If We Dare - J.H. Croix Page 0,64

talked.”

“I do appreciate that.”

“I guess you might need to be ready for him to ask you about it.”

“Oh, I’m sure he will. I suppose we should talk.” Jade looked uncertain. Her eyes bounced from me down to her wine glass. She traced along the edge of the counter with her fingertip.

After another sip of scotch, I laid it out there. “I didn’t expect this. Not at all. Oh, I knew I was attracted to you, but I thought I could keep it in hand. Even after the wedding, I thought things would fade. Can I be really blunt with you?”

Jade lifted her head, her eyes catching mine. She looked surprised. After a nod, she waited quietly while my heart kicked against my ribs.

“I think I’m falling in love with you. I know you planned never to date anyone, so I’m not sure how you feel about that,” I finally said.

As nervous as I was, the words came out normal. A strange sense of relief washed through me. Saying aloud how I felt was a relief if only because it was honest.

Jade’s eyes widened slightly. I could see the rapid flutter of her pulse along the side of her neck. Her cheeks flushed, and she took a quick breath as she stared at me.

“If you’re worried about it, I don’t expect you to say the same in return,” I added. Although it stung a bit to say that, I meant it.

“I don’t know what to say,” Jade finally said.

“I figured I might as well tell you. This is real for me. Lucas is only going to accept my rain check for so long. Either I lie to him, or I tell him the truth. I prefer to be honest.”

Jade lifted her wine glass and took a swallow. Her hand shook slightly when she set the glass down. I instinctively reached over, curling my hand over hers.

“Are you okay? I don’t know how to move forward. Maybe this means that you tell me to fuck off. I won’t lie and pretend that’s what I want, but—”

Jade shook her head sharply. When she didn’t say anything, I said, “I’m not sure what that means.”

“I didn’t plan on this either, but I don’t want it to end. I know you know what happened, so you know why I had lots of reasons to not want to date. Trust is really hard for me.”

Her honesty sliced through me, a sharp blade across the surface of my heart. “I know.”

Another wave of relief washed through me. I didn’t know what the future held for us, but I knew deep inside that I wanted a chance to give Jade the love she deserved.

“I’m not so great at talking about my feelings,” she offered with a sheepish smile.

“No?” I teased. “And here I am, the expert.”

After a long moment, she slipped off her stool and stepped between my knees as I turned toward her. “How about we maybe take a break from talking?”

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Jade

I was usually cold at night. Ever since I was a little girl, I’d had a habit of sleeping in my socks because my feet got cold. Lucas used to tease me about it when we were kids.

That’s how I knew right off I wasn’t alone in my bed when I woke up. I was warm and toasty all over, including my feet, and I didn’t even have socks on.

I was plastered against Walker’s side with one of my feet tucked between his calves. He had an arm wrapped around my shoulders, holding me firm against him. I didn’t mind that one bit. Walker’s body was just, well, it was ridiculous. The man was too lucky by half. He was all hard muscle, even when relaxed. Walker was one of those men nature just blessed, perhaps in a moment of boredom, thinking somebody deserved to look like that all over without too much effort.

Opening my eyes, I shifted slightly. I lifted my head and rested my chin on my hand over his chest. I could feel the steady thump of his heart, and his skin was warm under my palm. His dark hair was mussed. I could’ve presumed it was from sleep, but maybe not. I’d tangled my fingers in his hair when he pushed my knees apart and proceeded to drive me absolutely wild with his mouth hours ago. This man knew how to take care of a woman.

I took a long look at his face in sleep. He had a masculine face with