chapter 17
Jaxon
I JUST NEEDED TO COME to the bar to pick up some tickets one of the bar owners got me to a sold-out music concert I want to take Scarlett to tomorrow night. I thought I’d take her out for a picnic and then we could go check out the concert, which has a really good lineup. I want her to experience different things with me. I want to learn who she is; I want her to do the same. I want us to create memories. Reid said I had to get the tickets tonight because tomorrow the bar is closed. I told her to wait in the car, but she didn’t. As much as I didn’t want the surprise to be ruined, I really like that she did what she wanted; it shows that she’s becoming more confident, more of her own person.
“So are you going to tell me what you came in here for?” she asks, arching her brow at me.
I pull out the tickets and hand them to her. “I was going to surprise you tomorrow night. I had to come and pick them up tonight though, and we had to pass this bar on the way to the restaurant. Kind of messed up the surprise factor,” I grumble.
She reads the tickets and lifts her head. “I’d love to go to this concert; it looks amazing. I haven’t been to a music concert since I was in high school.” She hands me the tickets back, stands up, and hugs me. “I’m sorry I ruined the surprise.” She pulls back and winces. “It’s been so long since anyone tried to surprise me with anything. I think the last time was when Darren and I were first dating. He used to bring me flowers and gifts to the library where I was working.”
She doesn’t have much to compare me to, nor do I have much competition, considering her ex-husband, but I do want to make her happy. That’s my new goal, just to see her smile and to give her the happiness she always deserves but never got. I don’t know what’s going to happen with us, it may be something or it may be nothing, but at least I can make her life a little better. Or at least I hope I can.
Do I want her?
Undoubtedly yes, but her happiness comes first, and it’s her decision if that’s with me or not. We haven’t known each other long, and I don’t know how the fuck this happened, but it did, and I just want to be around her. I want to protect her, and—fuck—I want her to be mine.
She pulls back and presses her lips against my cheek, a chaste kiss. “For the first time in so long, I’m excited about what the week, the month, will bring.”
“Good,” I rasp, resting my hand on her waist. “We’d better hurry or we’ll be late for our reservation.”
We finish our drinks, get back in the car, and head to our next stop.
I hope she’s hungry.
THE NIGHT WAS GOING so well.
So fucking well.
Too well.
“Who is that?” Scarlett asks me when she sees a woman waving at me from the other table.
It’s Renee.
I see her eyes move to Scarlett, and her expression instantly changes, her eyes narrowing as she sends a filthy look in Scarlett’s direction.
Shit.
Renee is the woman I was sleeping with for a few months, and the last woman I’ve been with. What are the chances of her being here? There are so many restaurants in town, so it seems fate is out to get me. Maybe Scarlett won’t care, I mentioned this yesterday at lunch when she asked when the last time I had sex was, so she might just blow it off.
“Umm, a friend,” I tell her, taking her hand from across the table. “How’s your pasta?”
“It’s really good,” she says, then looks back over at Renee, who is still staring at Scarlett.
Fuck.
“Why is your friend looking at me like she hates me?” she asks, bringing her eyes back to me. “Is she an ex-girlfriend or something?”
I grit my teeth and decide to just come out with the truth, hoping she lets it go after this. Some women can, and some women can’t. I’m not sure which one she will be, but either way, I’ll handle it. “She’s that woman I told you I was sleeping with before.”
Her eyes widen. “Oh.” She glances at her again, then back at me. “I see.”
She doesn’t say anything else, and I wonder what she’s thinking. Is she comparing herself to Renee? Because there is no comparison. Scarlett has so much class and natural beauty; I don’t see anyone in a room except her. Renee is beautiful, and I won’t deny that, but that doesn’t mean anything to me, because I only have eyes for the woman sitting in front of me.
“Are you okay?” I ask her quietly, not wanting her to be upset, even if she has no reason to.
“Yeah,” she says, nodding. “Why wouldn’t I be?”
But she doesn’t look at me, she’s still looking into her plate.
