck and nipped at the sensitive skin just above her collarbone. “Tell me about this finesse.” He dragged his tongue along her neck, then sucked her skin into his mouth, making her entire body catch fire. “First you want romance. Now you want finesse?”
“Hunter.” His name came out like a purr.
He sealed his lips over hers in a punishingly intense kiss, then abruptly pulled away, gazing intently into her eyes. “I’m not good at finesse.” He lowered his mouth to hers, brushing over her lips, a whisper of a touch, and spoke just above a whisper. “But I’m trying to get romance right.”
He was quiet for a long moment. Jana could barely process the emotions in his eyes. He wasn’t just looking at her like he wanted her. He was looking at her like he wanted only her. Her mind reeled as he eased off of her and sat back down, like he hadn’t just sent her world spinning.
They ate in silence, and when they were done, Hunter put away their plates and cups, then scooted closer to Jana. She had never been more aware of their nearness than she was right then. Their legs barely touched from hip to ankle, but it was enough to send goose bumps up her arms. Hunter leaned back on his palms, reaching one arm behind her, so she was tucked in the recess of his shoulder but hardly touching him.
They watched the sunrise with little more than a few words said about passing birds or the colors in the sky. But even the air felt different around them now. Hunter was clearly making an effort, but she wasn’t sure he even knew why he was doing it or what it really meant. She liked this, though, sitting close, content without tearing each other’s clothes off. When she felt his fingers gently cover hers, she smiled. Finesse.
The sun lifted into the sky, its reflection dancing off the water like diamonds. The perfect backdrop to a strange and wonderful morning. She closed her eyes and lifted her face toward the warmth of the sun.
She felt Hunter brush her hair from her shoulder.
“The morning sun looks good on you.”
She opened her eyes at the tenderness in his voice and the sweetness of his words and met his gaze. The tense lines around his mouth had softened. Gone were the clenched jaw and the in-control stare, and all that was left was his beautiful face. She was pretty sure he would bark at her for calling him beautiful, but when he wasn’t making her crazy, she noticed things like the dimple beneath his left eye, his angular nose, and the way his dark brows arched slightly in the middle. When those brows came together and his gaze turned sinful, he could slay her steely resolve in a single hot second. Now the soft look in his eyes, coupled with the gentle sounds of the bay and the efforts he’d taken to be romantic, slayed her heart instead of her libido.
“What time do you have to be at work?” he asked.
“Work?” Ohmygosh! She jumped to her feet and began gathering the cooler and tugging at the blanket. “We have to go.”
Hunter jumped up, took the cooler from her hands, and followed her as she hurried back over the dune toward the truck. “Why? Do you teach this early?”
“No. I have to meet Bella and the girls.” She picked up their shoes and held them against her chest as she ran across the parking lot. “I’m sorry. I don’t mean to cut our time short.” She really was sorry. She wanted to know what might happen next between them, like if she were reading a book, maybe the couple would have shared a tender kiss or said something sweet.
“For what?” He unlocked the door and she climbed in.
She waited for him to settle into the driver’s seat and start the truck before answering. “To talk to Theresa about using the rec center for my new dance studio. Hurry, please.”
How could she have forgotten to watch the time? Bella had texted her last night to say that Theresa was going back to Boston at nine o’clock for the day. She needed to hurry.
“What new dance studio?” Luckily, the roads weren’t busy that early in the morning.
“I’m thinking about quitting Marco’s and opening my own studio.”
He didn’t say anything more until they were driving down her street and he’d pulled into the driveway. She jumped out as soon as the truck stopped.
“You’re opening your own studio?” He stepped from the truck as she ran across the lawn carrying her shoes.
“I don’t know!” She fumbled with her key, and he came up behind her and took it from her hand, calmly unlocking the door for her.
“Why didn’t I know that?” He stood on the front step, clearly waiting for an answer.
“Because we have sex; we don’t talk.” She saw something that resembled disappointment, or hurt, wash over his face, and she realized she was running off again. She slowed her frantic mind long enough to say, “Thank you for an incredible morning.” She dropped her shoes by the door, waiting for him to leave.
“Maybe we should,” he said, remaining on the front porch.
“Should…?” She’d been answering so quickly she hadn’t really processed the conversation.
“Talk.”
“Talk?” She laughed, thinking that maybe he was just playing with her, despite the effort he’d gone to this morning. “Seriously, I’ve got to get ready.” She started to close the door, and Hunter put his hand against it, keeping it open.
“I’m being serious. We should…” He looked around the living room, as if the answer he was seeking was there somewhere. “Have dinner or something.”
“Dinner?”
“Yes. We should eat together.”
She felt every second ticking away, still confused at where all this was coming from. “We eat in bed. We’re good at that.”
He crossed his arms and lowered his chin, and she finally understood just how serious he was. Dead serious.
“You want to have dinner with me? To talk?”
“Yes.” His response was accompanied by a single curt nod.
“Okay.” Oh my gosh. Hunter.
“Okay.” A hint of a smile played on his lips. “Tonight.”
“It would be nice to ask me instead of tell me.”
He dropped his gaze, and when he lifted it, his smile reached his eyes, and her insides went soft.
“Jana, would you like to join me for dinner tonight?”
She couldn’t help but smile at the restraint in his voice. “I can’t. I’m working until ten. But tomorrow I get off at seven.”
“I’ll be here at seven forty-five, then. Tomorrow.”
“Fine. But just for the record, you could have asked if seven forty-five was okay.”
“You’re a pain, pretty girl. A sexy, smart, scorching-hot pain.” He leaned in and gave her a quick peck on the cheek before heading back to his truck.
Jana closed the door and leaned her back against it, wondering how many stars had to be misaligned for Hunter Lacroux to ask her out on a real date.