Page 26 of The Coppersmith Farmhouse (Jamison Valley 1)
I stayed quiet as we headed out of town, unsure what to say. But once we started down the county roads, Jess broke the silence.
“You see him again, you head the other direction. He’s into some bad shit. I don’t want you around him.”
“Uh . . . okay.”
What the hell had I just stumbled into?
Jess sensed my unease. “Don’t stress about it. Just want you to be careful, okay? Word gets around town that we’re dating, he’ll know folks will be looking out for you and he’ll back
off. It’s not about you. He’s just trying to get to me.”
I was more than a little nervous that someone into “bad shit” was interested in using me to piss off Jess. But on top of that, I was now freaked that Jess thought we were dating. Even though we’d had a nice dinner, I hadn’t decided if I even liked him yet.
“Okay. I’ll avoid Wes. No problem. But one thing . . . I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t tell people we’re an item. It was nice of you to take me to dinner and I had a good time, but I don’t think we’ll be dating.”
“Do you find me attractive?”
“Uh . . .”
“I thought so,” he said. “Already told you tonight you were beautiful. So since we’ve got some major fucking chemistry and we get along, how about we cut the bullshit and see where this goes?”
I took a moment to collect my thoughts and formulate a response. “Physical attraction is not a great foundation for a relationship. Again, thank you for dinner. But with the exception of tonight, so far you have spent more time insulting me than treating me nicely. Surely you can understand why I don’t think we’d be a good pair. Let’s call it quits after you drop me off.”
“I apologized and I meant it. I was an asshole this week. Now fucking get over it.”
“Are you trying to piss me off, Sheriff?” I said. “I don’t like your tone. You don’t get to order me around and make the decision we’re dating without my agreement. That’s absurd. It doesn’t work like that.”
“It does. And we are. Exclusively, Georgia,” he said, glancing over at me as he stressed his last point.
“Wait a minute. Let me get this straight,” I said, the hold on my temper loosening. “Not only did you just ignore me but you also felt the need to emphasize that our nonexistent relationship is exclusive. Something that if you knew me at all, you would never have had to emphasize because, in any relationship, I have never been nor will ever be a cheater.”
Jess pulled in a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Not saying you’re a cheater. Jesus, Georgia, relax. Just saying we’re exclusively together. Don’t want people around town thinking we’re just friends or we’re just fooling around. We’re gonna see where this goes.”
“We’ve had one kind-of date, Jess. And I wouldn’t call us friends.”
“Because we’re not just friends.”
“I’m not dating you. I don’t even like you. Find someone else to keep you company at the café.”
“You like me. Can see it in your eyes when you look at me.”
“Physically, yes. But personally, you’re a jackass.”
He yanked the truck to the side of the road.
“What are you—” I started but Jess reached across the cab, grabbed me at the back of the neck and slammed his mouth down on mine.
I wanted to protest, I really did. To push him away and assert myself so he knew that he couldn’t just dazzle me with his looks and muddle me with his kisses.
But he totally could.
And the jackass knew it too.
At first, his lips were hard as he unloaded his frustration into the kiss. Because I was mid-sentence, my mouth was open, so he took the opportunity to push his tongue inside. Frozen for a moment, I sat there as he ravaged my mouth with his tongue.
But once the initial shock passed, I melted into him, my fingers trailing across his forearms, feeling the muscles I had been longing to touch.
We kissed for a while, me leaning across the console, until the space was too much and he reached over and unbuckled my seat belt. Then he pulled me across the cab, never once breaking his mouth away from mine.