I study her, not sure if she’s doing the whole I’m fine thing even when she’s not—which will probably result in her exploding sometime soon—or if she really is fine.
“Okay,” I say casually. “Do you want anything for dessert?”
I can see that Renee is on a date too, so hopefully she won’t come over and that will be that.
The woman has no shame though. . . . One of the reasons I used to fuck her.
Not that I’d ever admit anything like that out loud.
“Are you going to get anything? Maybe we could share something,” she says, rubbing her flat stomach as if she’s full. “What do you think?”
“Why don’t you choose something, and we can share it,” I tell her, just as someone walks up and stands next to the table.
Ahh, fuck. Here we go.
“Hello, Jaxon, long time no see,” Renee purrs, resting her long blue nails on my shoulder.
“Renee,” I say, acknowledging her. I don’t believe in being rude or mean to women I’ve been with. A man doesn’t do that. But I also want Scarlett to know that she’s my priority. So I have two options here. I can either tell Renee it’s nice to see her and wait until she walks away, then salvage the situation with Scarlett, or I can introduce the two women and hope for the best.
Olivia used to always say, Only people with class introduce people to each other.
So that decides my next move.
“Renee, this is Scarlett. Scarlett, Renee.”
It might be a little awkward, but it allows me to bring Scarlett into the situation, letting both women know which one is more important.
“Is this your new girlfriend?” Renee asks, after Scarlett says hello to her. “Or just another friend?”
She crossed a line with that comment, so I feel no guilt when I say, “I don’t think that’s any of your business.”
“I guess not anymore,” she mutters, flashing Scarlett another look before sauntering away.
Jesus Christ.
“Maybe we should just skip dessert,” Scarlett now suggests, looking down at her empty plate. “Unless you really want some?”
She’s upset, and I can see why. If I ran into someone who had been with her, I wouldn’t like it either. It’s not a logical thing. I didn’t even know Scarlett existed when I was with Renee, and everyone has a past. But I get it.
“I’m fine,” I say, asking for the bill. “I can get you something to take home if you like.”
“No, thank you,” she says, her tone subdued.
Shit.
I pay the bill, leave a tip, and lead her out with my hand on her lower back. I open the car door for her, then close it before walking to the driver’s side and sliding in. The second we’re on the road, I ask her, “You going to tell me what’s going on in that pretty mind of yours?”
She’s silent for a few seconds, then says, “It’s not the fact that you slept with her, I mean, it’s not like you slept with her after you met me. It’s just that . . .”
“What?” I ask gently as she trails off, not finishing her sentence.
“You won’t even kiss me,” she blurts out, looking from the window to me. “She’s had you, and fine, whatever, but I haven’t even had a kiss from you. Why don’t you want to kiss me? Is it because you want to fix me first? Because I don’t need fixing, Jaxon, I just need love.” She huffs, and then adds, “And you to fucking kiss me.”
I don’t think I’ve ever heard her swear before.
Safely, I wait until I’m able to park on the side of the road, then turn and grab her face, and kiss her. Not just a small, quick kiss, no, I kiss her. I taste her lips, I let my tongue explore hers; I give her everything in this kiss. She tastes sweet, her lips soft, and the quiet humming sound she makes deep in her throat urges me on even more. My hand moves to the nape of her neck, where I gently hold her.
And when I pull away only because I need to catch my breath, she’s wide-eyed, panting, her lips still open.
Then, without saying a word, I drive back onto the road, and back to her house.
She sits there quietly, maybe processing what just happened, but I don’t miss the upward curve to her lips.
She’s smiling to herself.
I try to keep my face straight, hiding my amusement, and also try to control my dick, which is hard and wanting a little attention from the woman next to me. I wasn’t going to kiss her so soon, but I can’t have her thinking I don’t want her. I had no idea she was waiting for me to kiss her so badly, or I would have done it earlier.
She has a demanding side, and I find myself drawn to it.
The more I get to know her, the more I like her.
Olivia would have liked her.
Yeah, she really would have.