Page 63 of Pick Me

“Show you?”

“Yeah, flip my hat around and let me know what you think.”

I hesitated for a second before I pulled the cap off his head, surprised to smell his shampoo. Then I flipped it around and put it back over his thick black hair.

Leaning back a little, I said, “Well, shit. Was a backward baseball hat all you needed to be hot?” It was supposed to come out as a joke, but it sounded far too serious.

He chuckled, leaned over to put his beer down, then rested his hand on my thigh, squeezing it. “Glad you think so.”

Why wasn’t I shaking his hand off? Why did I like the warmth?

“I didn’t mean it the way it came out.”

“Of course you didn’t.” His palm was still burning my leg. “I guess it’s my turn now.” His face was serious as he said, “Never have I ever kissed my friend’s sister.”

His gaze flicked down to my lips, and I felt it. I felt it all the way to my core as though he’d switched a button on, and I was finally ready to see Jackson as something more. My brain was fuzzy, and he wouldn’t stop looking at me. I tried to think about my friends and if they’d had any sisters I’d kissed. When I could confirm I hadn’t, I leaned back, grabbed the wine from the coffee table, and took a large gulp.

As I put the wine down, Jackson watched, and it came back. The feeling I was having trouble putting into words. It was an urge. A need to touch him. Maybe it was the wine. I’d only had a glass, but I wasn’t a big drinker, so maybe it was getting to me. Or maybe it was the fact I was just casually sitting on his lap when we had this entire three-bedroom apartment to ourselves.

Something had shifted between us. I didn’t know when it happened, but I wasn’t willing to talk about it just yet.

Apparently, Jackson was tired of waiting. He cupped my cheek, giving me a moment to back away if I wanted to. Like a fool, I didn’t. Instead, I leaned forward and closed my eyes as our mouths connected. Soft, pillowy lips caressed mine before his tongue requested entry. Every fiber in my body relaxed, feeling lost in his touch. I deepened the kiss as his fingertips pressed into my thighs, and he moaned in what sounded like a sigh of relief. I couldn’t help but feel the same way. There was something about letting all that tension and anger go with this moment.

I teased my tongue across the seam of his mouth, and he opened for me as I moved my hand to the nape of his neck, keeping him close and directing him in the way I liked him to touch me.

As things became more heated, I flipped the hat off his head, giving me ample opportunity to run my hands through his hair. I pulled on the strands, showing him exactly how I liked it.

He squeezed my thighs. “You’re perfect,” he said into our kiss. I paid little attention to the words or the sentiment, as I was too lost in the taste and feeling of Jackson all over me. My brother’s teammate, but he was more than that.Myroommate.Myarchnemesis. He was everything I didn’t want but needed. I needed to feel him like this, to have control of someone so much bigger than me. Knowing he could crush me if he wanted.

I didn’t care what Tanner would think. The only thing that mattered in this moment was Jackson. Oh, and the tingling sensation building in my core.

I was getting hot. Hotter than I’d ever like to admit to Jackson since he’d gloat about it. However, I doubted it would be a secret for long, considering I was rocking my hips against his solid thighs. His hands moved from my thighs to my ass, and he squeezed my cheeks as he guided my movements.

Gray sweatpants and my silky shorts were the only things separating us. Never, and I meannever, had I thought about Jackson like this, but in this moment, all I could think about was how much I wanted to feel every inch of his body against mine.

Push and pull, tongues clashing. I was building myself up for a high I was almost certain I’d be unable to match.

“I’ve never wanted to kiss someone as much as I’ve wanted to kiss you,” he rasped against my lips. Typical. Always talking even when I was trying to focus on the task at hand.

He pulled back, gauging my reaction, and I turned away, not wanting him to see the heat behind my eyes.

I gasped when he kissed the column of my neck, his hands moving around my body as though he’d been studying it for the longest time.

“Jackson,” I drawled out, and he captured my moan with his mouth, thrusting his tongue into mine.

His fingers dug into my ass, and without warning, he flipped me onto my back and kissed down my neck. It was as if that motion caused my brain to start functioning again, and I realized what was going on.

“I need to taste you.”

Jackson’s hands were teetering on the edge of my shorts, ready to pull them down. Then what? I’d sleep with Jackson?

Jackson James.

The guy I was supposed to hate.

“What am I doing?” I panicked as I saw my hips rocking against his body, chasing pleasure. Pleasure fromhim.

Couldn’t he see the mistake we’d just made?

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