Total pages in book: 104
Estimated words: 100608 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 503(@200wpm)___ 402(@250wpm)___ 335(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 100608 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 503(@200wpm)___ 402(@250wpm)___ 335(@300wpm)
“Good evening, Sheriff,” I say, grinning at him. “Fancy seeing you here.”
“What a coincidence,” Jax deadpans, his greedy stare licking over every feature of my face. “Do you have the time to discuss, um, official Chamber business?”
“I’m having drinks with a friend.” I smirk at Jax. “Another night perhaps?”
“Perhaps not.” Jax’s jaw muscle ticks and his brown eyes flare. “It’s pretty damn important, Mr. Kincaid.”
I glance over at Rhett, wincing when I realize he’s putting two and two together faster than I can stop him. The last thing I need is for him to realize Jax is my closet guy.
“Rhett,” I say, forcing a smile his way. “Let’s catch up again soon.”
“Certainly. I’ve got the tab,” Rhett assures me. “Best get out of here. The official Chamber business sounds incredibly important.”
I laugh as I shake his hand. “Keep me posted on the condos.”
Jax waits for me, his body thrumming with energy. Based on the way his eyes never leave my mouth and how he stands too close for “just friends,” I’d say he’s feeling territorial of me. The thought thrills me, but then I immediately squash it.
His intensity sucks me in every damn time. I need to learn how to put up a proverbial wall against it. In his presence, though, that seems impossible. On the way out, Kian watches us with narrowed eyes. Jax is so worried about his secret getting out, but he’s the one who’s always so damn obvious about it.
As soon as I open the door, icy wind slaps me in the face. I groan against the assault. Jax, clearly used to the cruel cold, doesn’t even flinch. He grabs the lapels of my coat and pushes my back against the brick wall of the building.
“Sorry to ruin your date.” His dark eyes flash in a way that tells me he’s anything but sorry. “But you know how important official Chamber business is to us.” He leans forward, pinning my hips with his. We’re both hard for one another.
“As hot as this is, Rhett wasn’t my date. He’s my friend.” I lean forward, inhaling his manly pine scent that doesn’t get lost in the wind. “I only have one fuckbuddy.”
He winces at my words. “I’m more than that to you.”
Tearing my gaze from his, I look up at the cloudless sky. The snow isn’t coming down at the moment, but the weather predicted we’d get more of it this week.
“Dante,” Jax croaks out, his gloved hand cupping my cheek. “We’re more than just fuckbuddies.” His lips brush against mine in a soft, affectionate way that has my heart squeezing painfully in my chest.
I’m so tired of this conversation with him.
“Come on,” Jax barks out. “It’s cold outside.”
It’d be smart to resist him, walk back inside Focus, and continue to chat with Rhett. It’d be the sane thing to do. The less painful thing to do. Instead, I follow him over to his Tahoe. We climb in and he cranks on the heat. As though we’re boyfriends, he reaches over to take my hand, threading our fingers together.
He drives us in the opposite direction of his house and the B&B. I’m surprised, to say the least, when he pulls up in front of the movie theater. It’s not that busy tonight, just a few cars dotting the parking lot.
“A movie?” I ask, lifting a brow.
“A date.”
His grin is devilish, setting my blood ablaze. I shouldn’t be so fucking happy to go on a date with this man. It’s reminiscent of the way I was with Toby. How I got swept up in him, lost sight of reality, and fell for the man. I’m still recovering from that fall. Another fall like that could be a devastating one for me.
“We can watch anything, but there’s a new comedy that looks good. Will Ferrell.” He grabs my hand again, shocking the hell out of me considering how we’re out in the open for anyone to see.
I stop before we make it halfway across the parking lot. “Jax…”
“Don’t ruin it by overthinking it,” he says. “I’m heeding my own advice this time.”
His lips find mine for a kiss. Swift, sexy, sweet. Before I’m ready to let him go, he pulls away and drags me by the hand to the ticket booth outside the theater. A girl with pink hair and a lip ring doesn’t even bother to look up from her phone as Jax tells her which movie and number of tickets he needs. She takes his money and passes over two tickets, all without breaking stride in her rapid one-thumbed texting.
“Damn kids these days are so rude,” Jax mutters once we walk inside.
“The old man lines are mine.”
He laughs as we approach the concession stand. This kid seems to value his job a little more. Jax releases my hand to pull out his wallet. After we order more snacks than necessary for two guys, we head toward our theater. Though I’m appreciating Jax’s attempt to be seen as more than friends in public, I’m thankful for the empty theater where I can have him to myself. We find seats at the very top row in the middle.