Page 27 of Enticed
“Lies!” she accused playfully, continuing to shove at me. That was when it happened. She tried to push against my ribs, but her hands slipped on my shirt. Before she could stop herself, momentum carried her over, and she slid across my body, landing sprawled out on my chest.
“Oh shit,” I barked and clamped my arms around her before she tumbled completely over the edge. Her wide, startled gaze met mine and held for a long moment. Her body was pressed soclose to mine, I could feel her pulse thundering against my ribs. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah,” she replied breathlessly. “Thanks for catching me. I thought I was about to hit the floor.”
“No problem,” I replied, my voice shaking as I fought to catch my breath. For several long seconds, she simply lay there, her chest heaving as she stared into my eyes as though searching for something. Then her gaze dropped to my mouth, and my lips parted as I drew in a ragged breath. “Jasmine,” I said, my voice strangled and pleading.
“Sorry. I-I didn’t mean to?—”
“It’s fine,” I said in a rush, cutting her off. Neither of us moved. She made no attempts to get up, and I didn’t push her away.
“If you ask me to get up, I will,” she promised, her voice barely above a whisper, “but just know that I don’t want to.”
“Fuck,” I ground out, fisting my hands in her shirt, causing my knuckles to graze her lower back. She sucked in a sharp breath at the contact, and I swallowed hard as the sound shot straight to my cock.
“Tell me you don’t want this and I’ll move, and we can go back to pretending like there isn’t this spark between us.”
There. She said it. It was all out in the open now, the reality we’d been tiptoeing around.
I couldn’t answer her, couldn’t admit that she was right. Squeezing my eyes closed, I shook my head. “I have to let you go,” I replied, my voice pained. Despite my claims, my hold tightened on her for the briefest of moments. And then I released her, gently moving her aside so I could sit up. Propping my elbows on my knees, I hung my head as I gathered myself, trying to ignore the tightness in my chest.When I finally spoke again, my voice was strained.
“I’ve got some calls to make, so I’m going to take a walk while you get ready for bed.”
“Okay,” she replied quietly, her voice tinged with hurt and disappointment. Without another word, I slipped on my boots and walked out the door. I pulled up Elwood’s contact in my phone as I walked to the horse stalls to check on Juniper one last time, guilt twisting my stomach into knots. I dreaded talking to him, knowing how close I’d come to crossing a line with his daughter, the one he’d tasked me with watching over, but I needed to update him. Jasmine had texted him earlier about her win but had conveniently left out the part about being hurt. I suspected it was because she knew he’d demand that she come home, but she was determined to stay and compete again.
“What has she done now?” Woody said in greeting.
I released a halfhearted chuckle. “Why do you ask that?”
“Because I know my daughter. I figured the only reason you’d be calling me this late was that she’d pushed you over the edge. Thought maybe you’d had enough of her stubborn ass and were calling to tell me you quit.”
“Eh, she’s not that bad.” Sure, she was stubborn, but I respected her tenacity and I liked her sass, maybe a little too much.
He chortled, and I pictured him with his head tossed back and his large hand gripping his stomach. Elwood was one of those people who laughed with his entire body, and you couldn’t help but join him. His laughter was infectious. He was a happy go lucky guy, someone who enjoyed life to the fullest, but he was terrifying when angry. I sobered, gulping at the thought of him finding out about the moment Jasmine and I had just shared. That would surely make him furious.
“You’re forgetting I’ve traveled with her for a long time. I know just how difficult she can be. She’s certainly earned hernickname over the years.” He’d called her Spunk since she was a kid, and the name suited her well.
“That’s actually what I wanted to talk to you about.” He let out a low curse, and I winced. “She sprained her ankle dismounting Juniper after her race. We’ve iced it and wrapped it, but it still looks pretty bad. She can barely walk, but she’s insisting on trying to compete again tomorrow.”
“Of course she is,” he replied with an irritated grumble. “She’ll come to her senses in the morning when it’s stiff as hell and hurts like the dickens.”
“I hope you’re right. I don’t want to see her injure herself further.”
“She won’t. You’re only getting pushback now because she’s upset and disappointed, but logic will win out. She's smart. She knows that sitting out one race is better than missing several. Trust me.” I hoped he was right.
We only talked for a few more minutes after that. When we hung up, I checked in on Juniper. Once I was satisfied she had everything she needed for the night, I slowly walked back to the trailer, stopping to talk to a few of the rodeo guys still milling about.
Jasmine was fast asleep when I returned. On the damn pull-out sofa. I sighed in exasperation and rubbed my hand over my face. This woman. She really was as stubborn as they came. Just like I had the night before, I slid my arms beneath her and lifted her in the air.
“Gabe,” she croaked, her voice thick with sleep as I carried her to the bed.
“Shhh, it’s okay,” I replied, laying her down on the mattress. I gazed down at her, taking her in beneath the dim glow of the nightlight. Her eyes were soft and face relaxed, pink staining her cheeks. Her sleeve had slipped even further down her arm, revealing the swell of her breast. My fingers itched to slide itback up her shoulder, but I refrained, worried that if I touched her, I wouldn’t be able to walk away this time. Instead, I swallowed roughly and reached down to pull the covers over her. “Go back to sleep,” I instructed, trying to erase the image of her beautiful face with those stunning hazel eyes looking up at me like I was the only man she’d ever wanted, as I turned away.
I gathered my things and headed to the shower. The hot water did little to ease the tension in my muscles and absolutely nothing to relieve the near painful erection jutting out between my legs. I leaned forward and pressed my palms against the shower wall, fighting the urge to wrap one around my cock and dull this ache that only got stronger by the day. I was afraid that if I touched myself, she would know somehow. The guilt over wanting to jack off to my best friend’s daughter stayed my hand. I washed my entire body, avoiding that area until the very end and adjusted the water to the coldest temperature I could stand.
When I was finished, I dressed in a t-shirt and sweats and made my way back to the sofa bed. I half expected to see Jasmine curled up on it again despite my insistence she sleep in the big bed. To my surprise, she’d stayed put. She now lay on her side, form still beneath the covers. I wasn’t sure if she was asleep since I couldn’t see her face, but I moved as quietly as I could just in case.
Her sweet scent enveloped me when I reached the sofa. I detected the same notes of blackberry and vanilla from the perfume she always wore mixed with something else, something that was purely Jasmine. I hadn’t noticed at first when I got out of the shower, but now the subtle hint of her arousal hung in the air. Had she been touching herself while I was fighting the temptation to do the same?
