Chapter Five

Honey

Pacing seemed like a good idea at the time, but I had surely worn a path in the rug that sat under the bed in my room. Jake might’ve been hotter than sin in hell, but he was acting like a total jerk. Though I had to give him bonus points for putting his daughter first. He hadn’t brushed her off to give me any more pieces of his mind.

And so far, I wasn’t fired. Despite my conversation with Jake, my bag sat by the door untouched.

My phone beckoned. I wanted to call somebody to free my bottled anger. This job was a lifeline. I needed it, and I needed the place to stay. I’d lived far too long on my best friend’s couch; I didn’t want to call her and bug her about Jake. She’d probably feel obligated to tell me to quit and come back to her place.

I’d just rounded the bed when I glanced up to see Jake watching me, his arm braced on the doorframe. I narrowed my eyes.

“Just say what you have to say, sugar.” As if he hadn’t already made it clear.

He straightened.

“I don’t want you to go. It’s just—this is my family, and I have to protect them. You showing up and making them feel like your family …”

“Like what? I shouldn’t be nice to them? I should be an asshole like you’re being to me?” I asked.

“It’s not that. It’s just—”

“Just what?” I snapped.

I barely got the words out before he’d taken two predatory steps in my direction. His long strides had him eating up the distance between us before I could process what was happening.

He plunged his fingers into my hair and dipped to possessively claim my mouth. I gasped, and he took advantage. He savaged my mouth like he had a claim on me. Unfortunately, it was just like the first time we met. His kiss made me unable to breathe. His hands slid down my back, over my ass, and I was about to hook my leg around him when the doorbell rang.

I groaned, but he didn’t let me go completely. He kissed me again until the bell chimed a second time. He finally let go, stepping back, but he said nothing. Our eyes held each other until he turned to go answer the door.

There was a promise in his eyes that what happened wasn’t over. Then he was gone.

I gave into temptation and went to peek into the living room.

The man’s ass in his jeans should’ve been illegal. Tall and handsome as he was, I didn’t quite understand why he was single. When he opened the door, I shouldn’t have been surprised to see Jacque with a q.

“You didn’t show up for our date,” she said.

Quietly, I stepped back, closing myself inside the room I’d been given, not wanting to hear about his missed date. What the hell had I been thinking? He’d ruined me once, though he hadn’t known it. Our one time together had been more than magical. I’d thought that walking away that day had made me brave. I’d been the one leaving him before he’d asked me to. Girl power and all that.

I locked the door. Jake, Jacque, and Jamie. That sounded like the cutest family ever. Who was I kidding? She was totally the type of woman he’d marry. I’d always been the fill-in girl. Pretty enough that a guy would try to hook up with me, but not quite pretty or skinny enough to be that same guy’s girlfriend.

I flopped onto the bed. It made a slight squeaking noise under me. It hadn’t done that the last time I was in this room—the time Jake had taken me like a man starved. A lot of time had passed since then. We weren’t the same people today. I’d excused my behavior that day as a silly mistake—I’d done my duty was all. He was a soldier who’d put his life on the line for me, for our country. But the truth was, I’d been selfish and needy, and he’d been hot and willing. Here I was falling back into that trap again.

A short time later, a knock sounded on the door. I held my breath. I knew if I opened it and Jake was on the other side, I’d let him have me.

“Honey, are you awake?” His baritone voice was rough. I held my breath and hoped he’d assume I was asleep, even though the sun hadn’t quite set.

When I heard his retreating steps, I blew out the air I’d been holding.

Eventually, I pulled out a worn paperback from my bag. The guy on the cover, astride a butter-colored Harley, had gorgeous ink on his back. It was a story I’d read over and over again. Even though he looked like a menace to society, the heroine who pushed his buttons was a total badass herself. I wanted to be her: strong and independent. But in my current reality, with a man like Jake whose kisses made my toes curl, I was so weak it was laughable.

At some point, I fell asleep on top of the covers. I awoke the next morning to the sounds of pots clanging and muttered curses. I blinked a few times to recall where I was before remembering I was at Jake’s house. I got to my feet and quickly brushed my teeth. I washed my face before I dared walk out to what sounded like a wide-awake household.

Burning eggs hit my nose first. Jake cursed and Jamie laughed. Ford winked at me.

“Give it to me,” I said, reaching for the spatula Jake wielded.

He sighed and handed it over. I scooped out the burnt egg and tossed it in the garbage.

“How do you like your eggs, Jamie?”

“S–cc–rrrambled.”

I nodded and gave her a broad smile. “Sure thing, sweetie.” Over my shoulder, I asked, “How about you, Ford?”

“Fried,” he answered.

So his had been the eggs burnt to a crisp. I plucked another pan from the copper ones hanging over the island and got to work. Before I cracked my first egg, I smelled toast on its way to being charred. I hit the button to make it pop up. They were a deep golden brown—I’d caught it just in time.

I slid the fried egg onto a plate and plucked two pieces of toast to add to it. I placed it in front of Ford and went back to scrambling eggs in the other pan for Jamie.

“What about you, Jake? Eggs?”

He didn’t answer right away. So when I turned to hand Jamie her plate, I raised an eyebrow in his direction.

“Sunnyside up.” When I didn’t move, he added, “Please.”

“Coming right up,” I said, giving him my back to conceal my smile.

Shriveled, blackened bacon sat on a plate. I ignored it for now and put more toast on. It was ready just as his eggs were.

After the family was taken care of, I buttered some toast for me and ate an apple. His eyes locked onto me.

“You’re not going to eat more?” Jake asked.

“I’m not really a breakfast person.” I shrugged.

He polished off his food before he spoke again.

“Thank you,” he said, sliding off his seat. “Come on, squirt. We’ve got dish duty.”

I scooted out of the way. Every time he was near, my body reacted as if he’d touched me. My skin became hypersensitive as memories of how he kissed and how he fucked made it hard to think straight.

I went to my room to take a very cold shower and dress for the day.