Page 14 of Laying His Claim
She was locked in, unable to move, tormented by a single question that repeated itself in her head over and over:What would it be like to kiss him?
He seemed to be wondering the same thing as he lowered his head, so close that she could feel the light puff of air as his breath fanned her face.
Then came the now-familiar grunt that always preceded Sebastian’s cry, and they were both treated to a high-decibel blast of sound that one could hardly believe could emanate from a package so tiny. They both turned to stare at him… and the spell was broken.
Justin sighed. “I think the little guy’s hungry.”
“I guess we should head back, then.” She had to struggle to hide her disappointment.
Of course, Murphy’s Law being what it is. A light sprinkle of rain sprang up as soon as they were within sight of the house. Justin placed one hand over Seb’s head and pressed him closer to his chest in an effort to keep him dry. Instead of approaching from the front, where they had exited the house, he led her to the closest doorway; the garage. “Faster this way,” he explained.
Laughing with excitement at the unexpected sprinkle, she stuck close to him, past the low-slung silver BMW he drove for fun and the safer and more sedate SUV he drove when Sebastian was with him.
Then she spotted something propped up against the wall, and immediately, she could identify it by brand. A Kawasaki motorbike, sprinkled with a fine layer of dust, but even so, it was clear that the paint job was firehouse red.
It was also clear that it was hers.Herbike. She stopped dead, wondering,how do I know this is mine?
Jalissa walked toward it as if in a trance, reaching out to touch it, stroking it as though petting a horse. She could sense its power. She’d ridden this? How had she found the courage?
“I had it fixed for you,” Justin said. “It used to mean a lot to you.”
The beautiful object didn’t have a scratch on it. Judging from the extent of her own injuries, she could imagine the mess it had been in after the accident. “You fixed it… and kept it here for me?”
Justin was smiling now. “You practically treated it like a pet!”
She ran her hand along the tough leather of the seat, closing her eyes and trying desperately to form some kind of connection with it. Would it speak to her? Would it help her to remember… anything?
There was nothing but silence from the cold, dead machine. Because that’s what it was, a machine, not a living thing. Certainly not a pet. She withdrew her hand in disappointment and backed away. “I appreciate the gesture, Justin,” she choked out, “but I’ll never ride this… thisthingagain!” She rushed into the house, leaving him and Seb to follow.
* * *
“Jalissa?” Justin called as he walked through the house. She had only been there a few days, but already he had fallen into the routine of seeking her out the moment he came home.
Lorena was in the kitchen, feeding Seb, and the interior of the house was quiet. He headed for the home gym where Julissa spent most of her time lately. He admired her for being so determined to heal and become stronger.
The door was open and, as he stepped inside, he was treated to a sight that stopped him in his tracks. Jalissa was doing bent-over rows, her back to him. Headphone wires leading to her ears let him know she couldn’t hear him approach, so instead of announcing himself, he stood there and enjoyed the view.
She was wearing nothing but skin-hugging, cherry-red workout tights and a black sports bra that left her midriff, back and shoulders bare. A few days of good eating was beginning to show and her slight frame was already rounding out.Starting, he thought,with her butt.Which, as luck would have it, was pointing right at him, like a red flag before a bull.
He felt an erection rising, and it took a lot of self-talk to bring it into check. He remembered the feel of those smooth brown mounds of flesh against his bare thighs; Jalissa used to love it when he took her from behind, because it freed his hands to fondle her dark, hard nipples. She’d loved it when he grasped her hair and pulled it taut, groaning lascivious words into her ear about what he was going to do next, and how much she was going to enjoy it.
That little trip down memory lane had done nothing to alleviate his erection. It was at full mast.Down boy,he thought as he entered the room awkwardly. As she re-racked the weights, she noticed his approach. She grinned at him; face sweaty, the flush of exercise in her cheeks—reminding him of another circumstance when he used to see her flushed and sweaty, and now the pain in his groin was damn near unbearable.
“You okay?” she asked, frowning into his face with concern.
“Great,” he managed. But a voice inside his head whispered, No, not great. I won’t be great until I take you on the floor, right here.With much effort, he silenced it. She simply wasn’t ready. All he could do was keep his desires under control until the time was right.
He realized she had asked him a question. “Sorry? What was that?”
She smiled. “I was wondering if you’d take me shopping.”
“Sure. It’ll be good for you to get out of the house. What do you need? Books? Are you bored?”
“Clothes.”
His brows shot up in surprise. “Clothes? I thought Kaiya had practically brought you an entire trousseau.”
“I’m not ungrateful, but,” she looked down at her exposed, sweaty midriff with a rueful smile, “most of these are a bit… I dunno, revealing.”
