“Enough,” Jase growls beside me, his fingers clutching the exposed skin of my hip, pulling me back from the counter.
I glance around, making a show of it. “Where’s Stacia?”
His eyebrows pull together. “She left. Wasn’t feeling well.”
He’s smooth, I’ll give him that. He stands over me; his presence alone sending chills of awareness through my body. I wave him off. “Give me another,” I say to the cute blond guy holding the bottle.
Jase steps closer, intensity rolling off him in waves. “What are you doing?”
Madison glares at him. She doesn’t trust him any farther than she could throw him. His good deed of getting Noah inside earlier is obviously forgotten.
“I’m doing what we talked about…little challenges to get outside my comfort zone. What’s the problem?” I tap the shot glass against the counter, waiting for my next pour.
Jase’s gaze dares the poor guy to pour me one and see what kind of crazy is unleashed. If I was him, I wouldn’t pour me one either. “Fuck, Avery.” He grips my hand, towing me from the kitchen.
I stumble along behind him through the crowded dining room, the two shots already hitting me. Jase pulls open the sliding door and the cool night air is a welcome reprieve. It cools my flushed skin and clears my head the tiniest bit.
He slides the door shut behind us, the music causing the glass to vibrate softly. Without any pretenses, Jase stalks forward. He cups the nape of my neck and angles my mouth to his, before leaning in to kiss me. His mouth is soft at first, but when I kiss him back, he groans low in his throat and coaxes my lips apart to deepen the kiss. His tongue touches mine and all sense of right and wrong is lost. This is heaven. His other hand finds my butt cheek, and gives it a none-too-gentle squeeze. I can feel everything in this one kiss…how much Jase wants me, how badly I wish I could do this… My brain is screaming at me to stop, but my body begs me to continue.
Jase
Her mouth is soft and damp and the way her tongue flirts with mine makes me instantly hard again. Her tongue glides along mine and she balls my shirt in her fists. Her ass fits perfectly in my hand and I grip it, holding her firmly against me so she can feel exactly what she does to me.
Avery plants her hand against my chest and breaks the kiss. “Jase.” Her eyes are alight with passion, her voice breathless…but her tone is all wrong. “We have to stop.”
I reluctantly pull away and meet her eyes. They’re blazing green and swimming with emotion. Shit. I don’t know what I did wrong – and whether to apologize or hush her fears with more kisses. This is why I didn’t kiss her earlier. I shouldn’t have taken it that far. But Avery arouses in me things I’ve never felt. It’s insane. She’s not even mine, and I’m acting like an over-protective alpha male.
She swallows and pulls in a deep breath, the confusion on her face fading. “I’m sorry.”
I take another step back. “It’s okay. I shouldn’t have rushed you.”
Avery shakes her head. “I’m not even close to being ready.”
Shit. I could punch myself. I’ve read the situation between us totally wrong. “On a scale of one to ten, ten being you’re ready to rip my clothes off…”
She bites her lip. “I’m like a negative six.”
“Shit. That bad, huh?” I take a sniff of my armpit, and she laughs. It’s so good to hear her laugh and I relax just a bit.
“It’s not you,” she says, still smiling. “How could it be?”
I pull her into my arms, and kiss her forehead softly. “I’m not going to rush you. When you’re ready, you let me know.” I want her. And I will have her. I just have to figure out what’s going on in that pretty little head of hers.
She nods wordlessly, but returns my hug, bringing her arms around my neck. “Thank you. I just…I like what we have.”
I look down at her. “Me too.”
“Can we just…focus on being friends?”
“Friends.” Great. “Of course.” Blue balls, here I come.
I release her and she steps away from me. Friends apparently don’t rub their erections against their friend’s stomachs. My bad.
“I…I need to go,” Avery whispers. I watch as she ducks her head and disappears inside.
Shit f**k.
Sometimes she seems so innocent….and then other times, not. The way she took those shots like a pro, and the way she kissed, that was anything but novice. Her tongue met mine, thrust for thrust, and we moved together effortlessly. There was nothing timid about her then. Blood flow is still directed south as my body struggles to regulate.
I can’t figure this girl out. And I want to. Hell, I need to. When I’m with Avery I don’t think about the pile of crap that is my life. How crazy everything’s become. She’s like the fresh start I didn’t even know how badly I needed.
Chapter 10
Avery
After class, Jase stops me on the sidewalk, placing his and on my lower back and leaning close. “Come home with me,” he says, his ridiculously pretty blue eyes making it impossible to look away.
My mouth twitches and Jase laughs. “Not like that. I mean we’ll study, come up with our strategy for your upcoming assignments. Being a life coach is a big responsibility and I want to make sure I do right by you.”
I do have some homework to do. And Jase’s bed is super comfortable. I don’t want to second-guess and overthink every decision I make. We can do this as just friends. Friends study together. “Lead the way.”