Page 20 of Fight for You
SANTA BARBARA
Jordyn
Days Free: 1
Naked,I floated on my back in the cold water off the California Central Coast, staring at a spray of stars.
Had I lost my mind?
Not at all.
Finally, I found it after years of entrapment.Free! The cold water didn’t bother me; I reveled in my freedom. A deep inhale of the briny air, and I let the water push, pull, lift, tug. Hell, the male species had done the same to me all my life. Now this, I didn’t mind while lying beneath a sliver of moon.
In my peripheral, I saw movement along the shore and shot up to a standing position. My toes jammed into the soft, wet sand. I waded to shore like I belonged in the Garden of Eden before guilt made humans cover themselves.
My gaze followed a dog speeding ahead as its owner ambled behind, hands in pockets, a towel tucked beneath his massive arm.
That dog.Remi?Reign? “Rebel, stop!” My eyes widened.
“Rebel, sit,” Jamie ordered. Although the dog obeyed, Jamie seemed to realize I wanted to avoid the mangy mutt. He picked up a small piece of driftwood and tossed it. “Fetch.”
The dog took off like a firecracker. Okay, maybe she wasn’t a mangy mutt. She had the shiniest coat ever and the longest, whitest teeth.Wait a minute. Long teeth? I trembled in the night.
Jamie must’ve thought I was cold. Probably should’ve been. He’d shocked my heart to life twenty-four hours ago. He held out a towel and wrapped me in it. I waited for his powerful arms to encircle my waist, but he stepped back. Nor had he looked anywhere but my eyes when wrapping me into the soft towel that caressed my skin like a dream.
Was I not pretty to?—?
My head shook as I grappled with the confusion of being objectified. Who was I now?Free.“Thank you.”
He shrugged.
“No. Not for the towel. Well, yes. For the towel.”Girl, you could’ve been a courtesan in ancient Rome and knocked Ceasar down to size.What is wrong with you?Sound coherent. “I appreciate the towel, but if the man standing in front of me is the real you?—”
“It is,” he declared, voice deep. “No pretenses, Jordyn.”
“Alright.” I lifted a shoulder. “So, I owe you for saving my life.”
“No, you don’t.”
“Well, I have to repay you.” Would he have a fetish? Would he—No. I wanted to believe he wasn’t like that. Same as I had assumed with Katlego. Although kings in South Africa weren’t absolute monarchs, he included me in ceremonies. Wined and dined me. Took me into more wealthy territories and on excursions throughout Cape Town, Cape Peninsula, Garden Route. It was different.
And then I was sold. Another man’s property.
If Jamie was truly a good man, how did I?—
“You’re shivering, Jordyn.”
“It’s cold.” And I never resided in a world where things were given freely. So how did I repay the man?
Jamie strode to the bags on the ground. Grabbed them all. Everything but the briefcase—with his money. If this was a game of trust, Jamie knew the rules of engagement. When would he show me his true colors? You didn’t go through what we had and still be whole. Loving. Joyful. At peace. If I was mistaken and hadn’t taken the man at his word, I could … fall in love with this man. So, I’d better hold out hope.In the meantime, try to be nice, Jordy.
As I grabbed my briefcase and followed him into the house, I told myself not to condemn Jamie for what other men had done to me. Not to turn my wrath against him. But the thing was, the part of my heart that never grew up since we last crossed paths still hated him. Couldn’t help it.
“Shower? Dinner?” Jamie asked. “It might be too late for dinner, but if you’re hungry, I’ll cook.” He pressed a button inside of the entry. The door closed.
“Have you eaten?” I asked. Why wasn’t he asking why I returned? Heck, I should be grateful. Even I didn’t know the answer to that.
Jamie shook his head.
