Page 28 of Undisputed Player
The rejection hurt. It was a feeling I'd never experienced before and definitely didn't enjoy. My stomach sank, ego bruising in ways I didn't know were possible.
But something in her tone, in the careful way she'd delivered the refusal, kept me from pushing.
She wasn't being cruel or dismissive. She was just... scared.
I nodded, carefully accepting the rejection without letting it touch my smile. Years of media training kicked in, and I was able to maintain composure even when the ground was crumbling beneath my feet.
"The offer stands, though," I said, keeping my voice light. "No expiration date."
Relief.
It flickered in her eyes so quickly I almost missed it, but there it was—genuine relief that I wasn't pushing, that I was taking no for an answer without argument or persistence.
When was the last time a man had respected her boundaries without trying to steamroll them?
The thought was like a sledgehammer to the chest, and suddenly everything about her made sense. The careful distance, the suspicious looks, the armor she wore like a second skin.
Something had taught her that people didn't take no for an answer. That persistence was just another word for harassment, that charm was just manipulation with a prettier face.
I wanted to find whatever had caused this wariness and eliminate it.
But more than that, much more, I wanted to prove to her that not all men were the same. That some of us could be trusted with something as precious as her comfort, her safety, her trust.
I wanted to be different for her. Better for her.
I'd never wanted to change for a woman, had never felt the need to be anything other than exactly who I was. But looking at Estelle, seeing that relief in her eyes because I'd respected a simple boundary, I felt something shift inside me.
Maybe the playboy reputation wasn't as appealing as I'd always thought. Maybe the revolving door of meaningless encounters was exactly that—meaningless.
"Jax, can we go now?" Avery tugged at my hand, oblivious to the undercurrents swirling around us like invisible storm systems.
"Coming, pumpkin." I gave Estelle one last look, softening my expression into something I hoped conveyed understanding rather than disappointment. "See you tomorrow, Ms. Estelle."
As I led Avery from the classroom, my mind was already racing with new possibilities. I'd never pursued a woman who didn't want to be pursued. Women came to me, drawn by fame and money and the cultivated image of danger wrapped in designer suits.
But Estelle seemed immune to all of it, looking at me and seeing...what? Just another rich guy with too much time and too little substance? Another player looking for his next conquest?
The thought was maddening and somehow exhilarating at the same time.
I wanted to know what she was thinking, wanted to understand the careful calculations I could see happening behind those beautiful eyes. Not to conquer or possess in the way I was used to, but to understand. To see the woman beneath the exhaustion and wariness.
To prove that I could be worthy of the trust she guarded so carefully.
In the car, Avery chattered about her day while I responded on autopilot, my thoughts still tangled around Estelle Moore and the challenge she represented.
This was about proving that a man could want a woman without threatening her, could pursue her without pressuring her, could be persistent without being predatory.
About becoming the kind of man she could actually say yes to.
The idea was foreign, revolutionary in its simplicity. Instead of pushing through her boundaries, I needed to respect them so completely that she chose to lower them herself.
Instead of being the kind of man women fell for despite their better judgment, maybe I needed to be the kind they fell for because of it.
I'd never attempted to be genuinely good for someone before, had never considered that my usual tactics might be part of the problem rather than the solution.
But for Estelle, I was willing to try.
For Estelle, I was willing to be better.
