Free First Time For Everything by Aimee Carson Page B

mouth again, Blake turned back to the rail and picked up his brush.
    * * *
    She’d kissed him.
    A week later and her mind still churned from the interlude, so Jax leaned back against the chaise longue and tried to relax. The turquoise waters of the pool stretched out at her feet, the waterfall gurgling nearby. And beyond the deck on the far side, the surface of the bay sparkled in the sun. Nikki was sitting at a patio table reading while her mother fixed sandwiches for lunch and prepared a homemade apple pie—a new recipe Abigail Bennington wanted to try after her week away at a cooking institute. The smell was unusual. Nikki had warned Jax to insist on a small slice, and Abigail had feigned outrage at the indirect insult. Jax found the two women endearing.
    So she should feel at ease and relaxed. But she wasn’t. Because she’d kissed Blake and he hadn’t kissed her back. Okay, so he hadn’t pushed her away exactly, but his participation had been minimal. And if that wasn’t enough of an ego thrasher, he’d been avoiding her ever since.
    In the past week, only twice had he made it home from the office in time for dinner.
    Jax had stayed busy with Nikki, the brunette helping her kick-start a phone campaign searching for donors for the club. They’d also managed a short shopping excursion and an afternoon at the beach, Nikki’s red bikini matching her dragon cast tattoo. Today Jax had driven Nikki to the doctor, who’d declared she had at least three more weeks in the cast. But even one more day spent being avoided by Blake felt like torture.
    All thanks to the constant flame burning in her body since The Kiss.
    A spark that refused to die.
    Considering she’d made a vow to be strong until she found someone who was right for her—someone who didn’t consider Jacqueline Lee a total loon—she should be grateful Blake had the ability to control what she couldn’t.
    From behind her, Nikki called out in greeting. “Blake, my long-lost big bro.”
    Jax’s heart surged, but she refused to turn and watch him approach, dreading seeing him again. Disgusted with the cowardly thoughts, Jax flopped over onto her stomach and buried her head in her crossed arms.
    Right now, she wasn’t sure what annoyed her more, her ambivalent feelings about his appearance, or his cool control. Was he here simply to torture her? To rub her face in the knowledge that she had made a pass at him and he’d pushed her away? On edge, and unable to lie still now that he was present, Jax rose and dived into the pool.
    A jolt of cool water closed around her overheated body, giving her the shock she needed, clearing her head. She set off across the pool, freestyle.
    Of course he hadn’t come to see her. He was here to eat lunch with his mother and sister, to check up on his family because he was a no-nonsense kinda guy who believed in responsibility. Duties. Sane, rational decisions. And since Mr. Self-Control’s will was so strong, she should use that in her favor. After several laps, her muscles fatigued from the work, she’d finally calmed a bit. Maybe she was ready to face him now?
    But Blake saved her the trouble of deciding.
    On her last lap, she broke the surface of the water and looked up to find him staring down at her, suit coat unbuttoned to reveal a blue dress shirt and lean hips, her beach towel in his hand.
    â€œEnjoying the water?” he said from above.
    â€œI was,” she said, with meaningful emphasis on the second word. She dropped her gaze and crossed her arms on the pool edge, taking comfort in the warm tile and the less disturbing sight of his expensive-looking black leather shoes.
    His knees came into view as he squatted down, the muscles in his legs bunching, stretching the crease in those perfectly pressed trousers.
    Everything about the man was perfectly pressed, including his libido.
    Irritation surged. “Aren’t you afraid