“So you do this a lot,” I said, once I had my shirt back on.
Jess shrugged. “I do a lot of things.”
I didn’t miss the tone in her voice. She was doing it again. Throwing bait out there for me to snatch up. Normally, when a girl looked like Jess I didn’t turn her down. But the emptiness in her eyes bothered me too much. I liked it when her eyes were sparkling with excitement.
“I bet you do” was all I said in reply. Then I turned and headed out the private gate. The cop was sitting in his car, watching us, and I nodded to him as I passed. Once I got to the road, I glanced back at Jess, who was walking behind me. Her gaze was fixed on my back. She was thinking. I had confused her. It was all over her face.
I held my hand out. “Come on.”
She glanced at my hand, then at me, and frowned.
“Take my hand,” I said.
She raised her eyebrows. “You think I can’t cross a street by myself?” she asked. The edginess in her voice was hard to miss. She was ready to go off on me.
“I’m sure you can. But maybe I don’t want you to. Hold my hand, please.” I wasn’t sure why I was pushing this. It wasn’t like I thought she was going to get hit by a car. I just wanted to hold her hand. The lost, unsure look in her eyes got to me. I didn’t want it there.
“Why?” she asked, stepping up beside me. Her skeptical expression told me more than I needed to know. Jess wasn’t used to guys making small gestures. She was used to being used. It pissed me off more than I wanted to admit.
“Because I like having you close,” I replied, wishing I hadn’t said it quite like that. She didn’t need to get the wrong idea. Hurting her was something I wasn’t going to do, but I sure as hell wanted to teach her what to expect from a man.
“Oh,” she said, then dropped her eyes to stare at my outstretched hand. I watched her as she slowly lifted her hand and slipped it in mine.
“That wasn’t so hard, was it?” I asked with a grin, to ease her tense expression. Jess could easily offer up her body to drive me crazy, but this simple touch made her nervous and unsure.
“No, it’s . . . nice,” she replied.
I wanted to say more but I decided against it. Instead I squeezed her hand gently, then led us back over to the parking lot of Live Bay and to the Hummer. It was enough for tonight. I needed to take her home.
We didn’t say much on the way back to her house. When we pulled into her driveway, I finally looked over at her. She had been sneaking peeks at me during the short ride here. “I’ll get your door,” I told her, then got out and went around to open her door and help her out. The T-shirt she was wearing was still damp from her body, but I didn’t let myself enjoy the way it clung to her very generous curves.
“Thanks,” she whispered softly.
I didn’t reply. I just walked her to the door. When we got there, I waited while she reached for the key hidden above the door, then unlocked it. She was going to ask me to come inside. I needed to say something before she did, because declining her was much harder now that we stood outside her house. So very close to her bed.
“Put your number in my phone,” I said, handing her my iPhone.
The startled expression on her face was brief, and the fake, flirty look was back. “You not coming inside?”
“Not tonight,” I replied.
The small glimmer of hurt in her eyes surprised me. What had I said to hurt her? I was using all my willpower not to hurt her. She reached for my phone and quickly entered her number, then handed it back to me. “I won’t hold my breath,” she replied with an annoyed smile before opening her door.
I started to reach out and grab her arm to stop her, but I knew I would have her back up against the same door with my hands on her tempting body if I did that. So I let her go. She didn’t look back at me when she closed the door in my face.
The girl had a temper. It only made her sexier. Grinning, I walked back to the Hummer, knowing that her bat was still tucked safely inside. She’d need to get that from me.
Chapter Five
JESS
A knocking at the door woke me. I glanced at the clock beside my bed. It was a little after one in the morning. Momma wouldn’t be home for another two hours. I thought about ignoring it, but the fear that something could have happened to Momma had me jumping up and heading for the door.
I opened it up only to realize too late that looking out the window first would have been a smarter decision.
There wasn’t much about Hank I didn’t know. I could read him so easily. Without him opening his mouth, I knew he was drunk. I counted myself lucky. I could beat him easier with my bat if need be.
“Hey, baby,” he drawled, and leaned against the door frame as his eyes took a lazy stroll down my body. His dark hair had been cut shorter recently, and I had to admit I liked it better than the long shaggy thing he had been doing. Closing the door in his face was the smart thing to do. Unfortunately, when it came to Hank I lost every bit of my good sense.