Page 58 of One Time Only (One Time Only 1)
That’s what I want.
The knot of tension skips off into the ether. Good riddance.
Jackson joins me on the couch. As I grab the room service menu, I drape an arm around his shoulders. “This place has the best pizza I’ve had in ages.”
He stares quizzically at my arm around him.
I give him a what’s the big deal look. “What? I can’t put my arm around you while we call room service?”
He rolls his eyes. “Did I say it bothered me?”
“No. But you’re giving me a look like it bothers you.”
“It’s literally the first time you’ve put your arm around my shoulder. I was just noticing it. Because that’s what I do. I notice things.”
I tilt my head. “And what do you notice about it?”
He pats my hand on his shoulder. “That I like it. Okay? I like your arm around me.”
And my damn heart, it does some kind of jumping jack in my chest.
I smile happily as I survey the pizza choices. “All right, let’s get the man a large pie. Think he wants mozzarella—”
Jackson’s fingers dig into my side, and the bastard tickles me.
Thump.
The room service menu falls to the floor.
“Stop, stop!” I beg, laughing as I fall back against the cushions, trying to escape.
He chuckles as he tickles me more, and I fight like hell to wriggle away from him. Motherfucker is strong, though, and I can barely escape his tickling hand. “You dickhead. You were waiting for the moment to do that,” I say when he relents.
He grins, his eyes wicked. “I was indeed, and it worked.”
“I hope it was worth it.”
“Absolutely worth it.”
I narrow my eyes at him, but I can’t stay mad. I’m having a blast.
We place the order for Cruz, and when I hang up the phone, Jackson looks down at my clothes. “You got dressed.”
I shrug. “I put on lounge pants. Did you want me naked?”
“Not gonna lie. I really like the way you look naked. But”—he tugs at the waistband of my lounge pants—“I like the way you look in these too. Casual sexy.”
“We’re having a pajama party, so I had to put on my pj’s,” I say with a wink.
“Do you want me to put mine on? I sleep naked.”
I thrust both arms in the air. “Commando, for the win.”
His expression turns serious. “So, I’m spending the night? For real?”
“Um, yes. That’s what the whole pizza negotiation was about. Don’t back out now.”
He smiles softly. “I won’t. I’m just kind of amazed.”
My chest squeezes. “Me too. And I want you to stay the night, J. And not because I’m horny for you, though I absolutely am.”
He grins.
But I don’t return the smile. This is a chance to say something that matters. “I like being with you. It’s that simple.”
A faint pink hue spreads across his cheeks.
Whoa.
I run my fingertip over the spot of color. “You just blushed.”
He dips his head. “Sometimes I do that.”
“Did I make you blush?”
“Yeah, you did. It was nice. I liked it. All right? Don’t make a big deal out of it,” he mutters, and it’s adorable how he tries to deny that the heat in his cheeks is a big deal.
It is a huge deal.
But I’m not going to press. I’m simply going to enjoy this delicious detail about him.
Jackson clears his throat and sets a hand on my knee. “What about your brother? You had a deal with him. What does this do to that deal?”
“The deal,” I repeat, buying some time.
Am I going to tell Jackson what the true stakes were? That Zane and I made a deal we wouldn’t fall in love?
“Because you said earlier we were already involved,” Jackson says, and there’s my answer.
I don’t have to tell him.
I already said enough.
But it feels good to let him know what he’s doing to me. “I do feel that way, J. I don’t know what it means. But I feel like there’s something going on here.” I meet his eyes, trying to read what he’s feeling.
He takes a beat, running his hand up my thigh. “Yeah. Me too.” It comes out heavily.
“What are we going to do with that?”
He sighs, still touching my knee. “I don’t know. There’s so much at stake. And I don’t know if I’m . . .”
I finish the thought for him, since I bet he’s thinking about Fabian. “Ready for anything more?”
“Right,” he says quickly, then gives a casual shrug. “But hey, you’re probably not either, right? That’s not your style.”
It hasn’t been my style, true. But my style is changing with him. Trouble is, I also don’t want to feel those nerves again. I don’t want to be made a fool.
I spent enough time playing that role when I was growing up. Don’t need to now.
I keep it cool.
“Let’s make a deal between you and me, then.” A deal is so much easier than anything else. And besides, I shouldn’t take chances with things like love. Things I know nothing about. Foolish things I don’t have time for. “Let’s make a deal that we’re going to fuck each other’s brains out for the next seven days.”
