Page 19 of Kiss Marry Kill
She spent most of the day snacking on chips and cookies and now she was in the kitchen getting ready to make a sandwich when she heard the front door open and close. Her heart picked up, but she closed her eyes and counted to ten.
Control yourself, Cruz!
“I brought a pizza,” Jax said, dumping the box on the counter.
“Oh, yummy. That beats the grilled cheese sandwich I was about to make.”
“I remember your cooking, that’s why I brought the pizza.”
“Ha. Ha. Living on my own and being broke . . . you learn a few things. Especially how to make a kickass grilled cheese.” She put the bread back where she found it while Jax pulled out a slice of pizza and set it on a plate for her, then took one for himself. “Tomorrow you can wow me with your grilled cheese. Today, pizza.”
“Sounds good to me,” she agreed. “So, how’d it go today?”
Jax motioned toward a chair. Once she sat and he’d eaten most of a slice, he said, “So, you got a fuck ton of trees. That’s a problem. Your house is massive, that’s another problem. You have the ocean in the back—”
“Let me guess: that’s another problem.”
He nodded. “A big fucking huge one. And your current security system is shit. How you have a multimillion-dollar mansion and shit security is beyond me. A shit security system you don’t even use,” he added, taking another bite of pizza.
“But you can fix it, right? You can make it safe?”
“Of course. Made all the calls and work starts tomorrow. Will take a few days. Got a bunch of prints, too. Hope to get some answers tomorrow.”
“Oh, good.” She sighed in relief. “Thank God. Just make my house safe.”
“Not your house, Meg. You. We’re making you safe.” He did the thing where he made her look at him as he said it. No fumbling around, no fidgeting, just his full attention on her. And his eyes were so honest as he said it, she knew he was sincere. She would be safe, so long as she was with him.
With her mouth open and a pizza hovering, she just stared at him. All the emotions she’d felt for him back then hadn’t gone anywhere. There was no denying it. It was as if he’d never left and she wasn’t sure what to do with it, especially since he wasn’t the same Jax she once knew. Spending all day trying not to think about him, trying not to miss him, pretending she was being overly sentimental about her memories and desires for him . . . it was all bullshit. She was deluding herself. Nothing had changed on her part. The problem was, was he feeling the same way about her? Or was he just being a good friend? A good security guard?
Lost in thought, she barely noticed when he stood up. “Going to shower and sleep. Have to be at your house early. You got everything you need? You good?”
She felt the lump form in her throat. “Yep. All good.”
She lied. She wasn’t good. Not at all. And she wasn’t even sure if it was because of Ryan or if it was from having Jax back in her life.
* * *
The next morning, Megan saw that there was coffee already brewed and a note stuck to the coffee maker.
At your house. It was signed with his name and, as if he was trying not to be a barbarian, he added, as an afterthought, Hope you slept well.
She had slept well. Even though her thoughts kept wandering to the man a room away, the fact he was there made her feel safe and secure. As soon as she laid her head on the pillow she fell right asleep.
Now, making herself comfortable on one of his black leather recliners in the living room, she pulled out her cell phone and called him.
“Hello,” Jax yelled into the phone.
“Hi.”
“One sec,” he said, obviously moving to a quieter area since she could hear the background noise die down. “Hi,” he said breathlessly, and she felt a smile form on her face.
“Hi,” she repeated, feeling stupid for sounding like a teenager with a crush. She cleared her throat. “Any news?”
“Nothing. Put in a call this morning to Chief Martinez and nothing’s come back from forensics on their end either.”
“I’d like to go home. I need clothes, and my notebook, and stuff,” she said.
“Not safe yet, Meg.”
